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CONTRIBUTORS' LINKS Mike Smith's Homepage |
Another nutty weekend. I'm still sore from all the moving and sleepless days, but the good news is my last storage unit is closed. I won't have that bill to pay anymore.
However, bringing everything home in a hurry gives new meaning to the word "packed". It's pretty crowded in here.
Typical of fanboy fashion--altho I avoided it as long as I could afford to--my current home navigation style is that weird sideways gait, hugging-the-wall-James-Bond-style-side-step I'm sure you all of the more crazed collector persuasion are all familiar with. But at least this time
I planned ahead and was able to get most of it in here in an organized fashion and can gradually organize it further down the line. Special thanks go out to my brother Ron Canova and my close friend Count Poffula for their invaluable assistance during this last ordeal. (There was a previous ordeal back in April with the
first warehouse. It was even worse.)
It's been a couple weeks since I've forced my readers to swallow any more of this, but seeing as it's a slow news week, I thought it might be a good time to empty the closets of one more "internet romance" story.
This one is good friend Greg Van Stavern's story.
Greg was one of the first people I knew to own a personal computer and get to know it pretty well. I was always impressed at his grasp of its workings. He used to come by my place of employment to show me different things he'd downloaded and printed out. So he was quite considerate, too. But, over a year or so ago, he started coming by less and less. It took quite a while
before I discovered that he had discovered chatrooms and was meeting people--women in particular--online.
Around the Spring of last year he introduced us to one woman he met online (who shall remain nameless--she's still around) he was pretty crazy about who had a lot of fangirl attributes, and altho she had a much more dominant personality than his, they seemed happy together. Long story short: it didn't work out and went down in flames--BIG flames for Greg--last Fall. Greg was unbelievably devastated. Had it stopped there,
this would have been a "when good internet romances go bad" column. But with the help of his friends--some still online only--he got through it (I'm oversimplifying for time considerations---it was real rough). Greg resumed internet contact and about Spring of this year met another girl ("Dee") who is apparently a much better match. We all met her, and they recently announced their engagement to be married. (Yes, things move pretty quickly around these parts anymore...)
Greg and I go back pretty far (he's also over 40), so this is a pretty big deal. We, of course, wish him and Dee the best.
NEXT CHAPTER: THE DEADGUY SAGA.
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Deadguy reviews "Unbreakable"---the DVD release.
UNBREAKABLE (The DVD release) |
Starring: Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson Released: 2000 Ok, I've never done a movie review before, but after seeing this movie on
DVD, I felt compelled to write. It stars Bruce Willis, and Samuel L.
Jackson as the main two characters, and is a very gripping movie. I'm not
sure how the movie was received by the regular string of movie critics, but
even in my home, it received a mixed reaction. That's more information than I had when I saw the movie, and so it turned
out to be a very gripping film for me. All I knew was that someone survived
a trainwreck in the beginning of the film, and Bruce and Samuel were in it.
(Hey! that's good enough for me!)
Shyamalan is very adept at creating an eerie type of story line, where you
don't really know the REAL story being told until right near the end of it.
As you watch it, you THINK you know what's happening, and it's not until a
startling revelation occurs that you can go back and piece everything
together. The small details that you may not have even NOTICED as being
odd, suddenly have meaning, and you begin to understand the story that's
actually being told.
| As noted above, I watched the DVD version of this movie. If you have a DVD
player, and have any interest in comic books, I'd recommend getting the DVD
for the extra features alone! There's a 2nd DVD in the box just for the
extra features. Included as extras are several items, but I've listed my
favorite ones here. There are behind-the-scenes stuff at almost every stage of production. All in all, I really enjoyed the movie. My girlfriend admits to being
gripped by the tale, but when it was all over with, she said that she's
actually uncertain about whether she liked the movie or not. I'm not TOO
surprised, because the storyline seemed to operate outside of the normal
scope of the movies she likes, yet the storyline was really well done. It's
almost as though she didn't like the movie personally, but could certainly
see why SOME folks would love this film. So, in a nutshell, I personally really liked the DVD version of this film,
but I hesitate to STRONGLY recommend it to you unless you fit any two of the
following three pre-requisites.. You should: If you have all four pre-requisites, then RUN, don't walk to your nearest DVD retailer and get yourself a copy! However, if you don't have a DVD player, you'll NEED all four pre-requisites to truly enjoy a rented VHS copy of this movie. ©2001 by Michael Scott |
As the story unfolds, we discover that in ancient
Egyptian times, cats actually ruled over mankind,
that is, until dogs came into the picture. Man’s best
friend overthrew the evil kittie regime, and have
protected us from a cat coup ever since. Now, however,
it seems that the absent-minded Professor Brody
(Jeff Goldblum--poor guy. He does a great job but can you
say TYPECAST?) may have actually found a cure for
people who suffer from dog allergies. If this cure
actually hits the shelf, there will be more dog
people than ever before. BUT, if Mr. Tinkles can get
inside Brody’s lab and REVERSE the formula, then
EVERYONE would be allergic to dogs, and cats could
re-position themselves for world domination! (Insert
evil laugh here)
Lou is planted into the Brody home by Canine
Headquarters when Mrs. Brody goes on a search for a
new family dog, both for the professor to experiment
his cure on, and for a companion for their lonely son.
(Their previous dog was cat-napped by feline agents,
unbeknownst to the Brodys)
Lou’s mission is to protect the lab at ALL costs, and
above all, DON’T get personally involved with the Brody
family.
The movie’s plot flows smoothly, and the casting is
topnotch. There are some hilariously funny scenes
with a Russian Blue cat that hacks up an arsenal of
weapons like hair balls. And Mr. Tinkles at times is
down right Hitleresque, at one point commanding a mouse
army to do his evil bidding.
My kids loved it, I loved it, Hey, even my husband
liked it, and he doesn’t like ANYTHING! (He even hated
"Gladiator".) Matt's Rail by Matt Drinnenberg
Hello all! LEGENDS Well, as last week, I'm bombarded with work, so till next time...
Hello gang! Just a few notes this week. Shall we begin?
VACATIONS TRAILER OF THE WEEK CONGRATULATIONS I'M IN THE BOOK EBAY MAKES ME HAPPY WILL THE REAL SLIM SHADY PLEASE STAND UP? Well, that's it for now. Have a great week.
Cats and Dogs Movie review by Lisa Zubek
* * * out of * * * * stars
Cast: Stars Jeff Goldblum and Elizabeth Perkins with the
vocal talents of Sean Hayes (of Will and Grace fame),
Tobey Maguire, Alec Baldwin, Susan Sarandon, Michael Clarke Duncan, and Jon Lovitz.
Directed by: Lawrence Guterman
Rated: PG
Running Time: 93 min.
Personal note from Lisa: I’m baaack! So sorry for my long absense, I had Strep
Throat from HELL, and then I got terribly busy with
work. I got a new promotion, I am now WFLA’s street
reporter, and I am still doing my weekend anchor gig
on FRN. Doesn’t leave me with a lot of down time when
you factor in my 3 kids, 2 dogs, one cat, one rabbit
AND my husband.
That being said, I know you’ve all missed me terribly
and that you’ve been crying in your collective beer,
waiting in breathless anticipation for my next
lambast. Well, my pretties, yer gonna have to wait a
while longer, cuz Nolan asked me to do a movie review
this week. Now, this not being my forte, go easy on me
about my reviewing style, ’k?
Now, without further ado, I present to you (insert
fanfare here):
Scintillating Summer Cinema by Lisa The Movie Maven
"Cats and Dogs" ....Bone, James Bone.
As summer movies go, this piece of fluff is as
entertaining for adults as it is for children.
Using a combination of live-action, puppetry and CGI,
Warner Brothers Pictures has created a gem of a film
which offers a peek into what your domesticated pals
are up to when you're not looking. This movie has
everything you’d expect from a Summer offering;
assassins, nifty weponry, high-tech James-Bond-like
gadgets, ninja kitties and, of course, a hero who
triumphs over evil.
Evil in this case comes in the form of a white Persian
cat named Mr. Tinkles, who is presented in a WAY over-the-top
performance by "Will and Grace"’s Sean Hayes.
As the power-mad Mr. Tinkles and his feline minions,
who are hell-bent on world domination begin mass
mobilization, it is up to the super-spy canines to
stop them.
Led by a beagle puppy named Lou, voiced by Tobey
Maguire, the pooches have their work cut out for them.
The Movie Maven says You’d be meshuga not to check
this one out ('course, she also says, "You don’t call,
you don’t write, waddam I, chopped liver?")
Want to begin by saying I hope everyone had a Happy 4th of July. We should remember that our forefathers fought for our right to party on the momentous annual occasion.
[My vacation in] Martha's Vineyard was quite simply "awesome". Strolling along the streets of Amity, I kept hearing this familiar tune. Something recognized by guitarists as [musical notes] "E-F-E E-F-E E-F E-F E-F E-F E-F-E-F-E-F-E-F-E-F-E-F-E (you get the idea). South Beach was wonderful and I'm glad to report no command performances by Bruce the Shark.
Another month, another slew of incredible talent takes life's exit. Chet Atkins really hits home. If you'll remember, he led of my favorite guitarists of all time. One of my dad's personal favorites (who was an incredible musician in his 'own' right), I and countless others will consider this the loss of the world's best guitar player ever. Bar none.
Jack Lemmon strikes me as quite odd (no pun intended). Seems Walter [Matthau] just couldn't get along without him and had The Big Guy bring him right on up. I can't think of a movie he was in where he didn't give it his all. Hilarious in "Some Like It Hot", riveting in "China Syndrome", convincing in all!
Take Care and God Bless,
Matthew
P.S. Yes Mike, I got you your Amity sand from South Beach ("we had a shark attack on south beach this morning, mayor" Deputy Hendricks to Mayor Vaughn, JAWS 1975)
Glad Matt made it back safely from Martha's Vineyard...............even gladder (is that a word?) he got me some sand. I'll be heading to Chicago next week for an America On Line host meeting, so I'll be sure to grab you something.
Caught the first trailer for next year's "Spider-Man". All I can say is 'WOW.' I don't want to spoil it for trailer-watchers. Let's just say that it's got my attention! Currently the trailer is on the front of "Final Fantasy," but should be available for other films beginning next Wednesday with "Jurassic Park 3."
To Baltimore Oriole third baseman Cal Ripken, Jr., who this week was named the Most Valuable Player of the 2001 Major League Baseball All Star Game. This is Cal's last year, and I am assembling a piece on my greatest memories of this future hall of famer, which I will present at the end of September.
The German magazine 'Journal fuer die Frau' quotes Nicole Kidman in a current interview: "I haven't given up hope that somewhere out there somebody is waiting for me and I can fall in love again." FYI Nicole: my number is 913-651-2738. Call me.
In early 1979, my house burned down. Among the many items I lost was a paperback book which recounted the filming of "Jaws 2," aptly entitled "The Jaws 2 Log." I am pleased as punch that after YEARS of looking, I finally got hold of one on Ebay. Possibly the best $32.00 I've spent in some time.
In 1969, George Carlin did a bit on the "seven dirty words you couldn't say on television".
It appears that the FCC is still in the '60's. This week, the FCC fined Colorado Springs, Colorado radio station KKMG for playing the approved "clean" version of Eminem's "Real Slim Shady", citing it as "indecent." Never mind that the song had been played over 125,000 times prior to this incident, or that no one complained.
At first, I thought that maybe the first amendment doesn't apply. Then I learned that this past month they dismissed two complaints filed by parents, including one where a disc jockey took calls from people who had never masturbated before and persuaded one to do so for ten minutes on air in an attempt to win prizes. What the hell is going on here? I remember hearing the word "bullshit" when listening to "Money," by Pink Floyd. Not to mention Roger Daltrey asking 'who the fuck are you' on "Who Are You" in 1979. Didn't hear any complaints then. In 1975, Jefferson Starship released the song, "Miracles," in which Marty Balin sang that he 'found a piece of the real world...........when I went down on you girl.' Sometime in the early 80's, radio stations began playing the song with the above phrase excised. It was only within the past few years that I've heard the song played in its entirety. And I'm not just talking one station, or one town. As Brian Wilson sang, "I've been all around this great big world," and I've heard a lot of stations. What kind of message is this sending? I used to help a friend of mine do a Saturday morning a.m. show when I lived in Maryland. As such, I had to be licensed by the FCC. Was this a license to broadcast freely, within proper bounds? Or did this make me a party to their selective brand of censorship? I would really love to get some feedback on this matter, especially from fellow PCR writer Lisa.