Creepy Orkin Commercials

It's the attitude and the voice of the bug that fills me with dread in these Orkin ads. It gives a "District 9" kind of vibe to the whole idea of insect intruders.

Jesus Swerves

John Lassetter and Disney's 1983 Test Footage For "Where The Wild Things Are"

This didn't set the Disney suits on fire back then, but now I'm sure Lassetter could have secured the rights to the Sendak classic, if Spike Jonze and Dave Eggers' version wasn't already on its way.

Ladybugs Swarm House- CNN Video.

This is pretty interesting. As a lifelong lover of little ladybugs I like this a lot.



You want to know what I think is going on here?

A Rainbow of Polar Bears

I feel like this post has been guest edited and produced by Ranger Rick magazine.

After seeing another picture of a bright purple polar bear last night (temporarily discolored by a topical medicinal ointment) I decided to see what other colors polar bears come in these days. Turns out that there is a full spectrum of the little dudes out there. Take a look:

Purple!
Green!
Pink!
Blue!
and sometimes, in the right light, and under the right conditions,
Yellow!
One last little fun fact: did you know that Polar Bears have bright blue tongues? It's true!

John Mayer Performs Human Nature at the Michael Jackson Memorial.

Favorite!

"Tom, what is your all-time favorite pop song?" no one asked. A quick answer is "Vanishing Girl" by the Dukes of Stratosphear (really XTC in a Clark Kent-like disguise).

What's so special about it? Clever lyrics, catchy, catchy music. It works like a pocket watch. Listen for yourself:

Vanishing Girl

A Jonathan Coulton Sample Pack

I've had some of his music buried in my Itunes folder for a couple of years without realizing that it was all performed by the same guy. Ladies and Gentlemen, the geeky musical stylings of Jonathan Coulton.

Big Bad World One - currently my favorite song in the tri state area.

Still Alive -the music that plays over the end credits of the game "Portal"

Code Monkey -this was used as the theme song to G4's cartoon series Code Monkeys.

A funny cover of Baby Got Back

Skullcrusher Mountain

Of Course, Of Course...

Sal and Walt's Destino!

Salvador Dali and his longtime friend from Bible camp Walt Disney threw in together to create a surreal animated project, to be titled "Destino", but since it would have been very expensive and perhaps even impossible to pull off in 1945, it was never completed during their lifetimes.

In 2003, this little curiosity was dusted off and finished, thanks in part to the modern computer-aided animation techniques. I saw it play with "The Triplets of Belleville", but that wasn't a Disney production, so it didn't appear on the Triplets disc. Instead, it will be released in 2010, after a couple of false alarms. It sounds like this might be a stand-alone disk- an odd choice for a seven minute cartoon, but it will be supported with documentaries and extras. I'd like that.

Read about Destino's tortured sixty-year crawl to the screen here.

Still More Favorite Local Logos & Signs

They put "Chinese Cuisine" up there to make it clear that this restaurant offers Chinese food the way the French intended.

AI Penguin wears his FDA rating proudly.

From the collection of Pees Ralston comes the Allied Ice Penguin and the racistish Chef at Wok sign. The Allied Ice Penguin, the Hester Prynne of ice mongers, is in Fremont, I believe, but I'll get Jen's information and update this if I'm wrong. I see it all the time, I admire it, but I can't put my finger on where it is.

Chef at Wok is on Greenwood in the Broadview neighborhood, and it currently enjoys a 3 1/2 star rating on Yelp.

Lemon Squirrel For The Win!

Previously: Lemon Babies!

Zombieland Trailer!

More Favorite Local Logos & Signs

Tigertail's sign is hand painted, from what I can see.

These two are only a couple of blocks from one another in Ballard/Greenwood: The Tigertail Bar and Cafe Bambino. I stole both of these shots from the internet, but forgot to make a note of where I got them, and that was days ago now. I'll credit them soon.

Tin Hat, step up your game!

Blip

Blip from Sean Mullen on Vimeo.

Tee Shirt Idea

This post is temporary. It will fade with the morning fog.

Update: I've changed my mind and decided to offer it as a wallpaper for anyone out there who might want it. I have it on my desktop and Mario's cheery countenance and eyeless sockets have brightened my day considerably.

I'm also adding this toddler tee shirt design. I like it, because it's funny and wee small kids don't know what they're wearing anyway. We dress kids to entertain ourselves.

Toddler shirt on four different colors:

Michael Jackson is Officially Dead

He doesn't just look dead this time- he is dead for reals. I celebrate the man with this old drawing from the XHD. RIP, Jacko. For your sake I hope there are little unattended boys in heaven.

My First Dictionary

The internet is full of wonderful, funny, dark, creepy things. This is one of them. My First Dictionary.

Hometown Town Makes Good

Go Pens! Belated congratulations and much love to the mighty Picksburg Pingwins on once again taking Lord Stanley's Cup.

The Picksburg Stillers won the Super Bowl earlier this year. If the Pirates take the series this summer (no reason yet to think that is impossible) Pittsburgh would be only the second city in history to have three major sports championships won in a single year.

I don't follow football Ay-Tall, and I only really enjoy baseball when I'm high, or at the park watching it live, or high at the park watching it live, but even so, it would be great to see the 'burgh make sports history again.

My Favorite Local Logos

Part one of an occasional series showcasing especially beautiful logos in and around Seattle gives us the Crow Roofing logo, simple, cute and old school. I'd love to have a tee shirt with this guy on it.
The Elephant Car Wash logo, seen here on the sign on Denny, lit up like Vegas at Christmas:

Next we have the Spud Fish & Chips logo hanging on the sign of the Alki store. Mmm Spud!

Last, at Takohachi in the International District we find this hypnotically beautiful octopus. I don't know if this is still in operation. This may be a ghost sign by now.

More to come...

A Home for Awkward Family Photos

Awk-waaard!

I Sing The Body Ventura

This video has been posted everywhere recently, and I post it here mostly for easy access for myself and for my friends. Jesse "The Governor" Ventura debates Elizabeth Hasselbeck on the merits of waterboarding. Ordinarily I wouldn't be as enthusiastic about a professional wrestler beating on a small woman, but this is the one time I'll make an exception.

Break the Chain-y.

Surrogate Sleeper?

Every summer we are subjected to weekend after weekend filled with blockbuster movies. Most are overhyped and underwhelming, but there are always unexpected surprises. Some popcorn movies you never hear about until they're already in your local septaplex. I had no idea this big budget science fiction thriller even existed until a few minutes ago.

I think it's interesting that so many filmmakers are turning to smaller, independent comics for film ideas. From Men in Black years ago through A History of Violence, The Road to Perdition and 30 Days of Night, and now Surrogates, the indie thriller comic is really starting to make its way into the movie business.

Tarako!

Reasons for the Existence of Canada

Some reasons supporting the continued existence of Canada:

Joni Mitchell
The Kids in the Hall
Neil Young
Bryan Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim comics series, soon to be a motion picture directed by Edgar "Shaun of the Dead" Wright!

Prove me wrong, kids. Show your work.

Circus Contraption's Last Days! Hurry and See Them Before It's Too Late!!

If you haven't seen Circus Contraption, the time is nigh! As I type this, there are only TWELVE PERFORMANCES LEFT of the SHOW TO END ALL SHOWS! Holy mother, you will kick yourself into chunks if you miss this opportunity. It's an entire evening of carnival blockhead-type stuff, truly funny clown work, tastefully naughty exotic dancing and acrobatics, and, of course, excellent music.

Their site has a few "peeps" at the show, to whet the appetite. You've really got to see them as soon as you can. I cannot stress enough the painful disappointment you will feel once the well runs dry and your neighbors are sloshing around filled to the brim with their joyful memories of this experience.

They're performing in Fremont- that's the center of the universe! It could not be easier to find. Buy tickets in advance and save your tears later. There are libations and snacks available inside, and souvenirs too, including must-have CDs. Arrive early to find parking, fill up on beer and popcorn inside.

The show runs Feb 27 - Jun 14, 2009

Want To See A Great Movie?

I'm guessing that you probably like movies, and what's more, you probably prefer good ones. If this sounds like you, you ought to try to catch A Face in the Crowd, showing this month on TCM and widely available on DVD.

The film stars the always terrific Andy Griffith, playing sharply against type, deconstructing his down home image and turning it inside out in the role of "Lonesome" Rhodes, a country-styled comedian and singer with one of the most realistic and ugly personalities I've ever seen on film. This is one of the best character studies of its time, and one of my favorite Elia Kazan movies. Patricia Neal (another favorite of mine) and Walter Matthau (another one!) costar. The screenplay was written by the great Budd "On the Waterfront" Schulberg, based on his own short story "Your Arkansas Traveler". Movies are rarely as good as this one, and are never better.

Wiki

Perfect Fanboy Behavior!

Vote "Yes" on the Skrull Gay Marriage Initiative, this fall, won't you?

Rarely do I see a photograph of adult, male comic book fans in comic costume drag that doesn't make me want to vomit myself unconscious. Today, I ran across these pictures of some (god bless 'em) geeks dressed as honest-to-gosh Jack Kirby original sixties-era Skrulls and they filled my heart with joy. The imagination, enthusiasm and attention to detail make these guys more heroes than villains in my book.

I've included some pictures of the Kirby model Skrulls, for the most of you out there who neither know what I'm talking about or care.

Jack's OG Skrulls (above).

When Abbott & Costello went to Mars, few people know that it was as part of an extraterrestrial
exchange program. "Zarkon is on third base, fool!" said one while choking the other into a coma.

100 Best Movie Lines In 200 Seconds

I love this kind of thing.

Hellboy in Fremont

I somehow missed this Mike Mignola Hellboy promo poster. I hope to find one somewhere soon, but until then, this'll have to do.

It Came To Me In A Dream

I've just been shaken awake at four AM by a dream about my father. He and I aren't exactly estranged, but we've been separated by his hearing problem and the fact that I haven't been home to see my family on the East Coast in far, far too long. He can't hear me to talk on the phone, so we've become more distant than I ever wanted.

Add to this my recent relapse into some of the anxiety issues I "enjoyed" a few years ago. Sleep is difficult, I have no real idea where my future lies, and blah blah blah.

Tonight, as I slept, forces aligned to teach me a little about my father. In my dream, I realized that the disarray of my life now, coupled with key little details of recent weeks (sleeping with the TV on, sleeping on the sofa, etc.) exactly mirror my father's life for decades. In the dream, I was visiting my folks, and there was a surprise late season snowfall in the middle of the night. I walked out onto the porch of their old house and took in the beauty of the scenery- an idealized, snowglobe version of their actual neighborhood. I scooped up a palmful of winter slush, surprised to find it cool in my hand, but not exactly cold.

The dream flashed forward, and my father was sleeping in the passenger's seat of his old van. I tried to get him to come into the house and sleep in his bed, but he wouldn't answer me. I sat in the driver's seat and drove the car into the house, parking it in the kitchen. I walked to the passenger's side and woke him gently, and he walked into the living room. He laid down on the sofa, and without a word went back to sleep.

I woke up feeling anguished and a little lost. I realized suddenly that my father and I share the same anxiety issues, and the same disappointments and the same frustrations. He drank every day after work, often coming home eight or nine hours after his shift was over. He avoided our home when I was a kid and a teenager, and thus, he has no fixed spot in my memory at all. He was always uncomfortable and restless, and he would describe this restlessness as "getting antsy", and once this feeling was upon him he'd leave the house and we wouldn't see him for hours. I don't think he's had a full eight hours sleep in his life.

His generation is not as likely to acknowledge these things, and definitely not as apt to seek out help for an emotional or psychiatric problem. He must have been miserable for a long, long time. I understand that only now. I can't believe it's taken me this long to see my father as a complete person, and not as a part time boogeyman, part time knucklehead.

I wish I was back there now to talk to him and just hang out a little. I've got to make that happen soon.

Mickey Mouse in Runaway Brain!

Mickey Mouse (and Sideshow Bob!) in Runaway Brain! Mickey really redeems himself for nearly a century's work in mostly dull pictures with his excellent performance in this Roger Rabbit-like horror film pastiche. I really love this short. It's not even eight minutes of your time. Give it a shot, won't you?

From the Dirty Little Secrets Collection From Hallmark

A "gently" racist greeting card, circa the early seventies or late sixties from the looks of it.

That means that this card was dreamt up and executed well after Martin Luther King's "I have a dream" speech and the march on Selma, among other race-relation milestones of the time. They're still somewhere between mayonnaise and milk on the "white scale". I'm sure that the Hallmark folks thought this was just adorable at the time.

Ads

Yes, I am a sellout. You will now notice some ads on this blog; they're there to make me rich.

Please go out now and buy a new Volvo and tell 'em Tom sent you. They'll know who you mean. I get almost fifty cents for every one you buy, so get one for every member of your family, won't you?