jim henson

(Reposted from 'Brief Window')

Follow the link over to Flickr and take a look at slappy427's photostream for a beautiful and eclectic set of Hanna-Barbera artwork and ephemera.

(A few examples here)

Photos, memorabilia, concept art and more from nowadays and back in the day, with an emphasis on some of the more obscure characters from the animated world of
Hanna-Barbera.

Curator slappy427 is a cartoonist and avid enthusiast for all things HB, and has shared lots of truly fun images!

See also:
His blog, Hanna Barberian.

(found via Cartoon SNAP)

(Reposted from 'Brief Window')






Dang it.

Legendary science-fiction fan and memorabilia collector Forrest J Ackerman passed away a few weeks back, but I didn't find out about it until now!

I knew that Ackerman had been ill and not expected to recover, but somehow I feel bad that I missed hearing of his death on December 4th, at the age of 92.

Our beloved 'Uncle Forry' was a pioneer in the world of sci-fi fandom.
Among other achievements, he 'discovered' author Ray Bradbury and coined the phrase
'sci-fi'.

The magazine he founded, 'Famous Monsters of Filmland', figured prominently in the 'perfectly maladjusted' upbringing of many happy nerds of my generation, and the tales of his guided tours of the vast collection of cool stuff in his 'Ackermansion' in L.A. totally rocked.

Forrest J Ackerman is gone. He was unique, and he will be missed.

- Follow links to to a couple of obits; at the
Los Angeles Times, and Time magazine.

- Check out a gallery of 'Famous Monsters' magazine covers at Mad-Monsters.Com

(This is a compiled repost of items culled from my soon-to-be-extinct subsidiary blog, 'Brief Window')

1. 1980s holiday viewing experience at BeTaMaXMaS!

This is pretty amazing - -
Click over to BeTaMaXMaS, hunker down in the basement, grab the remote, check the
TV Guide, and cruise the channels for Xmas programming from the '80s.

Old sitcoms, commercials and promos, animated Xmas specials and more.

Be sure to adjust the rabbit ears on the old TV to improve your reception.
A time-warp treat!

(via Intercourse with biscuits)


2. Follow link to a delightful and intriguing online collection of
Old Soviet Christmas New Year cards! (Correction; See below)




































(Click on images to ENLARGE in a new window)

(Found via Everlasting Blort and Martin Klasch)

- UPDATE, 12/20/08: But wait, there's more! Turns out the link above was only to the 'aerospace' portion of the collection. Follow this link to Mazaika.Com for several hundred more with many different themes!

- UPDATE, 12/21/08: Not only that, but...
Questions about these cards (including 'So what do they say?' and 'Didn't the Soviets ban religious celebrations?') has prompted some further research.

Sometimes it's great to be an ignorant westerner - - it affords you the chance to learn new things.

"С Новым Годом", as it appears on most of these cards, can be translated to english as
'Happy New Year'.

Christmas has begun to make a comeback in post-Soviet Russia, but the New Year's celebration has been the bigger event for decades.

- Follow link to a 1985 New York Times article and learn a little about how elements of banned Russian Christmas traditions were folded into the popular State-approved New Year's holidays - - which became civil celebrations, rather than religious or political in nature.

- Also check out an interview at Ephemera with Boris Glazer, the 'curator' of this collection.

- And no, that's not Santa in these cards. Click over to Wikipedia to read about 'Father Frost'
(a.k.a. Ded Moroz), the Russian counterpart to Mr. Claus.


3. Troy McClure Film or Actual Terrible Movie?
"You may remember him from such hits as 'Christmas Ape' and 'Christmas Ape Goes to Summer Camp', but how well do you remember Troy McClure’s other projects?"

Click over to the mental_floss website to take their quick quiz, and learn where truth is stranger than fiction, especially in the American film industry. (Found via IMDb)

Has-been Hollywood star Troy McClure was a beloved peripheral character on 'The Simpsons' TV show, though the character was retired in 1998 following the death of voice actor Phil Hartman.

Once you've completed the 'Troy McClure Film or Actual Terrible Movie?' quiz, then you're free to follow the link to
The Simpsons Archive's complete rundown on
'The Stellar Acting Career of Troy McClure'.



4. Vintage Cocktail Napkins

On his blog,
the Mt. Holly Mayor's Office,
Mayor Mike talks about his love for old cocktail napkins;

"The naive nudes, the
hand-drawn typography and the absolute corn beneath my glass of rye make me yearn for simpler times and a stronger liver."

Follow link to see items from his collection, The Jim Backus Memorial Cocktail Napkin Museum, on display at flickr.































































































5. A great gift idea!

Follow link to view a preview for the
self-published cookbook 'Natural Harvest -
A Collection of Semen-Based Recipes'

From author Fotie Photenhauer's
back-cover description:
"Semen is not only nutritious, but it also has a wonderful texture and amazing cooking properties.
"Like fine wine and cheeses, the taste of semen is complex and dynamic.
"Semen is inexpensive to produce and is commonly available in many, if not most, homes and restaurants.
"Despite all of these positive qualities, semen remains neglected as a food.
"This book hopes to change that.
"Once you overcome any initial hesitation, you will be surprised to learn how wonderful semen is in the kitchen.
"Semen is an exciting ingredient that can give every dish you make an interesting twist."

Be sure to scroll through the page views available in the Lulu.Com preview window to catch a glimpse of recipes for Tuna Sashimi With Dipping Sauce, Man-Made Oysters, and the Almost White Russian cocktail, among other delectables.

(Another treat via the ever-vigilant eyes of the folks at Everlasting Blort)

(Reposted from 'Brief Window')

American character actor
Paul Benedict passed away last week at his home in Martha's Vineyard. He was 70.

Though best remembered for the role of Mr. Bentley, the wacky British neighbor on the TV sitcom
'The Jeffersons' in the 1970s and '80s, his career began in the early 1960's and took him from stage to film and television, sometimes as a director.

Looking back on 'Mr. Bentley', a point of interest was how little that role showed of Benedict's range in the choices he made throughout so much of his film career.

It's always a treat to see him show up in some small part in some curious old film. If Bentley is most of what you remember of Benedict, examples of other appearances are often surprising.

See also:
- An obituary from The Los Angeles Times.

- 'Goodbye Paul Benedict, and Thank You'; a nice remembrance posted at the Film Threat Blog, that includes video clips of Benedict's performance opposite Richard Dreyfuss in Neil Simon's
'The Goodbye Girl' in 1977.

Below, ▼ some examples of Paul Benedict's other best-remembered role (at least for certain folks of a certain age); a few video clips of the recurring 'Mad Painter' segments from 'Sesame Street'.

Many of them first aired around 1972, and several featured a young Stockard Channing as co-star to Benedict.

(This is a compiled repost of items culled from my soon-to-be-extinct subsidiary blog, 'Brief Window')

1. Three funny Hulk transformations

"Don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry."

That was the warning given by Bill Bixby in the role of Dr. David Banner in old TV episodes of 'The Incredible Hulk'.

Except of course, our reason for tuning in was to watch him get angry and 'Hulk Out', transforming into Lou Ferrigno so he could rampage properly.

Thanks to Cotton Whiskers UK for posting three interesting transformation sequences to YouTube. (Found via Bob Cesca's
Awesome Blog!, via Servo3000.)

It's good to see evidence that the cast and creators of the show didn't always take things too seriously.

The first two transformations below are triggered by fairly mundane frustrations with which most folks can relate (though maybe it's been a while in the case of the payphone)...





Understated comedy gold, executed perfectly by the late Mr. Bixby.

In the last video clip, the trigger for the transformation is definitely not something most (living) people can relate to their own experience, nor is the change itself very comedic. The payoff comes at the end, perhaps disproving an adage from a different classic TV show, "It's not the thing you fling,
it's the fling itself".



- You can watch full episodes of "The Incredible Hulk" at Hulu

(NOTE: Please leave a comment if you discover dead video links. Thanks.)


2. Play the Album Cover Quiz Game!

Click over to The Quietus.Com for a bit of fun as you test your pop culture recall with their
Album Cover Quiz Game.

As you watch short video clips of M. Mattius Kaufman and a cohort from The Paris Conservatory of Contemporary Mime and Interpretive Dance act out iconic cover images to 29 pop albums you're given 30 seconds to type in the title of each one.

A clever and maddening brain teaser. A few are easy, several are not, a few would be easy - - if only you could remember the exact title of that popular record, a few might be from records you've never seen...

I found also that a few of the poses were instantly familiar, but I just couldn't quite translate them in my head to recall the album cover image.

- Follow link to The Quietus' Album Cover Quiz Game.

Check it out, see how you score, compare your score with others!


3. Submitted for your approval: Steve Carell & Clive Owen, a casting suggestion

I recently sat through the movie preview for 'Duplicity' again - - an upcoming spy caper/con artist/romance thing starring Julia Roberts and
Clive Owen (with Paul Giamatti and Tom Wilkinson dutifully chewing up scenery, from the looks of it).

Looking at Clive Owen in a slightly different setting, at several points I find myself struck by a resemblance he bears to comic actor Steve Carell.

Nothing overt, nothing I'd noticed before, and perhaps a notion that wouldn't exist outside of the 'Duplicity' preview - - But it got me to thinking that perhaps down the line film producers might want to explore the idea of casting them as brothers, or half-brothers or some such.

It might be an opportunity for either actor to avoid some
type-casting, or it might make a selling point for a future ill-advised sequel to Carell's 'Get Smart' remake.

Agent 86 confronts his more successful and competent brother, a spy from another office. Will they clash or cooperate? And will they both learn something in the process?

Just for fun and to perhaps drive home my argument, I stopped by MorphThing.com and blended the faces of the two actors together.

◀ Meet 'Cleve Cowrellwynn'.

Click over to MorphThing - -
(Morph Faces and Celebrities Online... For Free!)

- - Play around and enjoy creating your own ridiculous premises and possibilities...


4. Click over to Cracked.Com for an amusing and educational look at International Cinema:

'9 Foreign Rip-Offs Cooler Than The Hollywood Originals'

Prepare to be awe-stricken as you learn more about the Turkish Batman and the Italian Batman, the Turkish E.T. and the Chinese Popeye, the Soviet Winnie The Pooh, the Indian Superman, and others.

Good details and plenty of memorable video clips.

Check it out!

(This is a compiled repost of items culled from my soon-to-be-extinct subsidiary blog, 'Brief Window')

1. Celebrating the life of Miriam Makeba.






Miriam Makeba passed away this week,
at age 76.

The legendary South African singer / social activist collapsed suddenly, immediately after a concert performance in Southern Italy.

Follow links to obituaries for her from the
Associated Press and Times Online.

Click over to You Tube to see video of Miriam Makeba in performance, or to Last.fm
to hear some of her music.


2. Tony Dow sez: “Having something shown at the Louvre is about as good as you can get”

'Gee Wally, d'you really think so?'



Have you heard the exciting news?

Former child-star Tony Dow, now 63, the quintessential big brother of the classic TV sitcom 'Leave It To Beaver', has a sculpture that will be on display next month at the Louvre.

His abstract bronze figure,
'Unarmed Warrior' has been named as part of a juried group of pieces that will be shown in the historic Paris museum from December 11th - 14th as part of the Societe Nationale des Beaux-Arts exhibition.

- Read more about the details of this story from the Associated Press or at the Los Angeles Times site.

It's so very tempting to poke fun at this story - -
as in, 'Finally! The Louvre is getting smart about building a reputation for itself!'

- - But really, it seems like any light-hearted joking about
'Wally Cleaver, the bigshot artist' takes second-place to the simple thought;

'Think how excited Tony Dow must be right now'.

Dow has pursued many professional careers outside of acting in his life, and has been painting, woodworking, and sculpting for many years.

- You can see more of his bronze works at the website for the Karen Lynne Gallery in Beverly Hills.















3. Just now tumbled to
'Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog'

Okay, by now it's old news to many who are
up-to-date on just this sort of thing, but if
- - like me - - you've been cruising along unaware of the online musical super-hero film
'Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog', you may want to click over now and check it out. Big fun!

'Buffy' auteur Joss Whedon is behind the
action-comedy-romance, initially intended for internet-only distribution.

Neil Patrick Harris is perfectly cast as an
'up & coming' super-villain out to prove himself, who is also harboring a secret crush on the girl he's seen at the laundromat.

The musical numbers are well suited to NPH's Stephen Sondheim credentials.

After a few months of advance promotion, the 43-minute film premiered online in July of 2008, initially serialized into three separate acts.

This charming little movie benefits from its low budget, and is also an interesting experiment in crafty distribution.

Follow the link to the Wikipedia entry to learn more of the story behind the movie, and about its creators and cast.

Currently it streams for free at Hulu. Go watch it!

You can also watch 'Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog' at the official website, where there's lots of other background material, links to soundtrack downloads, and info about the soon-to-be-released DVD edition, which is said to include lots of extras, including singing commentary - - ?

(Reposted from 'Brief Window')

As much as I feel slightly ashamed of having lived this long without actress / singer
Virginia O'Brien on my radar, it's a genuine treat to be discovering her now and finding myself a brand-new 'retro crush'.

(Evidently, I'm not the first to have been affected by the late Ms. O'Brien this way.)

Recently I watched the 1943 film 'DuBarry Was a Lady', a very silly and garishly Technicolor musical comedy, very loosely adapted from the successful and ribald stage success - - except with most of the Cole Porter songs removed (along with the bawdiness), and the original cast replaced with stars Red Skelton, Lucille Ball and Gene Kelly.

I'd sought it out primarily to see a young Zero Mostel in his first screen role, some twenty-five years prior to 'The Producers', and roughly ten years before he was blacklisted in Hollywood.

Zero's screen time as Gene Kelly's buddy, a crummy nightclub mentalist, is brief but wonderful.

I found that the garish color palette in the movie (Lucille Ball's first appearance as a redhead!) mixed well with the crazy lavish wardrobe, and the general and obvious 'half-assery' on the part of MGM studios' scuttling of the original play inadvertently contributed to it being successful as a a film that's great fun despite its many weaknesses.

I also enjoyed the appearances by Tommy Dorsey and his band (including catching glimpses of trumpeter Ziggy Elman and a very young Buddy Rich on drums), but the real surprise of 'DuBarry' was Virginia O'Brien, whose curious trademark 'deadpan' delivery lights up the screen the few times she appears in the film.

Virginia O'Brien (1919 - 2001) appeared in several MGM musicals made during the 1940's, having come from a stage background.

Her 'frozen face' deadpan schtick (which she didn't always use) reportedly had its origins in the late '30s, when a case of stagefright paralyzed her delivery during a musical number, which unexpectedly delighted the audience.

Her typical formula of impassively 'swinging' the vocals of a song strikes me as sort of a bizarro version of the explosive tendencies singer Betty Hutton used as a gimmick around the same period.

(Perhaps no coincidence that in the 1942 film version of 'Panama Hattie', O'Brien plays the role that Hutton had played two years prior in the Broadway stage production.)

- In the video clip below, ▼ Rags Ragland watches from the sidelines while Virginia O'Brien performs 'Salome' in a sequence from 'DuBarry Was a Lady'.

(NOTE: Beware of pop-ups when playing this video!)



By 1943, when 'DuBarry' was released, O'Brien had recently married stage and screen actor Kirk Alyn, an old friend of her co-star, Red Skelton. By the end of the '40s, Alyn would be the first actor to portray Superman onscreen, the role for which he is best remembered.

- You can read more about the life and career of Virginia O'Brien at Classic Images, and in her listing at The Internet Movie Database.

-YouTube has a few more
Virginia O'Brien video clips, including her jazzed-up version of 'Rock-A-Bye Baby', from the middle of a long musical sequence in The Marx Brothers' movie 'The Big Store', from 1941.

(This is a compiled repost of items culled from my soon-to-be-extinct subsidiary blog, 'Brief Window')

1. Chris Wyllie's 'Tailgate The Vote'

Artist Chris Wyllie uses car parts and other found objects in his work, which can be seen at the
Found Gallery in Newport, Rhode Island, and online at the Found Gallery website.

2. Ron Howard Requests Your Attention:



3. I, Nerd (New stills from the upcoming Star Trek flick)

Okay, I'll admit it, I was a little bit heartened the other day by these images from the new
Star Trek flick - - the one we'll have to wait 'til next Summer to see (whether it's any good or not)...

I'd had a moment several months back when I realized with sudden dismay that although the movie is a 'prequel', they probably wouldn't remain faithful to the look of the original TV series.
Sets, costumes, groovy high-'60s color palette, etc. - -



Perhaps because I'm a nerd,
(and a geezer, too) it just hadn't occurred to me that there might not be an interest in adhering to that style just for some sake of 'continuity'.

- - But at least it looks like they're kinda sorta trying to at least give a passing nod to that style.
A 're-imagining' or something.

Looks like the starships will be a little bit 'retro'-looking, too.

Hooray, I'll take it.

You can see these and other images embiggenated at the 'official' website...

4, Via the rich, linky goodness of Journalista comes the treasures of the extensive illustration archives of
Norman Saunders (1907 - 1989).

A good intro and prelude:
'The Painted Covers of Norman Saunders'
at Comics Should Be Good!

- - and then the massive trove of pulp, paperback, comic book, magazine and trading card artwork at Norman Saunders.Com!!

Dig in, and dig it!