April 18, 2008
music on Roswell DVDs
Recently I bought seasons 2 and 3 of Roswell, since they were 50% off at amazon.com. I did not buy them when first released because I was disappointed with the DVD of season 1, as some of the music was replaced due to prohibitive licensing costs (damn those frakking Capitalists!). The same problem bedevils seasons 2 and 3, though, as I discovered while watching "Heart of Mine" and "Graduation." Luckily, however, they did not mess with the Liz/Max theme song!
March 13, 2008
Obama vs. Hillary: who should Sistas favor?
I was interviewed for a news commentary that appeared today: "Clinton-Obama race producing 'delightful dilemma' for black women." All of the other people quoted are Black women (I think) so I'm not sure why I was called....
February 09, 2008
Sci-Fi top 25
EW.com has posted a (highly subjective) list of the greatest moments from the past 25 years of science fiction TV and film. Although I would change a few things (like swap the positions of #2 Battlestar Galactica and #4 The X-Files), it's a pretty good list. Check it out.
writers' strike over?
It appears that the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers have reached a tentative agreement to end the writers' strike. I hope so, 'cause I need some new episodes of my shows!
February 04, 2008
Ad Bowl 2008
Yesterday's Ad Bowl was filled with the worst Super Bowl commercials ever, I think. The San Diego, CA paper said something like, "there were a handful of good ads, a few more horrible spots, and the rest were too boring for commentary." Indeed! My bottom-dweller (careerbuilder.com "follow your heart to a better job") came in at #39 on the Ad Meter, and my #1 (Diet Pepsi Max "Night at the Roxbury" allusion) was #8; their #2 (FedEx carrier pigeons) was also my #2, so we were in agreement about some things. I don't know how the f&%*, though, people liked the Tide stain commercial (Ad Meter #10) and E*Trade baby spots (#s 14 and 15)....
January 05, 2008
movie sneak-ins
Yesterday afternoon I did a sneak-in double feature to see Alien vs. Predator 2 and I Am Legend. Both were sparsely populated (less than 10 peeps for both), and both times I was the only one there until a few minutes before the movie started. This was fine for the first show, but I was getting worried before movie #2: if there were no paying customers, would the film be screened?! Are films in googleplexes shown on an automatic timer no matter what, or does the switch get clicked on only if tickets are sold? Hhhmmm....
December 21, 2007
cancelled TV shows
Earlier in the week the last episode of my favorite new show of the season (Journeyman) aired. Yesterday I learned that two older shows I watch -- The Dead Zone and The 4400 -- were also cancelled. Rough week.
December 13, 2007
spring TV shows
In February NBC will air a pilot for a remake of Knight Rider, featuring a bomb-ass Ford Mustang Shelby GT500KR as KITT. I hope this pilot is better than NBC's fall 2007 re-visioning of Bionic Woman, which was very disappointing.
December 12, 2007
fall TV shows
Looks like one of my new TV shows, Journeyman, will not be renewed following the conclusion of the writers' strike. Damn!!
December 08, 2007
iTunes disappointment
Earlier in the week I heard a great song on the radio: Charlie Haden's "The Left Hand of God." I went to iTunes to buy it, but was greeted with the note that it was an "album only" song, one that you can get only if you buy the whole album (!). I'll probably go 'head and get the whole thing -- Now is the Hour -- because it contains other cool songs, but I thought that MP3 download sites were created to let you get exactly and only what you wanted?!?
October 24, 2007
October 22, 2007
memoir at Target
Yesterday I discovered that my memoir is available via Target's online store! I wondered if it was also in a physical store, but a check of the nearest location revealed that I would have no such luck. Oh well, at least the book is popping up in unusual places! Now if only Oprah would give me a call....
October 21, 2007
Doodle
Last week I set up a meeting after checking participants' schedules via a Doodle poll. Ah, the wonders of the web....
October 11, 2007
fall TV shows
I watched Pushing Daisies for the first time last night (after missing last week's series premiere). I liked it, but it did not quite meet all the hype, IMHO. I'll keep watching, however. Another new show that I've given up on, though, is Bionic Woman. I had sky-high expectations for that show, from the creator of my #1 show of last year, Battlestar Galactica. Oh well....
October 07, 2007
memoir reading
On October 4 I held a reading and signing of my memoir Ghostbox. About 50 people showed up, and I knew almost everyone; five were strangers, and only one of those looked like she was forced to go and did not enjoy herself...I think that a colleague assigned attendance as an optional event for her writing class. Another stranger was a student who wanted to videotape the reading as part of a journalism class project. Also, one of my current students showed up and bought a copy. Finally, 24 of the 25 copies on hand were sold! So, all in all, a good night....
October 02, 2007
Instant Getification
Ask.com has unveiled a new ad campaign: Instant Getification. I saw an ad for the first time last night. It was cool, but I'll probably still use google....
September 30, 2007
book signing
At 7:00PM on October 4, 2007 I will hold an author reading and book signing of my memoir Ghostbox. The event will be held in the Coffman Union bookstore on the campus of the University of Minnesota.
September 25, 2007
ST:TNG 20th anniversary
Wow, I can't believe that Star Trek: The Next Generation is about to turn 20 years old (on September 28)! Check out an Entertainment Weekly article about the show's creation.
September 15, 2007
Orlando Jones
Normally I'm a big fan of actor Orlando Jones, but in the movie Primeval his character says this: "I'm never gonna say this in front of a bunch of white people. Slavery was a good thing. Anything to get the f*&^ out of Africa is a good thing." Orlando, my brother, why did you accept this role!?! You just set our people back 300 years....
September 10, 2007
TV broadcasting error
Last night The Dead Zone TV show went to commercial break at 9:30 as usual, but when it came back on the previous 10 minutes were re-shown! After the next commercial break the show picked up in the right place, so we had missed 10 minutes. Hhhmmm, I don't think that this is the type of error TV executives want to make in the effort to lure in more viewers.
September 05, 2007
iPhone price drop
I knew there was a reason for me to wait before buying an iPhone: the price was just cut by $200. I may wait a little longer, though, as I still don't use many minutes, and I'm not sure if it is compatible with UMCal.
August 21, 2007
summer movies
Only two weeks to go until the end of summer (Labor Day), and I've only seen a handful of movies. Actually, only three come to mind...but I saw each one more than once: Knocked Up twice, Harry Potter 5 twice, and Transformers three times (!). I've got to get out more....
August 11, 2007
#34
I'm now up to #34 on the list of UThink blogs with the most entries. This is probably as high as I'll go, as soon I'll switch most of my blogging efforts to a new blog on the Afro-Am website.
August 08, 2007
books in weird places
My memoir is starting to show up in unexpected places, like eBook Eros. Huh? I guess it went there because I include a bell hooks quote on eros and eroticism, but that's only one sentence out of 166 pages; nothing else is really relevant. Weird.
July 23, 2007
amazon sales rank
One bad thing about Ghostbox being listed on amazon is that I've been constantly checking its sales ranking. The highest so far: 14230. Will I be able to crack the top 10000!?!
July 12, 2007
top 10 movies (revised)
Speaking of movies, I should revise my list of Top 10 movies, replacing The Matrix with Pan's Labyrinth. The original list and discussion is here. Below is the revised list:
Harry Potter 5
Yesterday a streak was broken: I was not able to attend an early morning screening of a Harry Potter movie, because I had almost non-stop meetings during the day! So I had to settle for a 10:00PM Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Actually, I went to a 10:45PM show because the 10:00 offering was sold out! Oh well, at least I made it in before the end of the day....
July 06, 2007
June 23, 2007
June 22, 2007
memoir publication
My memoir Ghostbox just became available via the iUniverse online bookstore. My author copies don't arrive for another two weeks, though, so hopefully everything will look good!
June 12, 2007
interesting book passages
I just finished the novel The Rope Walk. Two passages really caught my eye:
"It seemed that in order to save oneself, again and again, one had to fight one's own instincts, one had to gain mastery over all the urgent imperatives of flesh and blood. One had to be less of oneself, in order to try and preserve that self" (p. 132).
"It was strange how electricity masked the actual sound of things, she thought, this deep silence that must be there all the time, lying beneath the hum of the lights" (p. 309).
Intriguing, no?
June 04, 2007
the end of BSG
Oh no, Battlestar Galactica will end after one more season. Oh well, at least it will go out while still fresh vs. shows that drag on too long, like three more years of Lost.
May 24, 2007
30 years of Star Wars
Tomorrow is the 30th anniversary of the release of Star Wars. I saw it for the first time in late June or early July of 1977 in Easley, SC, and watched it two more times that summer. It was indeed a milestone movie fo me: first time I saw a movie more than once, launched a life-long love of sci-fi, and made it OK to be a geek. Thank you, Star Wars!
May 16, 2007
April 25, 2007
learning from the movies
Last Sunday I watched the 1962 movie To Kill a Mockingbird, in which a character was instructed to "bust up a chifforobe." Chifforobe?!? I had to look that up, and found this: a chifforobe is a "piece of furniture that combines a long space for hanging clothes (that is, a wardrobe or armoire) with a chest of drawers." OK then.
April 01, 2007
March 08, 2007
BSG fan movies
Check this out: fans of the TV show Battlestar Galactica have been encouraged to download video, music, and sound effects for use in a four-minute movie contest! Wow, I wish I had a video camera and some time to come up with something....
February 09, 2007
February 07, 2007
movie news
After seeing a trailer for the upcoming movie Bridge to Terabithia I was worried that it would not be faithful to the book at all, but the ads mislead. Cool.
In other movie matters, check out an interesting post about Pan's Labyrinth, but only if you've seen the movie since the post contains major spoliers.
February 05, 2007
2007 Ad Bowl
According to the USA Today ad meter, the best Super Bowl XLI commercial was a Budweiser spot with crabs worshiping an ice chest, and the worst was the salesgenie.com ad. I agree about the selection for worst, but the Bud crab spot was just so-so to me. My favorite landed at #4 on the ad meter: a Doritos-eating driver crashes while gawking at a pedestrian who is also munching Doritos. Live the Flavor! (Creatively, at least; I'm not a Doritos eater.)
February 04, 2007
Pan's Labyrinth
Pan's Labyrinth is superbly wonderful! It's currently #1 on my list of 2007 movies, and might still be in that spot on December 31....
February 03, 2007
Ad Bowl pre-game
For the first time in several years I'll watch tomorrow's Super Bowl more for the game than for the commercials, but hopefully the ads will be entertaining. Then afterwards I might have to check out the Ad Bowl web tie-ins.
February 02, 2007
Super Bowl weekend
Outside temperatures may not rise above zero for the next few days here in Minneapolis, but it will be a hot weekend in other ways. On Sunday, of course, I'll be watching Super Bowl XLI. On Saturday I'll probably go check out Pan's Labyrinth. I've been eagerly awaiting this movie ever since I found out about it last summer, so I can't believe that I let two weeks go by after its Twin Cities premiere....
January 31, 2007
Freedom Theory
Two of my former students are part of a group that has just released a hip-hop/soul/acoustic CD. Check it out:
January 28, 2007
the influence of movies
Last week I attended a conference in Ohio. Each time I went in to my hotel room I immediately locked and bolted the door, so that I would not get Derailed. While I was alone vs. messin' around with someone's wife as in the movie, I was not gonna take any chances on having some fool bum rush the door and start up some stuff....
January 18, 2007
an idea for "24" season 7
In the 24 Season 6 Premiere Jack Bauer found himself battling a familiar enemy: Islamic fundamentalists. Next year the producers should give him a new enemy. Maybe it can even be a radical combination of people, like former Black Panthers teaming up with a White supremacist organization!? That would shake things up a bit!
January 17, 2007
influence of Office Space
Today I called my dentist's office to check in on an insurance billing problem: "Should I go ahead and mail in a check now, and then your office will send a refund later?" In the movie Office Space a main character uses the construction "Go ahead and X" quite a bit. Man, that movie is a bad influence!
January 03, 2007
correcting regrets
The Sci Fi Wire reports that Fox is developing a pilot for a TV show about two detectives who help clients go back in time to change events that they regret. Very interesting! I'll definitely tune in.
December 28, 2006
ultrasonic ringtones
Sony Pictures will market an upcoming movie using an ultrasonic ringtone, which, supposedly, people over 25 can't hear. I might have to download it to test out that theory....
December 18, 2006
TV on the web
Damn, I just found out that one of my TV shows got cancelled over the weekend, effective immediately. The remaining episodes of Daybreak, however, will be available for online viewing. I have never watched a show online, as I either catch it live or on DVD. I think I'll experiment and check it out....
December 06, 2006
November 20, 2006
Battlestar Galactica
Have you ever seen the new version of the TV show Battlestar Galactica? You may be tempted to check it out after reading this story.
November 13, 2006
music from the movies
"Have you ever heard a song from a movie and thought 'I want that song, but how do I find out what it is and where can I get it'? These resources will show you a way to get your hands on the classical music you hear in movies and on TV."
The above question (from About Entertainment: Classical Music) popped into my head yesterday while rewinding a three-minute stretch of The Lake House. Instead of a list of resources, though, wouldn't it be great to have a site where you could enter a movie title, then search through a list of all the music that appears in that movie (of all genres, not just classical), then download mp3s of desired songs?!? That would be very coolio, but I don't think that such a thing exists. I wonder if I should think about approaching a Venture Capitalist with this idea. If so, though, the best name -- Music From the Movies -- is already taken. Damn!
October 31, 2006
sorry Showtime
Last year I posted an entry that criticized Showtime for not showing an episode in its "Masters of Horror" series. Well, on Sunday I watched Imprint, and must apologize to Showtime, as it's definitely a disturbing movie, and probably is better suited to a niche DVD market than mass-market cable broadcast. My bad, Showtime!
October 26, 2006
MN Daily article
On Tuesday a reporter from the campus newspaper interviewed me for an article that appeared today. He did a pretty good job of capturing what I said during our 20 minute conversation. I've got to learn the skill of talking in soundbites, though....
October 04, 2006
Fall TV
Two of my favorite shows have premieres this week: Lost (tonight!) and Battlestar Galactica (on Friday). Ah, now fall has really begun....
September 26, 2006
a second thought is always good
Here's an example of why it's good to really reflect on ideas that might seem interesting at first: "a jihad on the automotive market"?
September 12, 2006
top 10 movies
While surfing yesterday I came across a
July 13, 2006
my car is in the movies!
Recently I saw Superman Returns. It was disappointing overall (all the magic must have been used up in the 1978 version), but Lois Lane drives the same car that I do! Other than a different interior color, everything else is the same. Cool.
June 28, 2006
unwatched movies
I've had a netflix account since April of 2004. For the first time ever, yesterday I returned a couple of movies without watching them (only had mild interest in "Walk the Line" and "All About my Mother," and not much free time lately). Also, I've only been to the theater twice so far this summer. This is turning out to be a summer of few movies....
June 12, 2006
cancelled Sci-Fi TV shows
This week's SciFi Wire poll is about cancelled major network Sci-Fi TV shows from the 2005-2006 season. I can't believe that all (Invasion, Surface, Night Stalker, and Threshold) but one (Ghost Whisperer) bit the dust, with the crappiest one returning. Oh well, at least Supernatural survived netlet The WB's transformation into CW....
May 23, 2006
end of TV's main season
With tomorrow's broadcast of Lost, the 2005-2006 TV season will be over (well, the shows I watch anyway). Luckily I only have a couple of weeks before the summer session starts, as the third season of The 4400 kicks off on June 11....
May 15, 2006
Akeelah and the Bee
For Mother's Day V and I took a friend and the friend's mom to see Akeelah and the Bee, a wonderful movie. Critics have called it "unrealistic." True, but something like 90% of movies fall in this category, right!? This movie is a must-see!
April 25, 2006
Anasazi
I'm a huge fan of The X-Files, and recently started re-watching the series on DVD. Tonight I'm up to the season 2 episode that got me hooked for life: "Anasazi". The X-Files rules!
March 28, 2006
missed step on 24
Last night's epsiode of 24 introduced a new character -- Shari -- who (in her back story) had accused another character of sexual harassment while the two were at a different agency. Shari told new friend Chloe that "these things are hard to prove, so they let him go with a slap on the wrist." At the end of the show Shari got a pat on the back from her boss for a job well done. She immediately turned to Chloe and said "Did you see that? That was inappropriate!" Chloe made a face that said "Shari is a wacko who sees problems where there aren't any." This is a not good, because too many people think that sexual harassment is just in the eye of the beholder. Hopefully a future episode of 24 will throw Shari and her experiences in a more complicated light....
March 24, 2006
manly men
Spike -- the "network for men" -- is in need of a more manly logo, it seems. I rarely watch Spike, but I liked the old logo. I guess I'm not a real manly man then....
March 20, 2006
new Dr. Who
Zap2it has an interesting article about the latest incarnation of the Sci-Fi cult classic Doctor Who TV show, now airing on the Sci Fi Channel. I watched the premiere last Friday. It was OK, but many of the original episodes are still vividly imprinted on my brain, so it might be a while before I adjust to the re-imagined 21st century version....
February 13, 2006
best and worst 2005 movies
For some reason, this weekend I was compelled to think about my best and worst 2005 movies. Here's what I came up with: best = Crash and worst = She Hate Me. I know, She Hate Me came out in 2004, but I didn't see it till last year. Something told me that it would be a stinker so I put off the screening for a year. I should have delayed forever....
February 06, 2006
Super Bowl commercials
According to the USA Today Ad Meter, Bud Light won the 2006 "Ad Bowl" with its "Magic Fridge" spot. That was a good one, but the Ad Meter's #3 spot was my favorite: the FedEx "Cave Man" commercial. My bottom-rated commercial -- supermarket checkout person extolling the virtues of Miller Genuine Draft -- does not even appear on the Ad Meter chart, so I guess it was total stinker. Overall, also, this year's Ad Bowl spots were not that interesting; let's hope that Ad Bowl 2007 is more memorable....