Sure Sign Of The Apocalypse

The movie Skidoo is being officially released on DVD...

(For those who have remained blissfully Skidoo-free all this time, prepare yourselves for a truly incredible viewing experience. Jackie Gleason, Mickey Rooney, Carol Channing (in bra and panties!), Groucho Marx as "God," music by Harry Nilsson... and an astonishingly brain-frying closing musical number that leaves "Skidoo, Skidoo" tattooed to your memory!)



PS: After you see it, blame Mark Evanier, he noticed the Amazon listing first!

Battlestar Galactica - The Artwork

Seems some really cool storyboards from BSG have landed on the original art market. You can see a whole bunch of them (and make offers if you're so inclined) at the url below.

Feel free to buy many and send them to me...

http://www.anthonyscomicbookart.com/NewItems.asp

New Ditko - Act 7!

I've mentioned Spider-Man co-creator Steve Ditko's personal comics several times before... Ditko just keeps on keepin' on, releasing a torrent of work over the last few years. These stories are a straight dose of Mr. Ditko, and I'm not sure critical analysis really applies. But I totally support his brand of idiosyncratic work, whether I agree with it or now!

If you go to the site below, there's a spot to click for buying his latest via Paypal. Otherwise everything is available via old school mail-order from his long time publisher Robin Snyder, all on view at the site.

http://ditko.blogspot.com/p/ditko-book-in-print.html

Head Scratcher... Airline Edition

I do my fair share of airline travel, so I get my fair share of promotional offers from various carriers. Some make sense ("Las Vegas Package deal!"), but some are... strange. This morning, for instance, one of the airlines offered a great one way deal, $59 from L.A. to San Jose.

I don't fly often enough to San Jose (as in "never") to know if that's a great deal or not, but... how is that supposed to work? You're at your computer one morning, see a low one-way fare to San Jose, and go, "you know what, I've always wanted to move to San Jose, and this cheap one way fare is the push I needed!" I'm sure some sophisticated advertising genius can explain the "why" of this, but I'm just... confused...

Me And The Dark Tower

I guess the cat's out of the bag... I am indeed collaborating with Akiva Goldsman and Ron Howard on the television side of an adaptation of The Dark Tower, based of course on the amazing, epic series of novels by Stephen King. As previous press releases have noted, this is a fairly unprecedented approach to getting the stories on screen, with a movie leading into a mini-series and then more after that. It's challenging, but that's a good thing!

I'm sure there will be plenty of discussion about all things Roland as time rolls on, but for now, I gotta get back to work! Here's a link to Nikke Finke's write-up on the all the excitement...

http://www.deadline.com/2011/04/mark-verheiden-to-co-write-ep-nbcs-dark-tower-series-with-akiva-goldsman/

TV Guide Hearts FALLING SKIES

Check out the latest issue (4/11-4/17, Smallville on the cover) for a page of photos and a quote from yours truly regarding Falling Skies.

It's really, finally coming out... wow!

New Smithereens!

Long time readers of "Famous Mark V's Of Filmland" have been regaled with my enthusiasm for the band "The Smithereens" plenty of times before. And now I get to do it again! Their first album of original tunes since 1999's "God Save The Smithereens" is coming out tomorrow, and the previews sound great.

Below, a link to a great article about the band and the new album. Which was produced by Don Dixon, another MV fave from posts-past. Fantastic!

http://www.nj.com/entertainment/music/index.ssf/2011/04/the_smithereens_return_with_20.html

Buy it! Quick!

Another Great Falling Skies Trailer!

I know, this came out a few days ago, but I've been busy! Take a look for a hint of what's coming up this Summer on Falling Skies!

http://weblogs.variety.com/on_the_air/2011/03/an-early-look-at-spielberg-backed-falling-skies-.html

Falling Skies The Panel

We came, we showed, we talked... the jam-packed Falling Skies panel at WonderCon 2011 was a lot of fun! And it was great to meet a bunch of interested folks afterward, as we signed books and posters at the Dark Horse booth.

The clips that were shown give just a hint of what's coming up. I think people will be surprised at the visceral level of combat between the humans and the aliens. It's not a "point and shoot" process, the battle gets up close and personal on several occasions. I also think people will be surprised at the emotional consequences of the invasion.

Remember, the show debuts June 19th with a special two hour opener, at 9:00PM. After that, Sundays at 10:00 (right after Leverage) will be Falling Skies time!

Wanna See Some Really Cool Clips From Falling Skies?

Then come to our Falling Skies panel tomorrow (4/1) at WonderCon, in lovely San Francisco! If I can pull myself away from buying old comic books and drooling over original art, I'll be up there with writer/producer Melinda Hsu-Taylor and star Drew Roy, aka "Hal Mason." I am told that audience members will all get a free Falling Skies comic. And, after the panel, the three of us will be loitering around the Dark Horse Comics booth signing stuff and saying "hi."

3:15PM! WonderCon! Fun! No, seriously, fun!!

Falling Skies - The Art!

Wanna see some very cool images from Falling Skies? Do you? Huh?

http://www.aintitcool.com/node/49084

Hello Birthday Visitors...

That's BirthDAY, not BirthER visitors... boy, I get a nice link from the Comics Reporter and you get to click onto my nonsense about medical jargon!

I will have some interesting news to post soon about a very exciting new project, as well as continuing coverage of the pending Falling Skies Season One unleashing. Stay tuned!

6PFP

Clip to use when you land a gig writing "House" --

# 6PFP - 6-pack and a fishing pole, as in "this patient doesn't need chemo, he needs 6PFP." - Usually referring to an end-stage patient who should go die somewhere else.
# 404 moment - The point in a doctor's ward round when medical records cannot be located. Comes from HTTP 404 error "Not Found".[3]
# AGMI - Ain't Gonna Make It
# Agnostication - A substitute for prognostication. Term used to describe the usually vain attempt to answer the question: "How long have I got, doc?" [3]
# ART - Assuming Room Temperature (dying)
# ATS - Acute Thespian Syndrome (the patient is faking illness)
# Baby Catcher - an obstetrician [4]

And there are dozens more. Thanks to Andrew Sullivan's site
http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/
for the heads up.

Read the rest at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medical_slang#Annual_round-up_of_medical_slang

Falling Skies: The New Trailer!

Another taste of things to come --

http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2011/03/falling_skies_exclusive.html

Also, if the programming guide is to be believed, I will be appearing with writer Melinda Hsu Taylor and Falling Skies actor extraordinaire Drew Roy at WonderCon in San Francisco on April 1. We'll be showing clips from the show, discussing "stuff" and handing out free Falling Skies comic books to everyone who shows for the panel. So if you're in S.F. on April Fool's Day and want to catch a sneak peek, here's your chance!

Great Movie Alert: Rolling Thunder

Finally out as a DVD-R "on request" release from Amazon, Rolling Thunder features William Devane and a young Tommy Lee Jones in an unsettling little revenge tale circa 1977. Written by Paul Schrader, Thunder follows a Vietnam war vet (Devane) who runs afoul of some spectacularly evil fellows. Tragically for the bad guys, they make the classic movie mistake: messin' with the wrong hombre.

I saw this back in the day and remember it mostly for a rather visceral scene involving a hand and a garbage disposal. At the time the movie was soundly rebuked by critics and audiences alike, but it's actually a pretty cool slice of 70's cinema. I guess the world just wasn't ready for the movie's violence and grim 'tude.

In the small world department, Thunder was produced by Larry Gordon, who told several amusing tales about the film's production while I was enjoying (enduring?) meetings re: the script for Timecop. Most of the stories shall remain unrepeated (let's just say there were a lot of egos on that shoot), but Gordon was especially proud of an audience reaction card received during a test screening of the movie. I wish I could remember the exact wording (he had it framed in his office), but it was something like "the sick minds behind this movie should be SHOT!" Happily they weren't, and happily this movie is finally available!

Zee Phantom!

The new issue of Back Issue magazine, #47, features a lengthy article on various comic book incarnations of The Phantom, including an interview with yours truly. I did a 13 issue run on the character for DC back in 19*cofcof* and discuss that adventure with writer/interviewer Bob Greenberger... who coincidentally hired me for the job back in the day. The whole grisly story is revealed in Back Issue #47!

You can buy a hard copy or get a cheaper downloadable PDF from twomorrows.com. Check it out!

Wow. Just... wow.

Priorities...

http://www.vanityfair.com/online/daily/2011/03/larry-kudlow-devalues-human-life-with-japan-earthquake-freudian-slip.html

Head Scratcher

Some NPR exec at a luncheon is caught on tape by some right wing "undercover ops" saying he doesn't much like tea-party types. He clearly labels his opinion as his own, not corporate policy, and yet for some reason that's cause for both the luncheon fellow AND the head of NPR to resign.

Fox News dudes loudly proclaim they are fair and balanced, but when the head of Fox News calls NPR "Nazies," it's laughed off as business as usual.

Like I said, a head-scratcher...

Axe Cop = Great Comics!

From the fine folks at Dark Horse, "Axe Cop" tells the story of, well, Axe-Cop and his partner Dinosaur Soldier as they fight crime and aliens and mysterious planets. What makes Axe-Cop special? As the cover explains, it's written by six year old Ethan Nicolle and drawn by his thirty year old brother Malachai.

What you get is the glorious, unsullied imagination of six year old Ethan, translated by his brother. The first page of the first issue of the current mini-series ("Bad Guy Earth") sets the stage. Axe Cop and Dinosaur Soldier are at a diner when Axe Cop gets thirsty. He spots a cup of water on the next table and drinks it, only to be rebuked by a talking hammer. "You just drank my friend's brain!" The caption that follows explains it all:

It turned out that Mr. Hammer and Mr. Cup were having breakfast. And Axe Cop had accidentally drunk Mr. Cup's brain.

But then it's quickly off to other equally intriguing adventures. Axe Cop comes VERY highly recommended!

Sheen or Simpson?

Charlie Sheen is a popular TV star. Alan Simpson is the former Wyoming Senator who was a member of the President's deficit commission last year. Which one said this?

“This is a fakery. If they care at all about their children or grandchildren, and sometimes I doubt that – I think, you know, grandchildren now don’t write a thank-you for the Christmas presents, they’re walking on their pants with the cap on backwards listening to the enema man and Snoopy Snoopy Poop Dogg, and they don’t like them!”

If you guessed Charlie Sheen, ding, LOSER. Thank you for playing Sheen or Simpson!

This Is Fun...

I blogged a few months ago about an intriguing project I found over at Kickstarter.com. Janice Whaley decided to sing the lyrics and backing "instrumentals" of every "Smiths" song ever recorded, and was looking for backers to help her complete her project.

I'll be honest, I don't think I have a single "Smiths" CD in my library, but I heard a couple of the samples and found them mesmerizing. Now Janice has oversold the project enough to produce a super-cool six CD box set. Her note to her Kickstarter contributors is below, and hopefully the music will be made available to a wider audience as the set is finally unleashed.

The Smiths Project Box Set ends with mind-bogglingly successful funding!
By Janice Whaley

Dear friends!

The Smiths Project box set funding has officially ended and
I am simply overwhelmed by the level of support that has poured in over the
past few months. I really thought that
it would take three months to generate $3,500 but clearly I underestimated the
enthusiasm for the music, having reached that goal in the first few days and
ending more than 530% funded. I am so
excited to have the opportunity to make a really amazing box set. No more jewel case CD set for this
project! The 6 digi-pack CDs will be
housed in a beautiful custom box- everything amazingly designed by The Mystery
Parade and remastered by Ryan Coseboom of Stripmall Architecture.

I am currently proof-reading text and compiling lists of kickstarter
backers for inclusion in the liner notes.
Everything is in place for purchasing royalties, CDs, and posters. Things are about to happen!

Thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your
generosity. I am
astounded and humbled beyond belief. I simply can not wait to send you the box sets as soon as they are made.

All of my love and gratitude!

Janice

Falling Skies - The Many Promos Of...

Tired of me talking about Falling Skies? Well, all sorts of Falling Skies trailer fun can be SEEN here at Slashfilm...

http://www.slashfilm.com/steven-spielbergs-alien-tv-series-falling-skies-trailer-2/

I saw two more mostly finished episodes last week (as in, with most of the finished FX, music, color timing, etc.) and yep, they're looking good. Only two more to go, coincidentally the two I actually wrote as opposed to "overseeing" in my co-exec producer capacity. No spoilers allowed, but one of the two is the season finale, which involves quite a bit of FX excitement. There are actually scenes from many episodes sprinkled through the trailers... it's fun for me to go, "hey, that's episode #103, and that's #109, and that's #106!" Of course, I am easily amused!

I Saw This...

I was in my standard position (in front of the TV in the front room), when I saw this puppy sail overhead and head out toward the ocean.

http://elpasoallsky.blogspot.com/2011/02/california-meteor-fireball-nw-of-los.html

Are the Meteorite Men far behind?

Falling Skies Update...

I realize that some of the folks checking out this blog are probably more interested in hearing the latest developments regarding Falling Skies than reading reviews of movies from 1975... shocking!

But the truth is, the latest developments are simply "more of the same." Very interesting to me, of course, but... in short, FX are still being created, episode cuts are being locked... all the finalizing work is "in process."

Of course I've seen all the episodes in various phases of development, and five or so that are now more or less finished (FX done, music locked and the color properly timed). As usual, I am mightily impressed with the amount of effort that goes into polishing these shows to a shine. In virtually every instance, what I am seeing is better than I imagined when I was writing/producing, so that's been really fun. And trust me, it's not always the case!

We're still on target for a Summer 2011 unveiling... as we get closer to the date hopefully I can start spilling a little more info, and when the show actually hits air I can finally talk about the shows themselves with more specificity. Right now I just want the surprises to remain surprising...

Sometimes It's Just Hopeless...

I watched most of 1975's "Capone" the other night, a baffling case of fascinating material coupled with a pretty incredible cast producing... a thoroughly uninteresting movie. The great Ben Gazzara plays Al Capone with a gruff bluster that never suggests the charisma a guy like the real Capone must have had to hold together a massive criminal operation. John Cassavetes, Susan Blakeley, John Campanella and even a very young, pre-Rocky Sylvester Stallone are given little to work with. The result? Repetitive scenes of Capone yelling about some competitor, goons going to work with dynamite and machine guns, then more yelling, shooting, stabbing, etc.

Even more curious is the total contempt shown to any version of Capone's actual history. I mean, the guy was a murderous mob Kingpin. The real story of his rise and syphilitic fall aren't interesting enough? Unfortunately, the fictionalized version, despite an amazing cast, is even LESS interesting than his real life.

Also, watching this is a reminder just how ground-breaking Gordon Willis' moody photography was in "The Godfather." "Capone" is all brightly lit, gaudy color, where the blood is candy apple red and Capone plays one scene in a bathrobe that would have been gaudy in a Cirque Du Soleil show. Pixar movies look positively drab compared to this.

This one gets one and half Bronsons... the extra half because I like movies where the young Stallone gets to streak his hair with a little gray to play "older." ("F.I.S.T." rates four Bronson's on the white-stuff in young-Stallone's hair rating system!)

San Diego Con Memories...

At the link below writer/artist Evan Dorkin offers some fond memories of the San Diego ComicCon from years past, specifically 1987-ish. I was there but since I was just barely in the biz at the time (the first issue of my first comic, The American, was released right around that convention) I missed most of the parties and the excitement... or did I? I vaguely remember some hotel room antics, but *sigh*, it's all so long ago. I certainly would have remembered my pal and American artist Chris Warner picking up a chair to fend off some punk kids.

Last year around this time I posted something about how the convention had become just too big and complicated to navigate and that I probably wouldn't go. Then I went to work on a little show called "Falling Skies" and suddenly I was doing a panel and some interviews and other stuff. Between that, seeing old friends and enjoying the San Diego weather, I had a great time. And frankly, for me, it's NOT that complicated to attend the show these days. I live within driving distance, as an Inkpot Award winner I have a free pass for life, and (because of the recession?) rooms at the closest hotels are still available, albeit for a price. So I'm all booked up.

I have no idea what I'll be doing at the show this year professionally, but barring disaster I'll be there doing something... meanwhile, for a taste of the way it was, check out the link:

http://evandorkin.livejournal.com/244576.html

More Film Fun!

I've been catching up on some of the cinematic goodies (old and new) that I missed while doing the ol' 24/7 in Toronto on Falling Skies. Here are some more thoughts...

WAR OF THE COLOSSAL BEAST: TiVoed off AMC-HD, I'm sure I saw this on regular TV way back when, but this is the first time in a LONG time I've been able to revisit the entire sequel in the saga this IS poor Col. Manning. Blasted by a plutonium bomb in a scene that looks like it heavily inspired the creation of The Hulk, poor Manning grew to 60 feet (more or less) and got himself shot off Hoover Dam at the end of the first movie.

In this follow-up, Manning's devoted sister suspects the big guy is still alive because a Mexican village has been plagued by trucks disappearing without a trace. Naturally, the only possible answer is that a 60 ft man is picking them up and walking off with them. When the police find a footprint the size of a Volkswagon, the growling, badly scarred and still 60' Manning goes "rrRRRRRRrrr!" He's knocked out, tied up (badly), escapes, then havok ensues. Clocking in at under 60 minutes and making absolutely no concessions to science or biology, it's still a fun movie and the "Colossal Beast" (beast? Really? People can be so cruel!) is a great monster.

LET ME IN: The American remake of the great Swedish vampire film, and just as cool and creepy as the original. My only comment/caveat is that I preferred the handling of the infamous swimming pool scene in the Swedish version. Still, both versions have much to recommend them.

PIRANHA 3D: Maybe Alexandre Aja's 3-D remake (?) plays better when you're wearing the glasses, but I saw this in 2D blu-ray and couldn't finish it. I thought Aja's "High Tension" was a taut horror movie, and it's interesting to see Kelly Brook, who played Lex Luthor's wife back in my Smallville days. And I always liked Elizabeth Shue. But sadly a Richard Dreyfuss cameo is the highpoint of what I saw. Oh well. They can't all be "Dolph Lungren Is The Killing Machine."

Dolph Lungren IS The Killing Machine

I believe that's the real title of this direct-to-DVD epic, since there's a "behind the scenes of 'Dolph Lungren Is The Killing Machine'" feature included. I don't think this one requires much of a review... Dolph is a former KGB assassin who continues to do hits while posing as a real estate salesman in Vancouver B.C. It's never really explained, but somehow he gets under kingpin and former best-buddy Bo Svenson's skin, so Bo sends out an army of killers with tragically bad aim to take Dolph down.

Three points of interest: one, they actually let Vancouver B.C. play as Vancouver B.C. Usually filmmakers screw a few New York license plates on passing cars and to pretend Vancouver is somewhere else, but not this time. Kudos for displaying this lovely city at its best, director Lungren!

Two, I really hope that if my past as a mass-murdering Russian hitman is revealed after my ex-wife's new boyfriend is murdered in front of her eyes, my ex will be as forgiving as Dolph's. And boy, this gal is REALLY forgiving. I envision a sequel where the ghost of her dead boyfriend comes back from the grave and says "hey, I'm dead two hours and you're already getting it on with the guy responsible for my murder?! Sheesh!"

Three, would somebody please get me the number of the employment agency where Lungren's family found their nanny? Multiple choice question: When Dolph is forced to slaughter a half dozen mob assassins (including shoving one of them eye-first onto the shaft of a bar-bell) in front of his 8 year old daughter and Hispanic nanny, does the nanny

a) Run away screaming and call the police?

b) Seriously, run away screaming and call the police?

c) Meekly tell her mass murdering employer that she'll take care of his little girl, up to and including going to a safe-house run by other Russian mobsters?

If you guessed C, you win! I guess jobs really ARE hard to get these days.

"Dolph Lungren is the Killing Machine" gets three out of five Charles Bronsons from yours truly. Unlike most of these direct-to-DVD epics at least this one has plenty o' action, reasonable production values and a hardcore stoic "hero." And it's only 90 minutes...

I Spit On Your Motivation

I am impressed with good actors. I can't imagine how difficult it must be to stand in front of a crew of (more or less) strangers and finding the right emotional key.

So I am especially sympathetic to the cast in the new 2010 remake of I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE. I mean, there are some things you probably never prepped for in acting school. Like doing a lengthy scene with a shotgun shoved up your kiester, or being the revenge seeking individual doing the shoving. It can't be easy to find your emotional center while fish-hooks are yanking back your eyelids so crows can peck out your baby-blues. And what exactly is the correct amount of consternation after some rusty garden shears get busy on your privates? Just another day in the movie trenches, I guess.

I'm not sure what I think about the movie, but actors, I doff my chapeau at your endeavors!

Howlin' For You

This fooled me for a minute... wanna see Tricia Helfer of BSG fame get medieval on some bad guys? With a soundtrack by the Black Keys?

http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi695638553/

Jack Kirby For Sale...

From Antique's Roadshow, an examination of unique Jack Kirby art and artifacts. But I wonder, is Jack Kirby's grandson (they're his items) really unclear about how much this stuff is worth? I hope not!

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/roadshow/archive/201001A17.html

Howl Along With Huck

The internet is full of memories, like this piece on "Howl Along With Huckleberry Hound", a 33 RPM "Golden Record." My brothers and I used to spend hours listening to this record. (Note: we, and especially yours truly, were very very young.) I recently found a nice vinyl copy, as I continue to gradually restock my childhood, and I wonder when some enterprising soul will release this stuff officially. Oh well...

Records like this are what that ignited an early sense of the absurd in yours truly. As the review states, there's a character named "Orville" who repeatedly interrupts the orchestra and gets his ass chewed by Huckleberry Hound. Orville's only retort is to say "Nee-no noni nee-no." I have no idea what that means, but it was sure funny to a little kid.

All the details are at:

http://wayoutjunk.blogspot.com/2006/07/howl-along-with-huckleberry-hound-and.html

What I Learned Watching The Mechanic (2011)

I liked this updated version a lot! Jason Stathem is always great and so is Ben Foster. Okay, so they ain't Charlie Bronson and Jan Michael Vincent, but then who is?

And I learned so much -- for instance:

Rich drug lords buy fancy black bottom swimming pools at their peril.

Never trust the unctuous man who is willing to have a telephone argument with his teenage daughter in front of you.

If you are a member of a super bowl football team who then gains employment as the aforementioned unctuous man's bodyguard, you might want to leave the bejeweled ring at home. (According to Pawn Stars, those rings are actually worth quite a bit of money! Something to think about!)

Attractive woman love beat-up, scabby looking guys who can power back half a bottle of bourbon in ten minutes at a noisy bar.

Lovemaking is clearly better when it's with a thoroughly drunk stranger and consummated in an alley surrounded by garbage cans.

Incredibly attractive women like the slightly less scabby guy.

Chihuahuas are cute.

Decorating tip: if you're inviting over new friends, put away the tools, especially all your long, sharp screwdrivers.

Ditto for fireplace shovels and pokers.

Basically it's just hard to meet nice people these days.

When working for any group that calls itself "the organization" or "the agency" or "the group", there probably isn't much use discussing their long-term pension plan.

For dramatic effect, always announce yourself to your prey before initiating an assault. You won't believe the look on their faces!

The Reading List...

New additions to my overburdened bookshelves...

Johnny Rotten's Scrapbook: this massive, 14" x 14", velveteen boxed, 250+ page monster is (to quote from the website) "an exciting and intimate journey through John Lydon’s life, from inception to now, in high quality pictures and hand written text commentary." Limited to 750 signed and numbered copies and priced at a wallet-busting 450 pounds, it is quite the museum piece. Chock full of photos, personalized with individual hand-drawn sketches, with a 12" vinyl record of Public Image material glued to the back cover... who would have thought the guy who belted out "I am an anarchist!" would one day be doing a coffee table book. I'm still in the examination phase, but it's kind of overwhelming. Which I suspect was the point... (ordering info at www.concertlive.co.uk/mrrottensscrapbook).

Hammer Films, The Unsung Heroes: this hefty paperback examines "the team behind the legend" at Hammer, with chapters devoted to every craft from production design to sound recordist to wardrobe to the assistant directors. I have been endlessly fascinated with Hammer's horror films since I was a kid, so I find this behind-the-scenes stuff compelling... but those without a burning passion may get a little lost in the weeds. Lots of great backstage photos and info...



Fuzz, Acid and Flowers - A Comprehensive Guide to American Garage Progressive And Hippie-Rock 1963-1977 (Expanded Edition): "Expanded" undersells this project. Because this is a BOOK. 1400 pages (!) devoted to exactly what the cover promises. Illustrated with hundreds (thousands?) of album covers, biographical tidbits, recording info... if you have any interest in this era and would like a back-breakingly heavy encyclopedia to help you navigate the waters, this is for you. As for me, I'm currently searching for the album by the Unbeatables, "Live At Palisades Park." And I'm sure as I continue plowing through this book my want list will grow...



The Acid Archives (second edition): Similar to the above, but clocking in at a mere 400 pages, here's a pile of acid music, all reviewed and illustrated with tons of color album photos. So much music, so little time...

I Was Gone, Now I'm Back...

Been out gallivanting for awhile, but now I'm back in the saddle, tanned (as much as SPF 85 will allow), rested and... well, not that rested, but... oh never mind.

Work continues on the post-production of Falling Skies Season One... we have cuts of all the episodes and our highly capable CGI folks continue to refine and create the special effects required to make these shows sing. It's hard to believe we're still months away from the TNT debut (Summer 2011! Be there!), but I suspect the date will sneak up quickly.

I've been trying to catch up with my movie watching, to varying degrees of success. I saw parts of a silent, tiny TV version of "The Social Network" on a recent flight (I opted to listen to my i-pod in a vain attempt to fall asleep) and wow, there are sure a lot of scenes of people sitting around a conference table! Yes, it's erudite criticism like that that should land me a spot as guest reviewer on the new Roger Ebert movie show any day now. I have a stack of discs on the queue waiting to be viewed, but somehow when it's time to hit the play button I've been opting for old "Highway Patrol" episodes and whatever's easily accessible on the TiVo.

Theatrically, "The Mechanic" looks interesting... both because I enjoy Jason Stathem in just about anything, and because the Charles Bronson original is one of those rare 70's films that doesn't feel dated. I'm very curious if the remakers opted to go with the original film's rather bleak worldview...

And that's the rather unimpressive update. Hopefully there will be somewhat more impressive news soon!

Ten Resolutions for 2011 (low bar version)

1) I will finally frame my Boris Karloff "Body Snatchers" movie poster.

2) I will charge up my i-phone every evening.

3) No more than six cups of coffee for breakfast.

4) I will TiVo and not watch many movies and shows.

5) Change oil at least every 5,000 miles.

6) No more than ten computer solitaire games per hour.

7) Substitute low cal margaritas when available.

8) Write at least one page of something, anything a month. (This counts!)

9) Learn at least one word of another language.

10) Post to blog at least every six months.

That's it! Adios! (check off #9!)

Wanna Hear A Lot Of Smiths Songs?

Janice Whaley set herself a goal: to record every original song by the Smiths, all in the year 2010, using only her own voice to create every sound, both instrumental and vocal. Using pro-tools and overdubbing herself, she's created something quite unique. I don't even particularly LIKE The Smiths, but these versions are ethereal and compelling. Checks out her site for samples, she's asking for donations to complete the project via Kickstarter.com.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1616392208/the-smiths-project-6-cd-box-set

http://thesmithsproject.blogspot.com/

(FWIW, I don't know Janice, I just came across this project and liked the cut of her jib...)

Falling Skies Sneak Peak

A very cool (if I do say so myself) trailer for Falling Skies has been attached to various movies playing at Regal Cinemas, and it's also been posted on line. It's at dozens of sites, so I grabbed the Collider edition below at random... check it out. Whet your whistle. Enjoy!

http://collider.com/falling-skies-trailer/66878/

Bits And Pieces, Pre-Xmas

Besides staring into space and contemplating the joy of a world with pretzel M&M's, what's been filling the old brain-pan?

GREAT JACK KIRBY WEBSITE: If you love Jack Kirby, then this is the site for you. Updated far more frequently than THIS blog, these folks bring a dose of Kirby greatness to the webs. And the webs could always use that. http://kirbymuseum.org/blogs/dynamics

TRUE GRITTYNESS: Thanks to Paramount for the DVD screener, I was able to catch the Coen Brothers version of True Grit last week. It's pretty good. Thanks to Paramount and $20 in my wallet, I also picked up the snazzy new blu-ray edition of the original movie with John Wayne. The new one is really good, but would it be heretical to say the Wayne version was more (*gasp*) fun? Maybe it's all the great character actors... Strother Martin, Robert Duvall (as Ned Pepper), Jeff Corey, and even Dennis Hopper (!). Yes, Wayne's performance is "big", and the first movie has the classic big Hollywood sheen (could they have found any brighter and sunnier days?), but sometimes I like big. Anyway, all is well, they're both good and both are worth seeing.



CROWDED HOUSE: Neil Finn and co. are touring and as they did in 2007, they are releasing straight-from-the-soundboard CDs (or downloadable flacs or Mp3s) from most of their engagements. There are 12-ish available right now and more to come, and the sound quality is, as always, impeccable. Ordering info at: http://www.crowdedhouselive.com/catalog.aspx

GIGANTIC WHO: The Who have released yet another version of "Live At Leeds" in a vinyl-album sized box that comes with a zillion extras, but (most interestingly for me) a second live show from the same era. Beside the original show (on CD and also, in the fancy edition, in the original configuration on vinyl), this set also features the concert from the day after, which (according to Amazon's reporting) was preferred by the band but when unreleased because they thought there had been sound problems. Evidently there weren't, because here it is... complete with a performance of "Tommy."



Yessir, it's Xmas everyday 'round these parts... and incidentally, while in the mood, let me just say to my 19 faithful readers, Happy Holidays!

Well, This Made Me Laugh

I know we're all waiting for the new CGI Yogi Beat movie... here's a sneak preview to tide you over before the premiere!

http://www.comicsbeat.com/2010/12/13/when-love-turns-violent-booboo-kills-yogi/

(thanx to Heidi!)

It's Been Awhile... What's New...

New #1: Caught the Roger Waters/"The Wall" show at the Los Angeles Staples center and was suitably wowed. It really is an impressive multi-media experience... however, I was reminded in my geezerish way why I don't see many big-box concerts anymore. Parking was complicated. It was raining and we got soaked for thirty minutes while waiting to clear security. Once inside, a beer and a bourbon cost $26. We had pretty good seats but it doesn't really matter when the idiot next to you insists on loudly (and badly) singing along to every song out of key, and the even bigger idiot in front of you plays air guitar, tries to get everyone around him to play air guitar with him, and screams at the stage like a banshee trying to get a reaction from someone, anyone in the band.

Anyhow, I hope Waters puts out a DVD of the tour so I see what I missed...

New #2: I'm just back from Atlanta and a discussion re: Falling Skies with the great people at TNT. Cuts are coming in and the show is looking really cool. I love it when a plan comes together! Summer 2011!

New #3: More new comics from Steve Ditko, co-creator of Spider-Man. Ditko, at 82-ish, continues to produce idiosyncratic independent work, emphasis on the "idiosyncratic." He's also evidently working from some place in the future, since his latest title, "Act 6", is copyright 2011. After going through a stack of his most recent work, I'm curious how his creative process works... if he scripts these stories in advance of drawing, writes them as he goes along, or what. Either way, I continue to be impressed with Ditko's desire to produce his own work in his own way. Ordering info is available from Ditko's publisher Robin Snyder at RobinBrigit@comcast.com.

New #4: Dragnet Season 3 (1969) is out on DVD. All sentient humans should experience Dragnet at some point in their lives. I watched Dragnet religiously when it was a TV Land staple many years ago, so I have most of these episodes firmly locked in my frail synapse. But a reminder is always appreciated.



But for the real devotees, the best Dragnet product is finally out in an Amazon exclusive, the glorious full color movie from 1953. It really is THAT good.

Falling Skies Mini Update

For major updates, you'll have to check the official TNT site, but for mini (non-spoiler) updates, I'm you're guy! Anyhow, shooting is officially finished and the ten episodes of season one are being post-produced "as I write." For those not steeped in production lingo, "post" is an all encompassing term that covers editing, music, FX, dubbing... basically everything that transforms the raw footage from the shoot into glorious episodes of television. I don't think it's a spoiler to note that Falling Skies will have a considerable amount of special FX to create the full "alien invasion" motif...

More news as it develops... and expect something VERY interesting come December...

Stuff! Glorious Stuff!

Yes, there is stuff aplenty out there, and your host has too much of it! Here are some of the more interesting goodies that have arrived recently --

THE WEIRD WORLD OF EERIE PUBLICATIONS, Feral Press. Eerie Publications were really mostly a guy named Myron Fass, an "ehh" comics artist from the 50's who turned his talents to publishing. Fass produced hundreds of crazy magazines, ranging from pop-culture (I still have his cheapo Tiger-Beatish Springsteen one shot from the 1970's), soft-core sex, supernatural/UFO and even semi-political magazines. But Fass is best known for his line of unbelievably grisly horror comics that appeared from 1967-ish into the early 1980's. Weird, Tales Of Voodoo, Witches Tales, Tales From The Tomb, etc., etc. About ten years ago I went on an eBay jag and picked up around 220 of the comics, and I always wanted to know more about this bizarre company. Well, author Mike Howlett gives me "more" and then some! At a mind-boggling 300 pages, many in color, this book spills the beans on the Eerie empire, and finally reveals the name of the best (nastiest) cover painter from the comics line: Bill Alexander.

THE PROMISE. For a Springsteen fanatic like yours truly, this is really something. A documentary on the making of Springsteen's "Darkness On The Edge Of Town" album, plus the remastered album itself, two CDs of outtakes, and two, count 'em, two concerts on blu-ray. Hardcore Bruce addicts have heard many of the outtake tracks on the "Promise" album, but not all, and certainly not in this quality. I'm still plowing through the contents, but this is an amazing set...

THE HORROR, THE HORROR. An impressive collection of full color 50's horror comics, the stuff that "inspired" Mr. Fass, with tons of commentary and even a DVD of an old television show decrying the effects of this nasty trash on the youth of America. (I haven't seen the DVD yet, but I assume they do not conclude the effect was positive.) Evidently the book's compiler and I share similar tastes because many of my favorite 50's covers are reproduced here, including the surreal painted covers by Ekgren, and work by Steve Ditko, Basil Wolverton and other greats. It is impressive just how sordid and nasty these stories could get.

DICK BRIEFER'S FRANKENSTEIN. Yet another swanky hardcover compilation, this time of Dick Briefer's cool and strange Frankenstein series from the 40's and 50's. It's an odd series that went from serious horror to the flat-out comedic adventures of the monster, and back again. I always wondered how the monster's nose ended up in the middle of his forehead (maybe Dr. F. lost his glasses)... not sure we learn the answer here, but I've always enjoyed these oddball books.

And there's more, so much more!! To be continued!

Falling Skies - Home Stretch, Season One

Besides what I've learned from the movies, I've also learned that it can get pretty friggin' cold in Toronto in November! While my home town of Los Angeles was enjoying 90 degree weather (!), the stalwart crew of Falling Skies were out all night in the midst of snow flurries and a bitter ol' wind...

But we are entering the last week of shooting, and the weather this week promises to be sunny and sightly warmer, so it's all good. Everyone knows aliens don't like cold weather...

In other news, I believe the first chapter of the ongoing Falling Skies comic series debuts on-line today, at the Dark Horse and TNT websites. These stories catch up with our characters a few months before the series begins and give some clues about where we'll be going with the series itself. Give it a look!

Things I Learned Watching Paranormal Activity 2

BEWARE... scary spoilers below... here are the things I learned from Paranormal Activity 2:

Demons don't much like pool cleaning equipment.

The 15th time you cut to a static shot of a doorway, something is just bound to happen.

When trying to win back the first born male child of a couple who benefited from a deal with the devil, evidently the smart move is to throw the automatic pool cleaner out of the swimming pool every night for two weeks (see above) and repeatedly make a mess in the couple's kitchen.

If that doesn't work, thumping and bumping at odd hours is equally effective at communicating your dark desires.

When people don't interpret this demonic outreach properly, boy can those demons get pissy.

When you come home to find your live-in Hispanic maid trying to rid your home of evil spirits, that's not a good sign.

Evidently it is impossible for a couple to take their toddler with them when they go out to dinner.

If you have security cameras running 24/7, the last thing you want to do is check them after someone claims to have experienced a supernatural event in your home.

If you do check them, make sure you only find the supernatural events that could have a plausible real world explanation. Do not check the tapes that would show babies levitating.

Seriously, what is the deal with demons and swimming pool cleaners?

There is no business deal so important that you should leave your catatonic wife and terrified daughter alone, even if it's just for a "couple of hours."

Oh, wait. You own a string of Burger King franchises. Strike the above, of course you need to take the meeting.

You should always tidy up your basement before a supernatural onslaught. Boxes and spare bicycles are some scary shit in the dark.

Tunnels, Seeing End Of... Falling Skies Edition

So, you're asking, what happened to Mark the cheerful, regularly blogging presence on the internet? Well, a lot of exciting hard work is what happened...

And to create what is looking like a really cool result. We start shooting the finale episode of Falling Skies Season One (written by yours truly) in just a couple of days, so the train that is production left the station, careened across many hills and valleys, and now seems to be nearing its destination. I could belabor the train metaphor for a few more paragraphs, but that would require thought and frankly, I've still got work to do. So this is called "checking in" with a promise of fuller reporting once things settle down...

And besides, I like reminding people that Falling Skies is coming soon! Executive Producer Steven Spielberg! Noah Wyle! Moon Bloodgood! Will Patton! TNT! Summer of 2011! With associated comic book material produced by Dark Horse Comics! Keep watching the skies (and the internet)! (Exclamation points not included.)

More (much more) soon --

John Cleese On Creativity

As I try to create my own little oasis so my tortoise mind can emerge...

This is easily the best description of the mechanics of the creative process I've ever heard...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGt3-fxOvug

(Thanks to my pal Randy Stradley for passing it along.)

New York Comic Con - This Weekend! Oct. 9!

I've been in radio silence working on Falling Skies, but I'll be poking my head up like a chipmunk this Saturday, Oct. 9 at the NYC ComicCon. We'll be debuting a Falling Skies comic book, and I'll be signing goodies along with our stars Noah Wyle and Moon Bloodgood. I believe we're scheduled for the afternoon, but "check your local listing." Hope to see (some of you) there!

What I Learned From "The Town" (small spoilers!)

The Town is a very good movie (honest!) directed by and starring Ben Affleck. It is about some folks who rob banks and shoot policemen. Here's what I learned:

Bank robbers lead lives of quiet desperation, broken by moments of insane violence.

I am glad I am not an assistant bank manager. However, if I were an assistant bank manager, I would certainly hope I had comprehensive health insurance.

You can have a soul even if you're a vicious bank robber.

Gals love those six pack abs.

If you were a criminal once but changed your mind and used what you learned as a criminal to arrest vicious murdering AK firing psychopaths, said sociopathic cop killing psychos will not think much of you.

Always wear a bullet proof vest.

Threatening a fellow by telling him extremely grim secrets about his past that you were partly responsible for causing could have negative repercussions. Extra added difficulty ensues if you makes references to removing the fellow's father's "balls."

Ladies, when you find out the nice chap you've been dating is actually a bank robbing sociopath (with several even crazier friends) who was stalking you after taking you hostage in a violent bank robbery, it may be time to reconsider your relationship.

That said, gals definitely like the six pack abs.

Oh. And ALWAYS wear a bulletproof vest.

If a vicious criminal shoots multiple police officers during a robbery and actually gets away with it, then gives you some of the stolen money so you can disperse it to charity, that's okay. Young people deserve a hockey rink built from stolen money.

FBI agents are ruthless, cold-hearted bastards who will actually use someone's work history as an oxycotin drug-dealer against them to stop the sociopathic bank robbers who kill police, open fire with automatic weapons on busy streets and engage in violent car chases that causes multiple accidents.

Did I mention the soul? And the six pack abs?

Be very careful when associating with the fellow who says he won't go back to prison, no matter what. He is liable to make poor choices when confronted by the authorities.

Toronto, New York and L.A.

I've been in Toronto for the last few days writing and rewriting away on "Falling Skies" (coming next Summer! TNT! Executive producer Steven Spielberg! Aliens attack and we fight back!) and managed to come down with the king-Daddy of colds, which certainly helps with the ol' inspiration. ("In this scene, the aliens run out of tissue!") At any rate, we're in "so far so good" mode -- we're starting to see cuts of episodes and preliminary FX and all sorts of cool stuff. The only unfortunate part is knowing these shows won't air until next Summer... that's a long time!

For what it's worth I'll be in NYC for the ComicCon on Oct. 9, so if you're in the neighborhood drop on by. I haven't done a NY show in twenty years and it's about time! I see my old BSG crew-mate Katee Sackhoff will be there, as well as my "My Name Is Bruce" pal Bruce Campbell. Could there be a BSG/Evil Dead crossover movie in their future? We can only hope!

Wrtier's Block...

Mark Evanier has an interesting post up about the writing game, deadlines, writer's block and other extremities of the craft. His piece is at...

http://www.newsfromme.com/archives/2010_08_31.html#019441

He suggests an interesting way to break writer's block, which is to write something totally off the problem topic and hope that breaks the log jam. I'm sure it works for Mark but that really isn't for me. If I'm banging my head against the wall trying to figure something out, last thing I want to do is write something I can't even use. Usually I pull away from the computer and sit down with a yellow pad (it has to be yellow, narrow-ruled and not legal size -- yes, it's weird, sorry!) and start making notes to myself. Somehow the process of handwriting as opposed to typing can occasionally liberate some ideas that were otherwise trapped.

(To continue with the writer-voodoo theme of only using a specific type of yellow pad, for a long time I preferred to copy-edit a paper draft with an orange flair pen. Not red, orange. These days I don't do nearly as much with paper, but I still have some orange flairs on stand by just in case...)

However, getting back on topic, I've only had a couple real moments of writer's block. And both were quite some time ago. In both instances, I was on a loose deadline, they were feature scripts, and I was trying to execute notes given on a previous draft. Taking and doing notes is a skill unto itself, and when the notes contradict your understanding of the story, or seem to be making something worse, it can be excruciating.

But nobody ever said it would be easy. Mark continues to explain that he has little patience for writers who complain about how painful the process can be. Aside from the fact that bitching and moaning about your job is as American as (pick iconic item of choice), I've only met a few professional writers in my day who just can't wait to get to work. If you're one of them, I salute you! If you're not, join me at the bar later tonight and we can discuss another round of goofy notes...

My Name Is Bruce Alert!

My Name is Bruce starring Bruce Campbell, that is. The fine folks at the SyFy Channel are running the movie again, in the choice prime-time spot of, *ahem*, 3:00AM on 09/01. It's on both the high-def and regular feeds, so here's your chance to see every one of Mr. Campbell's well-delineated pores...

Stuff I Liked And You Might Like Too...

This qualifies as a "preview", but Springsteen's upcoming re-release of Darkness On The Edge of Town sounds amazing. Most intriguing, it comes with a two CD set of outtakes/live tracks from the era... and here I figured most of those had landed on the Tracks set! A making-of documentary, new/old outtakes, remastered sound... what's not to like?



I have yet to read the book but I was totally enthralled by film version of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. It is an oddly old-fashioned thriller with an amazing central character and some really dark subject matter. Soon to be remade, which is fine with me, but I can't wait to see the next two Swedish adaptations.



From the sublime to the... less sublime, MGM is finally releasing the Highway Patrol series on DVD. These gritty little half hour cheapies are compelling mostly because of Broderick Crawford. Actually, they're compelling ONLY because of Broderick Crawford. I remember watching reruns of this stuff when I was a kid in Portland and being fascinated by the cop lingo ("10-4!"). These are exceptionally nice transfers, too.

Kirby At 93

Today (8/28/2010) would have been Jack Kirby's 93rd birthday and there are several tributes on the internet commemorating the date, including at Mark Evanier's site and at The Comics Reporter (which features a bunch of scans spanning Kirby's amazing career). It's hard to overestimate how much Kirby's work meant to me and so many others, and how it continues to inspire. I was lucky enough to meet the man at a birthday gathering held for him at the San Diego Comic Con, where I was luckier still to have the chance to tell him how much I had enjoyed his work.

I'm up to my eyeballs in work, but I took some time off to look over some old Kirby favorites. Today I went back to his Captain America stories in the Tales Of Suspense title, then the solo Captain America book that started in 1968. I love Kirby's FF and Thor work, but I dunno, I think these Cap stories offer some of his most dynamic and powerful storytelling. And all this material is also easily obtainable these days in a variety of reprint forms, from the black and white Essentials collections to the pricier Archives hardbacks. I like comics, but I loves me the Kirby...

Common People

One of the best songs of the last, oh, ten years, gets animated...

http://crooksandliars.com/bluegal/open-thread-466

Lessons Learned From The Expendables

Lessons to be gleaned after seeing Stallone's latest, "The Expendables):

1) If you're dating the on and off girlfriend of a highly trained mercenary, be nice to her.

2) That said, if you're not nice, pointlessly antagonizing the ex-boyfriend is wildly counter productive.

3) Along those lines, pointlessly antagonizing the tin-pot General/dictator of an imaginary Latin American island you're trying to do business with is equally counter productive.

4) Water boarding and torturing the general's daughter against the General's express wishes is no way to mend fences.

5) Be careful about giving rousing speeches decrying your heavily armed business partner when he's standing right behind you with a big gun.

6) Painting your face black with a yellow diagonal stripe doesn't make you a better soldier, or invulnerable to many many bullets.

7) There is no reason to explain yourself to the mercenary soldier trying to kill you. You do so at your peril.

8) When in doubt, deploy the shotgun that fires 250 rounds a minute.

Updating

I seem to have fallen into a pattern of checking in every two weeks or so... but it's been pretty busy so I have an excuse, at least for now. Falling Skies started shooting a couple weeks ago and so the production train has left the station, with all that entails... scripts need to be written and rewritten, casting, designs... basically, the zillion large and small things involved in making tee-vee. The intensity is rewarded when we look at some fabulous dailies... we're all very happy with how this adventure is turning out. Now it's about turning out "more"...

In other news -- hey, Timecop's coming out on Blu-Ray! It will join the pantheon of MV feature efforts that have been given the high def treatment, including The Mask and My Name Is Bruce. Actually, Timecop was an early HD-DVD release, but that format went adios in a hurry, so here's one that people can actually watch. I am still a little disturbed to realize the future world we envisioned for that movie (2004) is now... six years ago. I'm just glad we didn't have our characters wearing lucite hats and conical brassieres... oh wait, that actually happened.

Also hey, Heroes season four is out on blu-ray too! I co-wrote two episodes and look forward to re-watching sans commercials. The set is jam-packed with extras so Heroes fans should definitely check it out.

Finally, I'm told another show I was involved with "awhile back" is going to be updated/re-issued in blu-ray soon... updates as they become available!

More Greetings From More Toronto

After a brief sojourn to San Diego to discuss our new show Falling Skies, I'm back in lovely Toronto as shooting continues at a lightning pace. Last night involved multiple pyrotechnics and a cast of many, with director Greg Beeman ably choreographing the mayhem. But when stuff isn't getting blowed-up real good, we're doing some wonderful character work, courtesy of our great cast. In other words, so far so good!

I did want to clear up one misconception that arose from a comment I made during our San Diego panel. As much as I love Bruce Springsteen, my reference to him as a survivor of our alien attack was what we in the entertainment business call "a joke." There are no Bruce cameos planned, sadly, though I still contend he'd kick alien ass in the event of a real invasion...

Greetings From Toronto...

...where were are prepping the first post-pilot episode of Falling Skies, and from where I am looking forward to flying back later this week for the grand unveiling Friday afternoon at ComicCon. Besides Noah Wyle, Moon Bloodgood and yours truly, we will be showing a very cool teaser trailer -- meaning the Con audience will be the first civilians see to anything (aside from stills) from the show itself. There will also be an autograph session pre-presentation, details on time and location still to come.

Official Falling Skies Program Info!

Right off the San Diego ComicCon website! Be there!

4:45-5:45 Falling Skies— They're coming. Get the very first look at Steven Spielberg's new series that envisions a world where aliens have invaded and the fate of humanity lies in the hands of a few survivors. Noah Wyle (ER, TNT's The Librarian movies) and Moon Bloodgood (Terminator Salvation) join co-executive producer and writer Mark Verheiden (Heroes, Battlestar Galactica) for a Q&A on the new series. Falling Skies premieres on TNT next summer. Room 6A

Machete Machete Machete!

So Robert Rodriguez made a phony trailer for an imaginary 70's movie called Machete for the not-imaginary movie Grindhouse. The trailer was so popular that Rodriguez has now made the entire movie, starring Danny Trejo, Steven Seagal and Robert DeNiro (!).

And now, in perhaps the ultimate form of tribute, someone's redone the original Machete trailer in Lego. I suspect the McDonalds drinking cup promotion ("want that Machete-sized?") is only weeks away...

http://horror.break.com/machete/machete-lego-made-trailer

Falling Skies Fall On San Diego!

If you want to sneak peek at our cool series, make sure to hit Room 6A at 4:45PM on Friday July 23!

TNT to Invade Comic-Con with FALLING SKIES, Eagerly Anticipated Series from DreamWorks Television And Executive Producer Steven Spielberg, Starring Noah Wyle

The resistance is coming to Comic-Con. TNT is going to give fans the very first look at the eagerly anticipated new series FALLING SKIES, from DreamWorks Television and executive producer Steven Spielberg, starring Noah Wyle. The gripping drama series, slated to premiere in summer 2011, envisions a world where aliens have invaded, and the fate of humanity lies in the hands of a few survivors. Series stars Wyle (ER, TNT's The Librarian movies) and Moon Bloodgood (Terminator Salvation) will join co-executive producer and writer Mark Verheiden (Heroes, Battlestar Galactica) at Comic-Con for a Q&A panel session scheduled to take place Friday, July 23, from 4:45 p.m. - 5:45 p.m. (PT) in Room 6A. They will also be available for an autograph signing, time and location to be announced.

In FALLING SKIES, Wyle stars as a former college professor who becomes the leader of a group of soldiers and civilians struggling against an occupying alien force. Bloodgood co-stars as Anne Glass, a therapist who works with the surviving children to help them cope with the traumatic situation. The series also stars Drew Roy (Lincoln Heights) as Hal and Maxim Knight (Brothers & Sisters) as Matt, Tom's two sons; and Seychelle Gabriel (Weeds) as Lourdes, an orphaned teenager who helps run the group's commissary. Will Patton (Armageddon, TNT's Into the West) plays a fierce leader of the resistance.

FALLING SKIES is executive-produced by Steven Spielberg, along with DreamWorks Television heads Justin Falvey and Darryl Frank and screenwriter Robert Rodat. Rodat, who earned an Oscar nomination for his screenplay for Saving Private Ryan, wrote the pilot from an idea he co-conceived with Spielberg. Verheiden and Greg Beeman (Heroes, Smallville) are co-executive producers. The pilot was directed by Carl Franklin (One False Move, Out of Time).

TNT, one of cable's top-rated networks, is television's destination for drama. Seen in 99.6 million households, the network is home to such original series as The Closer, starring Kyra Sedgwick; Leverage, starring Timothy Hutton; and Dark Blue, starring Dylan McDermott; the upcoming Rizzoli & Isles, starring Angie Harmon and Sasha Alexander; Memphis Beat, with Jason Lee; Men of a Certain Age, with Ray Romano, Andre Braugher and Scott Bakula; and Southland, from Emmy-winning producer John Wells (ER). TNT also presents such powerful dramas as Bones, Supernatural, Las Vegas, Law & Order, CSI: NY, Cold Case and Numb3rs; broadcast premiere movies; compelling primetime specials, such as the Screen Actors Guild Awards; and championship sports coverage, including NASCAR and the NBA. The NCAA men's basketball tournament will appear on TNT beginning in 2011. TNT is available in high-definition.

Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company, creates and programs branded news, entertainment, animation and young adult media environments on television and other platforms for consumers around the world.

My Name Is Bruce - Still Gettin' The Love

I haven't linked to any new reviews in awhile, but came across this TV Guide comment and decided it was time to share.

MONEY QUOTE: Few movies possess enough sheer goofball power to make Army of Darkness look like a chamber drama, and though Bruce Campbell's ultra-meta sophomore directorial effort, My Name Is Bruce, may not go quite that far over the top in delivering the kind of slapstick mayhem that's made Campbell one of cult fandom's hottest commodities, it comes damn close. Fast-paced, ridiculously self-deprecating, and fueled by a manic energy that's so outlandish it washes over the viewer with the giddiness of a B-movie fever dream, it's an enormous step up from Campbell's disappointing directorial debut, The Man with the Screaming Brain. Likewise, it's sure to satisfy Evil Dead fans due to the fact that it's essentially a scaled-down, contemporary working of the Army of Darkness model (cocky jackass defends the frightened locals from an invading supernatural force) and that the alternate-universe-Campbell presented here is, for all intents and purposes, an Ash-ified version of his own bad self.

See, idiot me, I thought Army Of Darkness WAS a chamber drama! For all the rest, go to:

http://movies.tvguide.com/bruce/review/295940

Battlestar Galactica: The Museum Has A Plan

So this is pretty cool. BSG the traveling exhibition hits Seattle later this year. I was lucky enough to work around the incredible space-ship mock-ups and sets so I can attest, they really are as cool in person as they appeared on TV. Cooler, actually.

Hat-tip to Galactica Sitrep for the heads up, here's the info straight from the museum site:

Battlestar Galactica: The Exhibition World Premiere Weekend: Oct. 22-24, 2010 at Seattle’s EMP|SFM
New traveling exhibition to feature three full-size spaceships, costumes and props from the original and reimagined series

SEATTLE—Experience Music Project|Science Fiction Museum (EMP|SFM) is proud to announce its latest exhibition, Battlestar Galactica: The Exhibition. Organized by EMP|SFM and in partnership with Universal Cable Productions and Syfy, Battlestar Galactica features three stunning, full-size prop spaceships, iconic costumes, new exhibition films, music and other props from the original and reimagined series. Battlestar Galactica opens to the public Oct. 23, 2010 and runs through March 4, 2012 at EMP|SFM in Seattle.

“The museum is honored to be organizing the first exhibition devoted to both series,” said Brooks Peck, Curator of Battlestar Galactica: The Exhibition. “Battlestar Galactica is one of those rare science fiction shows that appeals to a wide range of people because it combines high adventure with very personal drama. It explores what it means to be human, and has a lot of fun doing so.”

Opening weekend (Oct. 22-24, 2010) will include museum member and public events with some of Battlestar Galactica’s most popularpersonalities.

"Over its four season run on Syfy, Battlestar Galactica became an iconic series that not only entertained, but fulfilled the promise of all great science fiction. It provoked us into examining our world and ourselves through its politically-charged, socially-relevant, religious and technological themes," said Mark Stern, Executive Vice President, Original Programming, Syfy, and Co-head, Original Content, Universal Cable Productions. "It is an honor for us to partner with EMP|SFM in this one-of-a-kind opportunity to experience BSG in an up-close and personal way."

The exhibition will be presented in the Milestones Gallery on EMP’s third level. Battlestar Galactica will become a traveling exhibition in 2012 after its premiere at EMP|SFM.

About Battlestar Galactica: The Exhibition:

Battlestar Galactica is an epic drama of interstellar proportions. The last vestiges of humanity flee a cybernetic Cylon horde, traversing the stars in search of the fabled promised land of Earth. The setting of Battlestar Galactica may be rife with spaceships and inhuman adversaries, but ultimately the show is a complex narrative about how we attempt to retain our humanity under desperate circumstances. The series acts as a science-fictional lens through which to examine difficult questions that we may encounter in our own lives.

Exhibition sections:

Creation of Battlestar Galactica
Explores the genesis of the two versions of the show (1978 and 2003) and introduces the story and central conflicts.

The Search
Focuses on one of the central elements of the shows, the human quest to find the lost colony of Earth. The Search is also a spiritual one, as the humans seek meaning in a dangerous galaxy and grapple with issues of religion, fate and freedom.

The Ships
Three life-size spacecraft from the later series—two human and one Cylon— are the exhibition show stoppers. Concept art, storyboards, props and films complement the ships.

Humans and Cylons
This section presents the major characters from the shows including: Commander Adama, Starbuck, Boomer, Number Six and the Imperious Leader. Costumes are featured, along with props and concept art.

Exhibition specifics:

* Three full-size (30-feet long) prop spaceships:
o Viper Mark 2
o Viper Mark 7
o Cylon Raider
* Series props featuring:
o 15 costumes
o Dozens of props, concept sketches and storyboards
* Exhibition films
* Interactives:
o Music interactives
o Human/Cylon identity interactive

Battlestar Galactica: The Exhibition
Oct. 23, 2010-March 4, 2012

STOP THE PRESSES - Dragnet Edition

I know, you were probably expecting some hint about the Falling Skies TV series, or just wondering which press I'm trying to stop -- but this news is too big to wait. Are you sitting down?

Dragnet 1969 (Season 2) is finally coming out on official DVD! Even better, to my shock and delight, the full color 1954 Dragnet movie has been released in an Amazon-only edition! If you have enjoying Jack Webb's performing and directorial efforts already, you don't need a sales pitch. If you're new to this world, I suggest checking out the Dragnet movie. Hyper-stylized cop action with some of the wildest tough-guy dialogue ever written. Check out these examples lifted from the IMDB.com site:

[Hamilton and Friday read the Dead Body, or DB, Report on Miller Starkey]
Captain James E. Hamilton, Intelligence: Shotgun, extreme close range, double-O. Starkey was hit four times, first two cut him in half.
Sgt. Joe Friday: The second two turned him into a crowd.

[an eyewitness is afraid to testify]
Jesse Quinn: Mr. Friday, I'd like to ask you a question. If you was me, would you do it?
Sgt. Joe Friday: Can I wait awhile?
Jesse Quinn: Huh?
Sgt. Joe Friday: Before I'm you.

Sgt. Joe Friday: [as Troy's friend starts to stand up] Unless you're growin', Sit down!

It doesn't get any better than that! And I haven't even started to touch on the amazing fight scenes!

Crush On You!

Sometimes writers, when discussing their work, are challenged about a piece that may not have landed quite as they had hoped. More specifically, "hey, how come that TV show/movie/comic book sucked?" Often the misses are chalked up to "reasons beyond our control" or simply "oops", but if there's one thing I've discovered over the years, it is that critical opinion is not monolithic. So while most vocal critical people may hate-hate-HATE something, there's almost always someone who actually liked it. Strike that, there will be folks who just loved it.

If a so-called creative person plugs along long enough, they'll probably wind up with a few ugly step-children, the projects that clearly didn't come together as planned but still have a place in your heart.

Why, even Mr. Bruce Springsteen has a few. I would imagine if he really hated a song from his catalog, he just wouldn't play it. But on his most recent tour he started to play his E-Street albums from top to bottom, and when he did "The River" it was clear that the song "Crush On You" was not one of his favorites. He sarcastically called the song a "hidden masterpiece" from the River, and then proceeded to rip off a killer performance.

Here's the thing. I'm one of the goofball fans who always loved that song. When I saw Springsteen in Portland Or. on the actual River tour in the early 80's, the performance of "Crush On You" was a highpoint. So how do I process it when the man himself disses it as one of his least favorite songs? Why, I write a blog post, of course.

But here, you can make up your own mind. First, of course, every sentient human on Earth should have a copy of the River CD. So, start there. Then, thanks to Google and the amazing YouTube, you can judge an assortment of "Crush On You" performances for yourself!

Here are the lyrics --

My feets were flyin' down the street just the other night
When a Hong Kong special pulled up at the light
What was inside, man, was just c'est magnifique
I wanted to hold the bumper and let her drag me down the street.

Ooh, ooh I gotta crush on you
Ooh, ooh I gotta crush on you
Ooh, ooh I gotta crush on you tonight

Sometimes I spot a little stranger standing 'cross the room
My brain takes a vacation just to give my heart more room
For one kiss, darling I swear everything I would give
Cause you're a walking, talking reason to live

Ooh, ooh I gotta crush on you
Ooh, ooh I gotta crush on you
Ooh, ooh I gotta crush on you tonight

Well now she might be the talk of high society
She's probably got a lousy personality
She might be a heiress to Rockefeller
She might be a waitress or a bank teller
She makes the Venus de Milo look like she's got no style
She makes Sheena of the Jungle look meek and mild
I need a quick shot, Doc, knock me off my feet
Cause I'll be minding my own business walking down the street... watchout !

Ooh, ooh I gotta crush on you
Ooh, ooh I gotta crush on you
Ooh, ooh I gotta crush on you tonight

This site will sell you a "Crush On You" ringtone!

http://www.metrolyrics.com/crush-on-you-lyrics-bruce-springsteen.html

Here's Bruce doing Crush, live from November, 1980 --

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrcky9wOIqQ

And here's an outtake from the River sessions (!)...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfJDg6hNXNg&feature=related

An Idiotic Thing To Be Annoyed About

So I got a new computer with Windows 7, and with it a new version of computer solitaire. The big difference? This edition has a pop-up that appears when you've exhausted your possibilities, telling you in no uncertain terms that you're toast. In the past you could keep fiddling around with different permutations in frustration until you reached the "end game" on your own, but now? The computer tells you you're a dummy. I will now adopt my little kid voice: "I don't like it!"

Of course the more germane question is, why the hell am I wasting time playing solitaire? That will be answered in another blog installment called "work avoidance is your friend."

What's New...

I've been busy working on "Fallen Skies" and cleaning up files on a new computer system so my blogging regimen has taken a bit of a hit. But all seems to be more or less in order at this point, so there you go...

Incidentally, I thought computers were supposed to be getting smaller, but my new Dell number cruncher has a desktop metal box that reminds me of Colossus The Forbin Project. (Ancient computer reference copyright 2010 by MV, but it's still a good movie!). However, the new machine sure is fast.

A bunch of Blu-Rays have stacked up over the last few weeks. A few notables:

THE ROAD. Feel good movie of the year. I admired the acting and the production design and the serious intent of this movie, but the unrelenting (and rather anecdotal) episodes of grim and gritty finally wore me down. And as much as I enjoy ambiguity, maybe someone someday could explain to me WHY the two travelers had to keep braving danger to reach the coast?

44 INCH CHEST. This probably says more about me than the movie, but after thirty minutes watching a gangster weep and cry over losing his wife to another guy, I gave up on this. I'm sure exciting stuff happens later and I'll probably get back to it, but I just wasn't in the mood...

DAYS OF HEAVEN. One of the most beautiful movies ever made and absolutely gorgeous in blu-ray. This, Kubrick's Barry Lyndon and Ridley Scott's The Duellists are high points of 70's cinematography, an achievement even more impressive considering there was no CGI to augment the images.

BAD LIEUTENANT PORT OF CALL NEW ORLEANS: I'll watch anything directed by Werner Herzog, and this is no exception. Having enduring some bad back issues myself the last few weeks, Nick Cage absolutely nails the look of chronic sciatica. And I have to admit that I love fever-dream movies that cut away to things like iguanas for no real reason except it's cool.

ComicCon 2010

Can't believe we're coming up on yet another ComicCon. After grumpily considering skipping this year's show, I signed up anyway... and now because of work, I may not make it anyway.

That said, any convention that can generate 135 (!) tips for survival is clearly becoming something more than a casual weekend jaunt. Check out www.comicsreporter.com for the list. And yes, comfy shoes and a game plan do make sense given the congestion at the show...

Untitled Alien Invasion for TNT!

I guess I can let the cat out of the bag since I'm hard at work, but for what it's worth I've just started my next TV gig, co-executive producer of "Untitled Alien Invasion" for the TNT network. For executive producers Steven Spielberg and Graham Yost, with the pilot written by Robert Rodat. It's a very cool show and I suspect if I say anything more than that I'll be in trouble, so I won't! Suffice to say the "Untitleds" cause lots of trouble...

More details as I'm further along...

Less Minimal...

Boy, kick back for a minute and suddenly it's been almost a month between posts. Lots of "stuff" going on but nothing I can discuss quite yet, but there's one project in particular pending that... well, if it happens I'll be sure to mention it here! I've learned never to jinx projects by assuming the deal's done before it's really, really done. So I won't!

Otherwise, the feature projects are more or less in and going through the "process." The process varies depending on the situation, but "Ark" is out to directors and my other, as yet unannounced project HAS a very cool director. I'll be back as THAT develops.

Meanwhile, with Heroes under my belt and the features under control for a moment, I'm actually lolling back for the first time in a few years. Look, blue sky! Flowers! Amazing!!

I'll be reporting on some of the cool stuff I've amassed/heard/seen recently (Tombstone on blu-ray! The Flaming Lips covering Dark Side Of The Moon! Justified the TV series!) as I get back into the blogging groove...

Minimal...

Blogging has been minimal the last few weeks because I've been focused on finishing an as-yet unannounced feature project that's very cool and, as with all writing projects, remarkably time-consuming. When I get into hunker-down mode, it's all encompassing. Everybody works differently, but look in the dictionary under "plodder" and there I am... I have to start on page one and just go from there. I've heard of other writers who can ping-pong around a story (and very occasionally, especially on some insane TV deadline, I've done it myself), but for me it's about the A to B to C of it.

One thing I've been struggling with is, well, "logic." As in, real world physics and science and body mechanics versus... not so real world. I loved the Iron Man movie, but I know if I were working on a similar project, I'd be pounding my head trying to justify the "science" of that world. I mean, there is absolutely no reason that Iron Man should be able to fly. The suit is an aerodynamic joke. I'd probably be trying to find some insanely implausible explanation for it, and yet when I saw the movie, I completely accepted that a guy in a cave could monkey-wrench something like that together.

So I spend part of my writing day just trying to get over it. And why not? For cryin' out loud, I spent three years working on Battlestar Galactica, and nobody ever explained the gravity machine that kept everybody glued to the floor in weightless outer space!

Movie Fun!

Here's a few of the interesting movies I've "enjoyed" the last few weeks (enjoyed in quotes because I'm not sure the word applies to a couple of these epics)...

Like, for instance, The Horseman, an Australian revenge movie that's been getting some attention for its unrelenting tone. Well, there is that! Basically an updated (and infinitely cheaper) version of the George C. Scott movie Hardcore, Horseman follows the single-minded quest of a bereaved father who wants to know how his daughter wound up in a porno movie and then O.D.'ed on heroin. A pest exterminator by day, "Dad" gets pretty wound up when he finds the folks responsible and employs the tools of his trade to cadge out information. Suffice to say this involves fish-hooks, bicycle pumps, propane torches, hammers and other tools applied to some rather delicate areas of the anatomy. It's actually fairly well done, but I'm not sure if that's a compliment or a reason to avoid...

On a completely different note, Criterion's just released a blu-ray of Bigger Than Life, a Nicholas Ray "slice of life" film from 1956 starring James Mason. Mason plays a school teacher who comes down with a not-particularly specific but fatal disease. Fortunately, Doctors have discovered a possible miracle drug ("Cortisone!"). Unfortunately, the Cortisone drives Mason insane... but it's that very peculiar, 1950's version of insane, where the victim doesn't curl up in a ball or eat dirt, but instead remains remarkably cogent and erudite while getting mean and unpredictable. In this case, Mason becomes a harsh taskmaster to his incredibly patient wife and young son. It sounds like I'm making fun of the movie, but it's actually quite compelling and the glorious full color picture is amazing. And having had Cortisone shots myself, I guess I finally have an excuse for my erratic behaviors.

Also recently out on blu-ray is David Lynch's Elephant Man, which hasn't lost any of its power. I like Lynch's later movies, but this early effort is probably his most "traditional" and genuinely emotional. There are some achingly poignant scenes, and one of the best tracking shots ever, pushing in on star Anthony Hopkins the first time he sees the deformed Elephant Man. Just when the camera hits the close-up, a single tear comes down Hopkins' cheek. I imagine this has stuck with me because I attended a lecture by Lynch just after Elephant Man's release where he was asked about this very shot. How did they do it, time the push-in and the tear so well? Lynch's answer? Luck. They just got it. The blu-ray also comes with an informative documentary about the real Elephant Man (there were quite a few dramatic liberties taken for the film), but the pristine black and white presentation is more than enough reason to spring for this edition.

Alien V.S. Pooh

The heading more or less says it all... poor Winnie The Pooh...

http://godxiliary.com/alienvspooh/Medium/

Dick Giordano R.I.P.

I was very sad to learn today that Dick Giordano, a fabulous artist and a major editorial influence at DC Comics, passed away today. I met with Dick several times when I was first getting started in comics, and he was always supportive, friendly and just a good guy to deal with. The older I get, the more I value that in people. It's a rare commodity...

I still remember sitting in my editor's office at DC looking over some frankly awful pencils for a story I'd written. Dick happened to pop in, looked at the pages with the same dismay, and told the editor to spend a few bucks and do whatever he could to get the pages into shape. I actually have a few of those redrawn originals. You would never mistake them for great, but they did come up a lot. And I can imagine a lot of folks who would have sent them to press "as is."

We lost one of the good guys today...

Confessions...

A dramatic heading for a much less dramatic post. But my pal Pat DiNizio, lead singer for the band The Smithereens, has just released "Confessions Of a Rock Star", a spoken-word examination of his life and work. It comes in an interesting format, as an autographed flash-drive/wristband. And besides the biographical gab, the drive also features 30 or so Smithereens demos AND Pat's live performance at the Coach House from a couple months ago. The live show, especially, is a lot of fun, with covers and Smithereens tracks and other goodies. Check out Pat's site at patdinizio.com for a list of upcoming Smithereens and solo concerts!

Comics Aren't For Kids!

Anyone interested in a somewhat scary era for comics might be interested in Steve Bissette's recounting of the great "mature audience label" controversy from 1986-ish. Basically, comics like Watchmen, Dark Knight and Miracleman were tickling the edges of the "comics are for kids!" boundary, and when the tumult made the mainstream media ("Comics Are Dirty!!"), a few retailers and comic companies pushed for labels. Which could have made certain books off-limits to some major retailers, essentially removing them from the marketplace.

Real people like my pal Marv Wolfman lost their jobs when they protested corporate decision-making, and retailers were hurt and/or lost their businesses when police busted their stores for selling what would now be PG material to minors. So it was not an insignificant moment. The series is running in chapter-chunks on Steve's blog at:

http://srbissette.com/

Action GOP.Com!

I'm not exactly the best target for GOP e-mails, but I get them nevertheless. This one came today, and it just struck a chord.

Dear Fellow Patriot;

Nancy Pelosi is hell-bent on passing a government takeover of your health care, with or without a direct vote on the Senate Democrats’ bill. Nearly four years ago she condemned the sort of sleazy tactic she is now committed to using as "unconstitutional." Now she has deemed sleazy tactics necessary to furthering her Leftist agenda. There is nothing she won't do to pass this bill.

The interesting thing about this is that yes, Pelosi probably WAS calling this "deem and pass" reconciliation procedure a sleazy unconstitutional tactic four years ago. Back when, you know, the Republicans were using it over and over. So now the Republicans are condemning the self-described sleazy, unconstitutional tactic that they themselves used repeatedly. It's like the Republicans accusing Pelosi of getting ready to kick a dog. It's an awful thing to do to a poor animal, and they should know, because they kicked the shit out of that mutt four years ago!

So who's sleazier? Interesting question! I think I'll mull it while watching one of my bourbon shows...

Bourbon Shows

I've watched plenty of television, but only a few programs have reached the pinnacle of being a "bourbon show." It's my version of "can't miss TV" or "glued to the chair." But in my very peculiar case, I'm talking about shows that go down better, no, shows that demand to be watched with a glass of bourbon.

Most of the time, these shows actually involve bourbon. DEADWOOD, for instance, was a total bourbon show. Characters would belly up to bars and throw back whiskey in every other scene. THE SOPRANOS was another, a total bourbon show. How could you watch Tony and his pals pouring shots at the Ba Da Bing without hoisting a glass of your own? And of course, BATTLESTAR GALACTICA was a classic bourbon show. Although the episodes where Adama drank until he puked may have pushed things just a bit...

Well, I have a new bourbon show. It's JUSTIFIED on FX, and I dare you, I double dare you to sit through an episode without pouring yourself a stiff one. And that's just after seeing the pilot! But I can almost guarantee multiple scenes in bars with tall pours and ice cracking and all that great bourbon show stuff. Incidentally, and again based just on the pilot, it's a great show, bourbon aside. But bourbon makes it better!

Um, About That San Diego Con Thing...

A few weeks ago I posted a comment about attending a small local comic/media convention in Long Beach. The ease of going to that casual, friendly convention got me thinking about maybe skipping this Summer's big San Diego event for the first time in, ohh, 27 years. My friend Heidi MacDonald linked to the post and it got more attention than it deserved, but astute readers will note that I did give myself an out in case I changed my mind.

One of the biggest hassles at the last two or three San Diego shows has been in securing a convenient room at a not-insane price. The closest hotels (the Marriott adjacent to the convention center, the Hiatt next to that, and the Hilton across the street) have inevitably booked up a year in advance, at high prices. Well, something's changed. I don't know if it's the economy or the hotels opening up a lot more rooms, but I was able to get a room I wanted in my fave hotel for half what I paid last year. This was booking on my own, not off the convention's hotel site (which I believe opens up on Thursday).

It's amazing how not feeling ripped-off before you walk out the door mellows one's attitude toward the convention adventure...

Speaking Of Boris Karloff Tales Of Mystery Vol. 2...

"Boris" was the only book I wound up getting in the great Amazon pricing debacle. (See posting below for the early details). Now there's consternation in the comic book world between those who believed taking advantage of the price glitch was criminal and nobody should be crying over not getting their books, versus some (on the FAR other side) who want to launch a class action suit because Amazon canceled many orders on the under-priced volumes.

I only have two points. One, re: the low price, Amazon occasionally does one day sales where they drop prices dramatically, so I'm not sure it's a given that everyone should automatically assume the low low prices were a mistake. I see $100 art books remaindered for $8.00 at Barnes and Noble all the time...

And two, I'll live sans an Incredible Hulk Omnibus. People/companies make mistakes, and that's life.

Hey Kids, Comics (Collections) - Dark Horse Edition

There are an incredible number of hardcover comic book reprint volumes coming out. There are just two...

Boris Karloff Tales Of Mystery Vol. 2 collects issues #5 through #10 of the Gold Key series. I'm thrilled to see so much silver and golden age material being reprinted, but looking through this book, I'm reminded why Boris Karloff never landed high on my "collecting" list. As chillers go, these stories are about as frightening as the cheese aisle at Ralph's supermarket, and most of the art is competent, middle-of-the-road and bland. There's art by Alex Toth and "the Wally Wood studio" in this book, and while nice, even those feel like they went through the blander-izer before seeing print.

And the stories. Jeepers, it's like they weren't even trying! In one short piece, a shambling guy wearing a bear skin (!) shuffles into a village and freaks everybody out. The villagers get mad and "bear skin" skulks off, to be found by a little boy who discovers it's not a man under the bear-skin, it's a weird fish-guy! Fish guy jumps in a lake and "it's not until Spring thaw" that the villagers find a crashed spaceship on the mountainside. He was an alien! Wow! And all that in four pages!

On the the other hand, Dark Horse's Conan Vol. 1 reprints the first 11 issues of Roy Thomas/Barry Smith's Marvel version of Conan the Barbarian, and these are pretty great. It took Thomas and Smith a couple issues to find their sea legs, but they hit their stride fast and these are really good comics. Even better, they are exceptionally well written. Maybe it took being freed from the superhero world, but I think these are among Roy Thomas' best stories, and he wrote quite a few good ones. And the best is yet to come, in Volume 2, where this comic makes a quantum leap in quality with some true classics.

Things I Learned From The Internet - Special "You Think YOU'RE Messed Up?" edition...

A producer from the news show 48 Hours is expected to plead guilty of trying to extort money from David Letterman. http://www.suntimes.com/entertainment/television/2092590,david-letterman-affairs-blackmail-guilty-030910.article

A California Republican Congressman noted for his anti-gay voting record was caught driving drunk. Leaving a gay bar. He confessed on a radio show that he is, indeed, gay, but justified his anti-gay votes by saying he was "representing his constituents." http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2010/03/the-walking-wounded-ctd-1.html

But the winner of my "worst week" -- Democratic Congressman Eric Massa decided to resign last week, citing health issues. Then he said it was to avoid an ethics investigation over inappropriate comments he made toward male staffers. Then he said he was forced out because he didn't vote for the health care bill, and that Rahm Emanuel confronted him over his vote naked. In the shower (!). Today, the Washington Post reports that Massa was being investigated for "groping" his male staffers. And tonight he's going on Glenn Beck. http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/03/gibbs_massa_allegations_are_silly_and_ridiculous_v.php?ref=fpb

Things I've Learned On The Internet Recently...

I really like a Japanese jazz pianist named Hiromi.

Sarah Palin used to sneak over the border into Canada to get health care. (http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2010/3/8/844045/-I-got-mine.-The-rest-of-you-can-drop-the-f*@#-dead!)

The Oscar ceremony was last night, but they made the mistake of going up against an NCIS marathon.

A Congressman named Eric Massa is resigning because of some ethics issues, but perhaps more interestingly, he appears to be a Battlestar fan! Or at least he thinks "frack" is a real word. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/08/eric-massa-ethics-probe-e_n_489804.html

Amazon may have made a mistake and listed a whole bunch of Marvel's "Omnibus" hardcovers at $9.00 over the weekend. The postage for shipping these insanely heavy books (some run 800 pages) has got to be more than $9.00. I ordered the Fantastic Four Omnibus #2, Iron Man #1, Hulk #1 and X-Men #1. That's something like 3200 pages of full color comics for $36.00. (Tip of the MV hat to Mark Evanier, url at the right, for the alert.)

I didn't learn this on the internet, but I discovered that if you drop your i-pod down a flight of concrete stairs, it will break.

One of my favorite bands, The Del-Lords, have just released their first new music since the early 90's. "Under Construction" offers up five demos of tunes to appear on their next CD. You can hear these for free on their website (http://del-lords.com) or buy a physical CD at Greatbigisland.com.

And finally, there's gonna be a Caprica summit in NYC on 3/17. Details below (thanks to Galactica Sitrep, url at the right, for the info).

Wednesday, March 17, 2010
6:30 pm ET, New York

Appearing In Person:

Ronald D. Moore, Co-Creator and Executive Producer
David Eick, Executive Producer
Paula Malcomson, "Amanda Graystone"
Alessandra Torresani, "Zoe Graystone"
Magda Apanowicz, "Lacy Rand"
Sasha Roiz, "Sam Adama"

Syfy’s new Battlestar Galactica prequel—more futuristic family saga than space opera—is a provocative, superbly crafted drama that, like its predecessor, tackles complex, highly resonant themes, such as religion, race, terrorism, technology, love, and the very nature of humanity. Like all quality drama, Caprica is not just emotionally and intellectually gripping, but also compels viewers to confront their own reality, even as they are swept up in this visually arresting, preapocalyptic world of sentient robots, avatars, and interplanetary travel.

The Paley Center will preview an upcoming episode from Caprica’s first season, followed by a discussion with members of the cast and creative team.

Paley Center Members: $15, tickets on sale now.
General Public: $25, tickets on sale Wednesday, February 24 at noon.

Aliens - Czech Mate!

I think I got a good review from a Czech news site. This is the translation:

Comics fans, however, much more zatleskají invaders who take them back again to 450 color pages. Epic cartoon series, built by Mark Verheiden on the foundations of the famous horror film, this time offering forage juice alien queen in three epic stories - Genocide, Harvest and Colonial infantry.

Of course I didn't write Genocide, Harvest or "Colonial Infantry", but I built them!