I THINK MANJULA MEANS SOME SORT OF SPACESHIP

I was just looking for some kind of random Simpsons reference.

I dare you to watch "Indian Thriller" in it's entirety.

GET BACK TO WORK YOU SPOILED FUCKING PUSSIES

I have nothing to add to the title of this post.

Background info from CNN here.













(Stoplagreve.com) [in french]

IS GOOGLE THE NEW MICROSOFT?

Google's been giving me headaches all day - Gmail, Gmaps, Gsearch, Gspot (wait, scratch that one) and has been being finicky for a little while. I see they just rolled out a new version of Gmail with more intrusive functionality...Hey Sergey, Larry, I don't use hotmail anymore because it became such a pain in the ass to use that I wanted to shoot myself (or more like Billy G.) every time I checked my email. Don't start down that road. Leave me with my gigabytes of email capacity, but don't fuck with my functionality...If a bunch of grandmothers get phished and/or spammed so be it...it's called (or it should be) Internet Darwinism...

Google is was good for its simplicity. I think it's jumped the shark, just like "jumped the shark" has jumped the shark.

Anyone have a simple, easy way to search the internet (basically a Google ca. 2002)? I'm ready to be done with Google (if that's not taking a stand, I don't know what is).

BIER UND WEIN

Yep, the only two words I learned in my trip to Deutschland. Ok, not true. I also learned "hello", "goodbye" and the always necessary "Bitte ein Bit"!

The Germans drink a lot of Bitburger...everywhere we went there was Bitburger on tap and at the wedding that was the beer of choice. They had Paulaner Weiß in bottles for those who didn't want ein Bit.
The Rhein Valley, where we were, west of Frankfurt and north of Mainz is a heavy wine producing region - Riesling mostly. The whites were pretty good, but the red was a little harsh and "red wine" in German is "Rotwein"- it makes me think of "rot gut", never something that you want associated with alcohol.

I got to drive an Audi for three days! This just convinced me further that I do want an Audi when I grow up. It had a diesel engine (which I usually dislike), that wasn't much different than a gas engine.

Ugh, anyway, this is the shittiest post I think I've ever written. I'm dragging the whole blog down with me. But I wanted to post something about Germany...Oh, unlimited speed limits on the highways are pretty cool...but when we arrived it was nighttime and I'm pretty sure there's a speed limit after dark and when we left I was working on 4 hours of sleep and a beer/wine/disgusting red Italian shit hangover and didn't really feel safe going over 90mph. I did get up to like 110mph or something or a couple of short bits, and for a fairly small car, that fucker is stable.

I did have the opportunity to drive on some pretty awesome roads, but Julie's not really a good rally copilot (for some reason she sees her life flash before her eyes if you're more than 10mph over the "Suggested Speed" for a corner). This road would've been even more fun if it hadn't been dark and foggy, but it was still pretty fun to blast up one side and down the other side of the peninsula between the Mosel and Rhein rivers.


View Larger Map

Well, hopefully that makes this post a bit less sucky. I'll try to come up with something witty and sarcastic soon. Oh that reminds me...I've gotta go acquire yesterday's Office (fuck you NBC).

SEATS STILL AVAILABLE

Watching the New Jersey Devils game last Wednesday night, I was pretty alarmed. No, not by the fact that their previously anemic offense scored 6 goals, but by the crowd at THE ROCK. For the opening faceoff, there were tons of empty seats at the new Prudential Center, and they appeared to be never more than 2/3 full for the entire game. This was repeated on Friday, despite what the attendance figures might say (officially, it says 75% and 82% capacity for the two games). This wouldn't be so bad if these weren't the 2nd and 3rd games at a brand spanking new arena. What's happening? There are a couple of factors involved here.

* The Devils fan base has historically not been the same as the Rangers fan base. Largely, Devils fans are suburban, blue collar, middle class families, who like to drive to the games and possibly tailgate if there's nice weather. Rangers fans are more urban, white collar, corporate types, who take the train (if they're not already in the city) and aren't against spending $12 on a cocktail before and/or afterwards. These may sound like broad generalizations, but I assure you that they're not that far off.

* The Devils brass may have overestimated the amount of corporate types that will buy up the expensive seats. Maybe they expect this will change, but that means shutting out the true hockey fans (which the NHL on the whole seems to be doing anyway, since Bettman sucks). When Kris looked for seats to a Sabres game in late December, he found that while the entire upper deck is already sold out, there are still plenty of expensive lower and mezzanine seats to be had, the same types of seats that are usually filled with suits in MSG. (I won't even go into how the middle class is suffering the most under the current economic landscape.)

* While parking used to be $10 at the Meadowlands (free, if you bet on the horsies), parking at the new rink is $20. This wouldn't be so bad if you were in Manhattan, where you might want to hang out afterwards. In Newark? Not so much.

* Despite all the downtown "revitalization", Newark will have a hard time shaking its reputation. Additionally, the homicide rate in the much smaller city of Newark is much higher than that of NYC, a fact (not a myth) that might keep people away.

* The Devils are the third team into a NYC area already oversaturated with sports and entertainment choices, and they always will be.

It's early, but it's a troubling sign. I hate to say it, but a similar state-of-the-art arena would sell out its entire first season in somewhere like Dallas or Pittsburgh (and obviously anywhere in Canada). Maybe in the second half of the season, the fans will have warmed up to the arena, but you can only hope they are in playoff contention by then. But I just got an email offering me $65 seats for only $35 for tomorrow's Flyers game. A Flyers game not sold out the day before in a new building? That's not good.
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During the intermission blabbering, they continue to put Ken Daneyko in front of a bar. I'm thinking this isn't the wisest thing to do to someone who has had a history of alcohol problems. Why don't they just name his commentary "DANO'S TOP SHELF ANALYSIS - BROUGHT TO YOU BY GREY GOOSE" while they're at it?

T-SHIRT OF THE DAY

From Gorilla T-Shirts (there's some other TS-OTD material on there too). I need this shirt.

This may be T-Shirt of the Year material.

I also need a shirt that says "My Cynicism Can Be Summarized By A T-Shirt." Patent pending, Patent pending.

I, of course, happened on to this site because of their selection of boxers...I happened to see one and can't help but wonder 'what type of person wears boxers that say "Good Fucker" on them?' Anyone have an idea? Does any of the site's readers wear these?

To all the women who read this blog; you wanna tell us what you'd do if some guy drops his pants and he's got those boxers on? Should we males be buying these in bulk?

Just curious...'cause you know, maybe I am wrong and this is like a huge turn on for women...or at least for the type of woman who would sleep with a guy who wears "Good Fucker" boxers.

SENSUALIZING NATURE

First, Kammann, I want to see spoiler or non-spoiler warnings (re: TARXII)...or this could get ugly. I know you haven't watched The Wire yet...

Anyway, I've survived three days of free German beer, but I'll get to that later (in another post). I need to find the camera to get some pictures off of it.

Jeff started talking about prudishness (yeah, I know it was just a way for him to say he liked seeing women dressed up as sluts "for Halloween"), and this subject always makes me realize how much I've taken on some European traits. I'm fairly prudish by nature (I am American!), but I watch TV here or go to the beach and I realize how Americans are, as a culture, stuck in 1932. Although I blame, in large part, the right-wing religious groups for this, it's not everything; it's our Puritan heritage too.

I just read an article about San Diego. It's one of the last West Coast cities where a man can watch women in bikinis surf with a nice cold Ballast Point Yellowtail Pale Ale. That's right, anywhere else on the left coast Lieutenant Bullitt's gonna come throw your ass in the pokey. No [uncovered] tits and no beer. That's why I go to the fucking beach. I'm serious. The beaches here are almost all clothing optional (although there are "family beaches" where bottoms are strongly recommended) and the guys who walk up and down the beach all day selling stuff have a cooler full of cold ones. I've never seen any real problems with alcohol on the beach although I'm sure that people get out of hand from time to time, as people are wont to do from time-to-time.

This is the weird thing about France and Europe overall. The governments want to get up in your shit about all different kinds of things (taxes, government oversight of absolutely everything, etc), but they take a laissez faire attitude when it comes to other things (drinking, sex, [until they realized how much money was to be made] driving). I know of no European city that has an open container law, yet I don't see any more drunk people in the streets of Europe than I do in the streets of the US. As far as I know, there's no formal "watershed" in France and I've seen on multiple occasions soft-core porn on broadcast TV (after 10 or 11pm though). It's not abnormal to see nipples in ads for body wash, shampoo or other products where nipples would be present under normal usage. This is not to say that they don't sell sex here: this is a real commercial from 2003 for milk products! Fuck "Got Milk"...this is how you sell food products!



Now that I'm used to naked women at the beach, it's just like going to the beach with bikinied women for me...you see a bit more, but its "normal." Like Jeff said before, every baby has seen a nipple (and a vagina for that matter), yet for some reason we have to protect our children until at least 18 or 20 years old. I much prefer the Euro system of doing this...by not making nudity and human sexuality "bad", children don't grow up thinking that it's some evil thing to be avoided.

And it just keeps getting worse: The abstinence-only sex education programs that refuse to even teach kids about safe sex and protecting oneself are so asinine that I'm not even going to get into it...

Anyway the douchebag of the day is Scott Chipman: "If you can't enjoy the beach without alcohol, then you have things wrong with you."

Does anyone in San Diego want to go ahead and break all his windows for the rest of us?

TARXII: LIVE BLOG

(SPOILER ALERT - I thought the words "live blog" would suffice and make it pretty obvious, but there it is.)

I already hate the goth couple's cute little comments. EVERYDAY IS HALLOWEEN! Oh boy, I turned off the very end of the Simpsons Treehouse of Horror 18 for this, so it had better be good.

Phil introduces us to "entertainment mecca" Los Angeles where we start it all off. Did they run out of ideas?

Nathan and Jennifer, from Huntington Beach, the ultimate Cali couple. "He broke my heart." Oh good, should be a slap fight before too long.

As for the black couple from Nawlins, one of them has Hank Azaria's last name for a first name. They claim to be "more intelligent", and swirling around green fluid in a beaker proves it. Oh god.

The results are in: Jason and Lorena are officially annoying.

Kate & Pat, married lesbian ministers. The less I say about them, the better.

Ari and Staella. STAY-luh! STAY-luh! Ari is gay, I'm guessing? Or just effeminately annoyeriffic.

Shana & Jennifer, posing on Rodeo Drive. HOLY CLEAVAGE. We have our annoying whores who are going to "flirt" their way to the blah blah blah.

TK & some hottie. Newly dating, and one of them is a bearded, bandanna wearing schmuck (I won't tell you which one). I predict he says "dude" 14 times each week.

And it's host Phil Keoghan, my hero, giving out the instructions (8 legs out of 11 will be elimination legs this time, which contradicts previous reports). "GOOD LUCK. TRAVEL SAFE . . . GO!"

For the first pitstop they're visiting a country new to TAR: Ireland. Shannon, specifically, and I'm surprised they haven't been there yet.

One of the goths actually said, "Oh my Goth, where are we going?" Sweet fancy moses, that's dumb.

And we hear The Zither (as TWOP calls it, "The Frenetic Zither of Mistake-Making"), the musical indication that a team screwed up: this time, twice in a row! We also have our first "women and directions" comment.
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They have to go to Innismore Island from Shannon, and SURPRISE, it's raining lightly.

And they are calling the team with the bearded wonder "The Hippies", even though only one of them looks the part.

The fiery Latinas from Miami might claw each other's eyes out. MARRRRRIANA!!!

And already we have people stealing taxis!

Team Saint Lesbian says that TAR is "a love letter to the planet". This might be annoying after a few weeks.

Lorena said, "That was the hardest thing ever to do!" She walked for 2 miles in the rain. Wow, she must have led a rough life.

The Goth kids, and I quote, "ROCKED IT". They are much more lighthearted than I thought they'd be, thank god--uhm, thank goth. But let's see how committed they are to an HOUR of makeup application every morning during this race. Essentially, they are not any different than any of the other teams except for the makeup and hair, so STOP PLAYING UP THE GOTH THING. I blame the editors of this show, who make sure they get every single time they mention the word "goth" into the episode. The only reason they're here is for the other teams to call them "freaks" and "punk-ass goths", I guess.

The grandpa got his shoe caught in a mud hole and fell down, and is already bleeding. Yikes.

The "flirt their way to the finish" girls don't realize that they're going to sweat and stink and look ragged more often than not. Guess what? You can't win simply because you look good. It's never worked before, and won't this time either. "We did awful." "I just want to cry." Bingo!

"We're not supposed to go towards GALLAWAY!" (Uhm, that's probably Galway.) "Lorena is intense", meaning "She's an incredibly emotional pain in the ass." Breaking down only 40 minutes in. Beautiful.
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We always make fun of places like Ireland and England for their horrible cuisine. During this show, I've seen commercials for Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and Papa John's. So what exactly do we have to offer from our restaurants that's any better?
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The first roadbloack is a high wire bicycle, something I don't remember seeing while in Ireland. Immediately followed by carrying turf on a donkey--THAT'S more like it.

Ari just threatened a donkey, says to it "I'm going to cut you up and eat you". I really hope this is one of the eating road block during the show-- you ride it, you EAT IT! Actually, I hope they don't have some nasty Fear Factor-like eating contests like in past years.

Team Nawlins (Hank & Azaria) made it to the mat first; the Bunnies are all emotional over finishing 6th; the Asian Couple is cute, a little TOO cute. And I don't mean that in a porn-y way. As Karl said about the "Asian Trio" on the Rainbow Grill menu: "It's not what you think."

Nathan & Jennifer seemed to spend the entire day trying to get a donkey to move. You don't really know how long it actually took, but it had to be pretty excruiatingly long since 5 teams passed them and they spent 15 minutes of airtime on it. Nathan must have screamed "YAAAA!" 4,000 times before getting the beast to the finish line.

Is it really a footrace to the finish between them and the Latinas for elimination? No, but they think it is. They're actually teams 9 and 10, making Ari & some chick about whom I've already forgotten the last team to arrive, and thus the first eliminated team.

I think they've used the same Phil sound clip, "Stay tuned for scenes from our next episode", for all 12 seasons. It never changes. I've even got his stilted, trying-to-hide-my-New Zealand-accent delivery down at this point.

I already like this tons more than the All-Star show from last year. I think this is going to be a good season, even though it's a shorter series this time around. Okay, that's it. VIVA LA TARXII!

(I'm not live blogging this again. That gave me a headache.)

TARXII: MEET THE NEW TAR, SAME AS THE OLD TAR

The Amazing Race is back on CBS tonight, the only "unscripted" "reality" "competition" show I can stomach. After winning every Emmy since 2003, instead of getting some respect or its own wing at CBS HQ, the show somehow was delegated to "mid-season replacement" status, and was rushed onto the air following the demise of 21 century Cop Rock ripoff Viva Laughlin. (Yes, I too am shocked it was canceled.) This is welcome news since there's fuck all besides "The Wire" reruns on my laptop.

After screwing around with All-Stars and Family themes, we're back to basics: 11 brand spanking new teams of 2. Although there's been complaints about the fact that 15 of the 22 contestants are from the L.A. area, it's by people on the interwebs who do nothing but whine. Personally, I like laughing at them, especially this team couldn't be more Cali if they tried: volleyball coach/waiter, and student/gymnastics coach/former Clippers Spirit squad member. Nathan "describes himself simply as "one cool dude." Speaking of L.A., it starts at the PLAYBOY MANSION? So why can't we get 11 teams of bunnies?

Naturally, when you say that one of the teams are "dating goths" you immediately think COMIC RELIEF. I love how they list it as if it's a race or a profession, instead of just a fashion choice. How about "married preppies" or "brother/sister mustache enthusiasts". I can almost guarantee that there's going to be some undercurrent of "we're discriminated against everywhere we go in downtown Louisville, and all 17 Starbucks won't serve us . . . without making faces" or some crap like that. You wear stupid neon clown clothes and some matching studded belts you found at Hot Topic to get attention, and you got it, so enjoy. How do you pronounce "Kynt"? Did he replace a "u" with a "y"? Ha ha, easy joke.

I'm all behind Shana & Jennifer, especially the taller one, whichever one that is. Or I WISH I were behind them, which would probably be a good view. Obvious replacements for the Beauty Queens from the past two seasons, I just nicknamed them "The Bunnies"--let's see if it sticks. There is only one East Coast team, skinny brunette "sisters" from Miami, who will not at all be bad to look at either, and Julia "describes herself as creative and witty".

As Kris pointed out, thankfully there are no young all-male shirtless metrosexual teams this time around. There'a also a black couple, and Asian father-daughter and "married [female] ministers." What, what?

My guess for the Final 3: TK & Rachel, Azaria & Henekea and the Goth Kids, Kynt & Vyxsin.

Well, here we go, time to travel vicariously (?), it's TARXII Time!

(I'm going to attempt some live bloggery, and it will probably suck.)

WEEKLY TOP 10: NOW BROUGHT TO YOU APPROXIMATELY ONCE A MONTH!

10. It's been a while since we've seen a cheerleader up here, so allow me to present a (San Diego) Charger Girl wearing a hot-as-hell Halloween costume. Thanks Pro Cheerleader Blog!



Now you know why I'm a Devils fan.

BREAKING NEWS: I was just informed that Katie, the member of the Jills I featured who tried to hit a golf ball wearing go-go boots, apparently DID NOT manage to hit it very far. Take it from me: get spikes on those boots. I forgot my golf shoes the last time I played, and it sucked playing in sneakers.

9. The KFC Family Meal has been around for years, and I thought it used to feature 10 pieces of chicken and maybe some biscuits and mashed potatoes. However, it now appears that this artery-destroying caloric monstrosity also includes cole slaw, soda, chips and a chocolate cake. That's right. It's as if they sat in a boardroom and said, "Yes, our customers are fat, but they could get fatter. What else could we possibly add to make this meal deal even more harmful for their health?" "Fuck it, throw in a cake."

8. The news is dire out of Southern California: Hollywood movie and television writers are threatening to go on strike in a dispute over DVD royalties. So this means such entertainment gems such as "Saw IV", "According To Jim" and "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry" will all but disappear? Whatever will we watch? There are only 2,304,985,932 movies/TV shows that I could choose to watch instead! How will we survive? I haven't felt this much panic since I heard that Broadway stagehands, who make an average of $115,000 annually, might go on strike, leaving such literary and cultural institutions such as "Mamma Mia" twisting in the wind.

I have just three words: FUCK YOU, HOLLYWOOD. You're completely unnecessary. And you can print that, and pay me to option it into a movie.

7. Is there such a thing as natural fiber dental floss? I hate throwing away a foot-long strand of non-biodegrading PTFE every time a bit of food gets stuck in between my teeth This sounds like a simple product to make all-natural (wax and twine--actually, that sounds like it would hurt a lot when I put it like that).

6. Last night, we went to the River Palm Terrace in Mahwah, NJ for ALL STEAKS DAY and it managed to live up to the hype that Rob bestowed upon it. Every last milligram of meat that made up my filet mignon was fantastic. Although I'm a little woozy today because I hit the 'trifecta': vodka, wine, beer. Or more accurately, the trifecta hit me.

5. Weird pair spotted on late night TV: Ron Paul and Sex Pistols. Mr. Paul and Mr. Rotten are basically the same age, and have an equal chance of becoming President, so it's not that much of a stretch. Still, it was bizarre to hear Johnny Rotten giving a shout-out to him during "Anarchy in the UK", a song which may have had some impact 30 years ago but has now been rendered utterly meaningless due to the fact it was performed on "The Tonight Show". Oh, and I'd rather have a chimp interview Ron Paul, as Leno is a fucking dunce.

5. This whole "Stephen Colbert for President" thing has yielded some funny jokes, but it's also a little scary since a surprising number claim that they'd actually vote for him. As it turns out, after choosing the Democratic Party due to its cheaper "ballot filing fee" ($2,500 vs. $35,000 for the Reps), he has been denied requests to be placed on the Sout Carolina primary ballot.

As a rule I don't read NY Times editorials, but I made an exception for Colbert's.

Our nation is at a Fork in the Road. Some say we should go Left; some say go Right. I say, “Doesn’t this thing have a reverse gear?” Let’s back this country up to a time before there were forks in the road — or even roads. Or forks, for that matter. I want to return to a simpler America where we ate our meat off the end of a sharpened stick. Let me regurgitate: I know why you want me to run, and I hear your clamor. I share Americans’ nostalgia for an era when you not only could tell a man by the cut of his jib, but the jib industry hadn’t yet fled to Guangdong. And I don’t intend to tease you for weeks the way Newt Gingrich did, saying that if his supporters raised $30 million, he would run for president. I would run for 15 million. Cash.

4. Speaking of not needing writers, The Amazing Race returns for a 12th season on Sunday night, thanks to the cancellation of "musical dramady" Viva Laughlin. All you need to know about that show is this: "It occasionally has the actors break into contemporary song." Sweet jebus, it's Cop Rock in a casino. Anyway, TAR is the only "unscripted" "reality" show I can watch and I'm looking forward to TARXII. More on that later.

3. Here's your NFL UPSET SPECIAL: Indianapolis is 7-0, winners of 12 in a row dating back to last year (including BIG GAME 41), and they're GETTING 4½ points at home. Undefeated home dome underdog? We're pretty sure that's never happened in the history of the NFL. The Patriots have been dickishly running up the score on everyone, but the juggernaut gets temporarily derailed this week as Peyton has a perfect turnover-free day and they win by 10. (Seriously, with the SAWKS winning the World Series, the Celts getting KG, BC being the #2 team in NCAA football, and the Bruins actually playing competitive hockey, Boston sports fans need to be knocked down a peg.)

While the Colts are good, this "Quest For The Ring" shit is awful. Jim Irsay looks like a gay Willy Wonka.

2. Even though the Giants managed to win against the lowly Dolphins, that game at Wembley was completely horrible--LONDON BORING. Also, couldn't FOX find any songs by British atrists recorded after 1983? All they could find was bands like The Clash, The Jam, Madness and The Police (I may have heard Oasis, but since they're musically stuck in 1967, they don't count). What about Amy Winehouse, Arctic Monkeys, Fatboy Slim, Gorillaz, or Bloc Party? Even the Spice Girls would have been more timely. It was like the British version of Tuney McOldsong.

1. If you haven't seen this game-winning, last-second 68 yard play, featuring 15 laterals and a lot of defensive players standing around befuddled, here's your chance to see it from the end zone view. The aftermath: Trinity University (TX) beat Millsaps College 28-24 in this Division III matchup, keeping them alive a conference title.



Just incredible.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! I hope I didn't scare you. Today I dressed up like a mad analytical research scientist, which is basically the same as every other weekday. But I did wear an orange polo shirt with a black shirt underneath it, so at least I made the effort, right?

Halloween's history can be traced back to an ancient Gaelic celebration (called Samhain) that marked the end of the fall harvest season. Later it became a holiday to "scare away evil spirits" by dressing up in your creepiest costume, and then later merely a way for kids to go door-to-door for free candy. As I'm well into adulthood now, it appears to be merely an excuse for most girls of drinking age to dress up like trashy whores. How did we get here?

In this country, not only is violence glorified, it's encouraged: there's almost a constant flow of violent TV shows, commercials for gun accessories, first person shooter videogames, and horror movies thrown our way. Shooting, blood, guts, dismemberment, scary music, what's not to like? I've never been a horror movie fan (I think I still have an unopened copy of "Halloween" on VHS that I won at a party for my spectacular Inspector Clouseau costume), but I understand their appeal on a base level.

Sex, however, is something to be hidden from sight, never to be discussed (that is until children "reach that special age"). Even though every baby has seen a nipple, when one is exposed to one against their will (say, during the Super Bowl) it becomes a horrible national nightmare. Despite nearly constant objectifying of the female form, the American society is more sexually repressed than ever before. Therefore, it suppose it's a fairly natural urge to want to dress like a complete harlot, especially on the one day where you won't be judged for it. But you certainly won't hear me complaining about it. I want to make that perfectly clear. If you want to be a slutty nurse, slutty pirate, slutty cheerleader, slutty real estate agent, slutty claims adjuster, slutty actuary, or just a garden-variety slut, by all means, go for it.

In closing, if you're giving away candy, it had better be chocolate. No Smarties, Mary Janes, Now and Laters, or lollipops--CHOCOLATE. Kit-Kats, Milky Way, Charleston Chews, Reese's, M&M's, Snickers, Hershey's, whatever. There is no substitute. And adults, if you have to drink, stay away from the pumpkin ales, they're nasty.

Let me close this post with this:

BEST. PUMPKIN. EVER.

RANGERS IN THE NIGHT

Is it time to panic? Yes it is, Kent. The Rangers lack of scoring had been tempered by the fact that they were playing terrific defense, and were at least in every game. But a solid win against the Devils was followed by the worst effort of the season. They were drubbed at home by the Toronto Maple Leafs Saturday night. So there they are at 3 - 6 and 1, having scored all of 16 goals. So even though only 2% of the precincts have reported and the polls are still open on the west coast, I'm declaring the season over. Which of course means this will be the last installment of Rangers in the Night. Lets face it, there wasn't going to be any information here that you couldn't find on a thousand other sites. I may occasionally post some information on the NJ Landsharks of HNA, but since I missed the season opener last night with a case of idontfeellikegettingoffthecouch, it will have to wait till next week.

PHUCK PHILLY

Another week, another Flyer suspended for injuring an opponent with a hit to the head...

Here's the thing; I think that Jones really means that he didn't intend to injure Bergeron (unlike his shitty teammates who really were looking for blood). I believe him that he feels really bad and [for once] think that the league probably made the right decision regarding the 2-games that Jones gets.

But the fact that they insist on doing nothing to the Philadelphia Organ-EYE-zation is just fucking terrible. Even if Jones didn't intend to injure and wasn't looking for blood, this behavior is endemic of the Flyers and the league is going to have to do something - or it's only a matter of time before this becomes a war of attrition with Briere or Gagne or someone getting severely concussed as retribution for someone else.

I honestly think that the league's refusal to penalize the team speaks volumes about their true commitment to cleaning the league up and making it any better than a frozen-surface version of MLS.

OLD BILL WATTERSON: RELIVING C&H

Someone has done a lot of work finding rare and non-nationally published Bill Watterson art.

It's not always as funny as average C&H comics, but it's interesting to see him drawing other stuff.

Rare Bill Watterson Art: : For the Calvin Connoisseur

OLD TIME HOCKEY: ROCKET RICHARD STYLE

[Edit 1: Added Video of Clarence Campbell]

For Wikipedia (all spelling/grammar errors sic)

On March 13, 1955, Richard was given a match penalty for intentionally injuring Hal Laycoe, after he had been deliberatally struck in the head with a hockey stick by the player, in a game against the Boston Bruins. Laycoe had highsticked Richard in the head during a Montreal power play. The referee signalled for a penalty to be called, but play was allowed to continue because the Canadiens had possession of the puck. Richard indicated to the referee that he'd been injured, and then skated up to Laycoe -- who had dropped his stick and gloves preparatory to a fight -- and struck Laycoe in the face and shoulders with his stick. The linesmen attempted to restrain Richard, who repeatedly broke away from them to attack Laycoe, even breaking his stick over his back. Moments passed and linesman Cliff Thompson restrained Richard by holding both his arms in a lock. Richard broke loose and punched Thompson twice in the face, knocking him unconscious. Richard later said at a league hearing that he thought Thompson was one of Boston's players.

Clarence Campbell, the then-league President, suspended Richard for the remainder of the season and the playoffs, arguably costing the Habs the Stanley Cup (they lost in 7 games to those evil Wings). But it's not the best player in the league busting his stick over his opponents back and knocking out the linesman that brings us here today. It's the aftermath that really counts.

Abate is a type of pear, abattre in French means "to slaughter"

The Habs fans were mad as hell that Toronto had the balls to suspend their best player for the remainder of the season. Then Campbell, in eerily familiar demagogue-like fashion, announced he would be traveling to Montréal for the next game (what better way to rub those silly paysans' faces in it). Some Canadians fans, thinking "just-in-case", bought eggs, tomatoes, various farm animals to the game...Others brought tear gas grenades...Campbell takes his seat with his fiancée, and proceeds to get pelted with [for the time being] various organic matter. Then someone throws his tear gas grenade and Campbell declares forfeit for the Wings.

Now all hell breaks loose in Montreal as the fans run amok. Breaking shit, rioting and whatnot. As far as we can tell, Campbell was not strung up and Montreal wasn't burnt to the ground (though an estimated $500K in damage was done). But some historians note this moment as the real beginning of the Quebec nationalism movement - French-Canadians citizens supporting a French-Canadian player against English-Canadian persecution.

But the question is: In 1955, these Habs fans had the balls to attack the Dictator-in-charge over what was probably the correct decision, but in 2007 we are living under marketing guy who doesn't know dick about the sport, has sold everything holy to RBK for a couple of magic beans, refuses to play nice with any main-stream press, and has decided that if there isn't a franchise in every major city (Africa included) by 2010, the NHL will not have attained it optimum market-reach. Why has no one attacked Gary Bettman with a hand gre...umm, a tear gas grenade? Why hasn't anyone thrown eggs at him? What the fuck people? It's time to get serious here...At least the US government changes ever few years and we aren't stuck with any one president for more than 8 years. Bettman's either gotta be kicked out, or he'll ride the league straight to hell.

Yeah, you're right...it's all just a long-winded way to say "Bettman Sucks."

[Edit 1]
It turns out that Clarence Campbell has a lot more in common Gary "Our Favorite Asshole" Bettman than first thought. Calling the Montreal Mayor out on TV...That's good.

WRIST SHOTS: CALGARY'S SOCKS HURT MY EYES

The Islanders beat the Devils 4-3 on a Guerin goal with :03.7 seconds left in OT on Saturday. (Hey, didn't the Sabres win in OT with :03.7 seconds left last week? I smell a rat.) Meanwhile, Ol' Billy has been smoking so far, clicking early with linemates Fedotenko and Comrie. As Rob pointed out it's a long season and he's almost 37 so let's see how long he lasts. Personally, I can't even stay awake to WATCH a hockey game, let alone skate in one.

Scheduling question: the Islanders played at home on Oct 20, yet they don't play at the Mausoleum again until Saturday night--6 straight days of vacation. Why? Who fucking knows? It's not like there's a lot going on at the arena since they are THE ONLY TEAM THAT PLAYS THERE. I think it's a ploy by the NHL to try to get Islanders fans to forget they exist.

You have to love the Chicago Blackhawks' 19 year old rookies, Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, the latter I already nominated for a GOTY. Hopefully, they can help get that team back to respectability; the NHL cannot afford to lose the support of this city. And gee, what a shame that Bill Wirtz had to die--can you believe that because of him the Chicago Blackhawks home games AREN'T EVEN ON TV IN CHICAGO? His son Rocky took over ownership and is already getting some of the games broadcast on Comcast SportsNet by November. It's about time. Now that the old miser is dead maybe this Original Six team can get some fans back.

I used to like Dennis Miller, back in college when he was more pop culture-centric and less political. Well, someone apparently found his incongruent, subreferential schtick on MNF funny, because now he has a new show on Versus where he talks about sports, and apparently not one of them is hockey or bull riding. How many failed shows can one guy have? And instead of spending money and time on this, how about Versus gets a nightly half hour NHL highlight show?

Colorado's Ryan Smith returned to Edmonton Tuesday night, AND THE CROWD MADE HIM CRY! Damn you, Edmontonians! As Kris points out, if you play for Colorado what are we supposed to call you? An Avalanchian? An Avalancher?

With only 4 losses in a row, and only 4 goals in that stretch, including two shutouts against marginal goalies (Fleury and Fernandez, the latter besting Henrik in the shootout), what is wrong with the Rangers? They haven't looked good since beating Florida on opening night. Will they break out against the Devils tonight at MSG? Hopefully, the next installment of RANGERS IN THE NIGHT will elucidate further.

Thanks to Cablefuckingvision/MSG for completely obscuring the Isles/Devils game the other night with graphics. Several times during the game, they had a giant blue bar across the bottom of the screen . . . telling you where to tune in to the game. Wasn't there a half hour Then there was a constant banner popping up on top with something saying "HUMMER CHALLENGE". If that means they're giving hummers to fans to increase hockey attendance, I might sign up for that.

I don't mean to sound like an insensitive jerk, but I seriously need to know this: what's wrong with the left side of Islanders' studio host Deb Kaufman's face? She's an attractive woman and speaks well, but the deadness on the left side of her face is distracting to look at. What's worse is that they put her on the right side of the screen (stage left) so when she turns to talk to someone to her right, the camera emphasizes it. I think they told Butch Goring to wear the brightest shirt/tie combination he could find (this week, a painful orange/tangerine pair) to take the focus off of her.

Ever since they changed the point system, the 5 minute OT has been pretty meaningless. Right now, once teams get to the extra session they automatically get a point, so there really isn't any incentive to score in OT. In fact, I don't care all that much if my team loses in the OT or the shootout, because they at least get that 1 point. I propose that if a team scores in OT, they get 2 points, and the losing team get 0; it counts as a true loss. If it goes to a shootout, each team gets 1 point, and the winner gets 1 extra point if they win the shootout. This way, not only does this make the OT more meaningful and potentially exciting, but a goal scored (or given up) the conventional way (4 on 4, not a penalty shot/breakaway) means much more than a shootout goal.

Since most of the new sweaters and uniforms are hideous, I think I will post an ugly shot of them every week to illustrate that fact. This week: wow, the new Calgary Flames socks hurt to look at.



In other words, Bettman sucks.

T-SHIRT OF THE DAY

Buffalo Sabres: New York State Champs 2007.

Take that Islander Fans...You couldn't even win the State Championship.




























What's that you say? There are no "State Championships" in the National Hockey League. Well there should be, and we all know why there isn't: Because Bettman Sucks.

GOAL OF THE YEAR NOMINEE: JONATHAN TOEWS (10/19/07 vs. CHI)

Early nominee for goal of the year: Jonathan Toews (CHI) vs. the entire Colorado Avalanche team in a 5-3 win on October 19, 2007.



Sweet fancy moses, that's gorgeous.

ROCKTOBER: U2 "OCTOBER/NEW YEARS DAY (LIVE AT RED ROCKS)"

I woke up this morning and decided that ROCKTOBER had to be kicked up a notch. So here's a video of "October/New Years Day" by U2, live at the Red Rocks Amphitheater on June 5, 1983.



The book U2 BY U2 contains a lot of interesting background information on the band, especially this legendary concert that put them on the map. The weather leading up to this show was heavy rain and fog, and everyone in the Denver area assumed it was cancelled. But they had brought in a camera crew and had a lot riding on this show, they didn't want to postpone it. Although the rain let up just before show time, it wasn't well attended.

EDGE: "You might notice if you watch the Red Rocks video, there are very few crowd shots. The reason for that is the place was only a third full."

They pulled it off, thanks to clever editing using tight shots and amplified crowd noise that made it seem like a packed house.

Every time I see clips from this show all I can think is, "My god, it looks freezing." If you notice, Bono actually changed the lyrics to "under a thundercloud and rain", commenting on the adverse conditions. This performance is not on the Under A Blood Red Sky album, though it is on the "Live At Red Rocks" video which is only available on VHS (I would suspect U2 has this DVD re-release in the pipeline, to fund their retirement).

Interesting fact: on the initial release of this album in 1983 (on vinyl and cassette), Bono sings portions of "America" from West Side Story, and "Send in the Clowns" during the middle of "Electric Co." But because of copyright issues, they cut it out of subsequent pressings; I don't think it's ever appeared on CD. I actually own the original vinyl version of the album that has his ad-libbing intact (soon to be auctioned off on EBAY). Here's the Red Rocks performance of that song, including "Clowns" and Bono's "white flag routine" (essentially the Irish flag with the green and orange stripes removed).



Oh, and GO ROCKIES!

U2 by U2 (Paperback) (Amazon.com)

T.I.H.™ - DYLAN SHILLIN' FOR SHIT

What the fuck, Zimmy?

What the fuck?

On a side note, it sounds like he's trying to displace Tom Waits as "Most Damaged Voice Ever"

The 2 minute "Full Version"


And the 60-second version with hypnotic guitars


Ok I know what the fuck happened:
GM: Here is a large sack with dollar signs on the sides
Dylan: What will be I selling?

[youtube via jalonik)

LIVE BLOG: NINERS @ GIANTS - 2ND HALF

3rd Quarter
Okay, so much for the D playing well. Madison is apparently done for the day, as he let Ashley Lelie, proud owner of one of the NFL's sissiest names, slip behind him and catch a bomb from Trent Fucking Dilfer down inside the 30 yard line.

After a group sack, Antonio Pierce jumped into the pile about 5 seconds after the play ended. He's has been called for two roughing the pansy penalties, and he's been very late on both of them. Calm down, Tony.

According to this fucking creepy commercial, Old Spice deodorant will grow hair on your chest. I guarantee people who are balding will start rubbing this on their heads.

UMENYIORA!!! He just pummeled Dilfer (for season sack #8), picked up a fumble and ran it back 77 yards for a TD. That's more like it! He didn't have to do that "stop just before the end zone and back in and spike it" though, but I'll take it. Since the Niners were about to score, I think it's safe to say that was the official turning point of the game. 26-7 Giants.

Eli is sacked, followed by a blocked punt out the back of the end zone for a safety. Sweet fancy moses. The Niners comeback begins now. 26-9 Giants.

I mentioned my favorite memory regarding these two teams, so here's my least favorite: the 49ers beating the Giants 39-38 in the NFC divisional game on Jan 6, 2003. The game ended on a botched winning FG attempt, and a pass interference call that the refs admitted later that they blew. Although it never should have gotten to that point, as the 49ers came back from being down 38-14 at one point. This was the game that taught me two things: 1) never get too emotionally attached to a sports team, and 2) never trust the referees ever again.

Shockey just fought for a nice first down to the 38 yard line, 13 yards on 3rd and 10. Now, THAT'S the Shockey I want to see more of.

I don't think Eli is happy with his career best 60% completion percentage, so he decided to overthrow Plax Mouthrinse by about 40 yards. I also get the feeling that he's starting to pick up his brother's annoying pre-snap routine. He shouldn't be allowed to talk to Peyton at all during the season.

I think UPS using a song by the band Postal Service for their commercials is an ironic slap in the face.

What is that graphic wipe? A black ghost of some sort? It's not as fucking ponderous as the Transformers logo, but it's close.

Punt, commercial, one play, commercial. What the fuck, NFL? Since the UMENYIORA fumble recovery TD, this game has been completely shitty. Let's check some other scores. Only 42 points for the Pats? They took their foot off the gas pedal, very disappointing.

4th Quarter
This Niners team is not good at all. This game is over. That's right, I said it.

The CD player is on full time now, playing Portishead's "It Could Be Sweet". If they keep winning like this, it could be sweet, indeed.

And Pierce intercepts a Dilfer pass and takes it down to the 5. Nice tackle by Dilfer too. I don't understand why they're passing constantly, when their only offensive threat is Gore.

Give it to Jacobs four straight times if you have to now, boys.

On 3rd down, we have a roughing the pansy call on Eli, due to a weak "blow to the head" call. 1st down and goal. Like I said, GIVE IT TO JACOBS FOUR TIMES IN A ROW. DON'T MAKE ME DRIVE DOWN TO EAST RUTHERFORD.

Okay, play action pass to Shockey for a TD. That's fine with me. Is that his first score this season? (Edit: no, it's his second, he had one vs. the Jets.) 33-9 Giants.

FOX is already done with this game too, as they show the Giants' upcoming schedule: @MIA, bye, DAL, @DET, MIN. And none of those games are at 8 PM! Hmmm, 3-1 is not out of the question over that stretch. Hopefully, this is the same defense that shows up against Dallas.

Frank Gore has only gotten the ball 14 times all day, only thrice in the 2nd half. When you're putting the game on Dilfer's shoulders, you are probably going to lose. (Edit: Gore has spent a lot of time on the bench "with an ankle". I spent a lot of time on the coach "with an ankle" as well.) Although he's got the Favre stubble look down. Good for Trent.

Career high for Jacobs, 107 yards and a TD. We're going to need to see more of that.

4 minutes left, and we have a QB Anthony Wright sighting, as he's running around in his own end zone. Yeesh. What about WR Scientific Mix? I can't take any more of this. Giants win 33-15.

Look at these awful late games: KC @ OAK, NYJ @ CIN, CHI @ PHL, STL @ SEA, MIN @ DAL, PIT @ DEN at 8 PM. Good lord. The Redskins somehow won (Cards missed a late 2 point conversion that would have tied it up), so I'm rooting for a Dallas loss at 4 PM, and I hope Adrian "Purple Jesus" Peterson lights them up.

Here's your stats for the Pats' QB in their 49-24 win: 21/25, 354 YDS, 6 TD (career high), 0 INT. They are just pummeling the crap out of the league right now, and Brady has been just stellar.

The Texans scored 29 points in the 4th to go ahead 36-35 with 2:16 left, only to lose on a last second FG to the Titans, 38-36. Ha ha ha ha! The NFL! It's shitastic!

LIVE BLOG: NINERS @ GIANTS - 1ST HALF

San Francisco 49ers at New York Giants.

I'm going to live blog this for the hell of it, because I can. The G-Men, winners of 4 in a row, are way overdue for a letdown game that Coughlin coached teams always have. This could be the week! Woo hoo!

1st Quarter
I tuned in at 1:03 PM and so far there hasn't been one video clip of Leonard Marshall obliterating Joe Montana. What are you waiting for, jackasses? I also heard that Matt Bahr and Jeff Hostetler were on hand for the coin toss, but it wasn't televised. Thanks for the voluminous ALCS promos though. Fuck you right in the pants, FOX.

The Niners have a pathetic 63 points scored in 5 games. We thought the Bills 65 points was awesomely bad, but that's sad.

A relatively impressive opening drive for the Giants, scoring on a TD pass to Amani Toomer. 49 TDs is the new Giants record, previously held by Kyle Rote. No, I actually don't know who held it before. (Edit: It actually was Rote.) And the PAT was missed. God, this team is going to be the death of me. 6-0 Giants.

They just said "because of the heat down here the Giants are trying to get the Niners defense to run a lot". It's a beautiful sunny 68 degree fall day. What heat? Oh, it's Tony Siragusa who is bothered by the heat, mainly because he's a 400 pound fat fuck who's wearing a black wool coat. Dicktard.

And that's it. It only took me 15 minutes of Tony Siragusa's useless sideline jackassery to unplug the center channel from my surround sound receiver. This is a welcome option thanks to these games being broadcast in Dolby Digital: you don't have to hear the announcers at all, if you so choose. This is sort of like the "silent" game back in 1985 1980, Jets vs. Dolphins. If only I could figure out some way for my receiver to also mute "This is Ouuuuuuur Couuuuuuuntry", then I'd be set.

Maybe it wasn't his fault, but Eli just threw one of his patented crap INTs inside the red zone. There might be an incentive clause in his contract for these.

Why do FOX's game graphics need to make so much noise? Whoooosh! Shwoooop! Bzzzz-click! Blip blip blip shhhhwonk! What is the fucking point of that? I may just put the CD player on.

2nd Quarter
The Giants defense is playing well. However, they just let Trent Dilfer escape and scamper for 11 yards and a near first down. Trent Fucking Dilfer! Someone needs to Leonard Marshall his dick into the dirt right away, as payback for that Super Bowl back in 2001.

On 4th and 1, Frank Gorshen--uhm, Gore is stopped right at the first down marker . . . but they're not even going to measure apparently. That was too close for these shitty refs to eyeball, in my opinion, but okay. And of course, the Niners score. 7-6 Niners.

A fumble recovery by UMENYIORA leads to a Brandon Jacobs TD. He's been a bull in the first half, 86 yards. 13-7 Giants.

Sam Madison has done nothing this year, but after that INT he decided to make some dumb victory dance, wherein he gives the baseball "safe" sign for some godforsaken reason. Was that a FOX promo for baseball? Anyway, thanks for that.

FOX uses "London Calling" by the Clash for next week's Miami/Giants in London promo. Spinning tunes tonight, DJ Obvious! I hope they don't let the Aquatic Mammals beat them down in Trafalgar Square or wherever they play, that would be horrible.

Despite not being able to kick an extra point after from 7 feet away, Tyner managed 2 FGs in the half of 29 and 39 yards, respectively. 19-7 Giants.

Holy crap, the Patriots are murdering the Dolphins to the tune of 42-7. Brady's halftime stats: 16/19, 291 yds, 5 TDs. The New England Cheaters certainly have a chip on their collective shoulders this year, and Bill Simmons is sporting a huge boner right now. That can only lead to a messy release when the Sox win Game 7 tonight.

The NFL team record for most points in a game by a single team is 72, by Washington vs. N.Y. Giants on Nov. 27, 1966. I don't know what the record is since the merger, but there's a good chance the Pats break that record today.

Here's the problem with the NFL: there are so many mediocre teams, there are no compelling matchups. We've gotten to the point where only the teams' fans would give a shit. Look at the 1 PM games: ATL @ NO, TB @ DET, ARI @ WAS, BAL @ BUF, TEN @ TEX. Ugh. And that last game on the list currently features the exciting QB matchup of Kerry Collins versus Sage Rosenfeld. I wish I were joking.

I will be not be watching the halftime jackassery, starring Terry and the Fucktards.

NFL SUNDAY JACKASSERY: THE HIT

Since the San Francisco 49ers are playing the New York Giants today, I felt the need to post my happiest memory of all of their matchups: a picture of THE HIT, Leonard Marshall knocking out Joe Montana in the 1990 NFC Championship game, won thanks to Matt Barr's 5 FGs, 15-13.



This was #3 on this FOX Sports list of the Top 10 Most Devastating Hits, though it will always be #1 in my heart (with Stevens vs. Lindros being #2):

Leading 13-9 with 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter against the Giants, Montana rolled to his right, unaware that Marshall was closing in on his blind side. At the exact wrong moment, Montana stopped rolling right and sidestepped Lawrence Taylor by jumping backward, right into the path of the 6-3, 288-pound Marshall. The impact that flattened Montana was so violent his subsequent fumble ended up 14 yards down the field. The Niners somehow recovered that fumble, but with Montana knocked out of the game by the hit, they would fall to the G-Men, 15-13, after a late Roger Craig fumble gave New York new life.

In what ended up being his last play as a Niner, he suffered a bruised sternum, bruised stomach, cracked ribs, and a broken hand. But it was the look on Joe's face on the sidelines that was priceless, as he obviously didn't know where he was: "Has anybody seen my little brown doggy?"

That might have been the most satisfying championship of all: they made the playoff run with backup Jeff Hostetler, had to get through Ditka's Chicago Bears, the San Francisco 49ers (who were going for a 3rd Super Bowl title) and the Buffalo Bills' offensive juggernaut. I'm 100% certain that I won't ever feel the way I did about the Giants as I did that year.

(God, I hope they replay THE HIT today.)

JAMES MANGOLD IS A PRICK

I thought I'd change it up a bit for the title. But, either way, it should come up in a search. Evidently, this is what a hollywood type does when he isn't 't busy handing out awards to other members. He googles himself. And if the search turns up words from those of us not in the self-adulation society, he corrects us. Something along the lines of he was for the 350 park rangers, before he was against them, or some shit like that. Funny thing that "was taken out of context" now means "said something stupid that I wish would just go away".

Quick note on Joe Torre - fuck off. 5 million dollars is insulting? YOU are insulting. You were a gigantic loser before you became the Yankees manager. Then for 5 years you filled out the lineup card and watched the largest payroll in baseball do what it should do, win. Did you hit a 3 run homer in game 4 against the Braves? Did you strikeout 15 Mariners in the LCS? Did you get a pinch hit single against the Mets in extra innings? You did none of these things. The only thing I can remember you directly affecting is the 2004 series against the Red Sox, in which you're feeble managerial skills were exposed, leading to the most embarrassing moment in the history of the organization, maybe all of sports. I'm not blaming you for the loss, and you get no credit for the wins. You are not the reason the NY Yankees won and you are not the reason they lost. You were along for the ride. And you got rich beyond belief for it. Now you want hard working people who make 50K a year to feel sorry for you because the Yankees didn't "respect" you and ONLY offered 5 million. Gee fucking whiz, how's a guy gonna live on that, when he's only made 19 million the last 3 years. Fuck you. Get lost. Maybe there is some baseball league in Hawaii that needs a manager who will pitch the arms off of good young men. We don't need you here. Go catch for the Mets or something. I hear they need a guy.

As Jeff said, the definitive directors cut of Blade Runner is a visual and sonic masterpiece, even if Ridley Scott gets it wrong by making Deckard a replicant. P K Dick wasn't trying to fool you, the point is, DNA does not make you human.

THOUGHTS ON "BLADE RUNNER: THE FINAL CUT"

It's raining like a bitch here right now, a biblical, post-apocalyptic kind of rain. Naturally, this reminded me of the classic sci-fi movie "Blade Runner". It rains constantly in Ridley Scott's bleak vision of Los Angeles in 2019, a grim world made even more bleak while watching, and listening to, the glorious 25th anniversary edition of "Blade Runner: The Final Cut", which I had the privilege to see at the Ziegfeld Theater in Manhattan this week.



I first saw "Blade Runner" when I was 12 in a tiny 300 seat theater with one speaker in the middle of the screen accompanied by a typically flaky second-run 35MM print. After being weaned on sci-fi as a young lad through "Alien" and "Star Wars", and being a huge fan of "Raiders of the Lost Ark", I enjoyed this movie, intrigued by its dark vision and meticulously crafted world. But this viewing for the movie's 25th anniversary was an entirely eye-opening, and eye-gouging, experience.

One of the first major films to get the "director's cut" treatment (back in 1992), this current version is allegedly the final "definitive" version, to be released in several DVD editions in December. It was worth the wait, as the digital restoration of this 1982 movie is stellar; if it weren't for the fact that Harrison Ford looked like he was 19, I would have sworn it was made yesterday. The special effects and production design stood out where it seemed muted and muddy before. Additionally, the remastered sound was simply stunning, from the throbbing Vangelis score to the soaking downpours, which the enormous, red velvet ensconced, 1100+ seat theater's speaker system was able to reproduce with aplomb. This was how the movie deserved to be seen and heard, but alas, it wasn't initially given the chance.

Early test audiences were confused by the plot, and a spoonfed narration by the main protagonist, Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford) was added (read purposely badly hoping it would be rejected during post-production--it wasn't). Additionally, an ending was tacked on featuring the happy couple literally driving off into the sunset, in one of the silliest and cliched Hollywood endings ever concocted. It was almost like the edited for seniors version of "Gone With The Wind" from The Simpsons: "Frankly Scarlet, I love you! Let's remarry." ("Didn't that movie have used to have a war in it?")



Although the "fixed" version did fairly well in its first weekend ($6.1 million, which would be considered a failure in today's economy), it soon became apparent that moviegoers were expecting more feel-good fun popcorn fare like "Raiders of the Lost Ark" and "E.T", and it lost money in the end (which I'm sure Mr. Scott has made back with DVD sales and $11 tickets).

SPOILER ALERT! Deckert is a replicant, a skinjob, an android who may or may not dream of electric sheep. Not only did the new anti-uplifting "unicorn" ending make it clear, but Mr. Scott said as much in a recent NY Times article, in case there was ever any speculation. This wasn't so apparent in the first edit, which makes Janet Maslin's statement in the original 1982 NY Times review commenting about Sean Young's replicant love interest, "the icy poised Rachel . . .seems a lot more expressive than Deckard", appear quaintly inaccurate, though who could blame her.

The first time I heard this theory was back in 1990 from an enthusiastic film geek who worked at LaserLand in Paoli, PA, from which we rented the Laserdisc for a college movie night at Villanova. He excitedly pointed out to us that Deckard was a "fake", and put the disc into one of their players, showing us Deckard's gleaming eyes in a freeze-frame pointing to it as the director's subtle hint. The guy may have been a little creepy (I also recall him preferring the saying that the term "letterbox" was created by those who had their "panties on too tight") but he turned out to be correct.

Overall, more than a few things seemed dated in the movie, but they were not without their charm, especially the boxy DeLorean-inspired flying cars and the giant-pixeled computer readouts. (To further suspend your disbelief, I guess you could just assume that the chosen few took the good technology with them to the Off-World colonies.) Several things you couldn't get away with today, particularly the minimalist opening credits (white letters on a black background) and the deliberate pacing. Rutger Hauer's performance as android Roy Batty seemed even larger than life on the big screen; punctuated by great facial expressions and reactions, he was ironically the most lifelike character in the movie.

Thankfully, we have a long way to go to get L.A. that screwed up; however, one future vision that they did get right: there are giant pervasive advertisements everywhere, something that's bound to get worse as we approach 2019. My biggest gripe is with the advances in technology featured that didn't seem impossible 25 years ago, but are laughable now; we've been spending all of our time and energy working on consumer technology to create bigger and better flat panel TVs to keep us dumb and stupid, when all this time we really should have been working on those flying cars.

IF YOU'VE NEVER SEEN THE MOVIE, GO SEE IT BEFORE YOU CLICK ON THE CLIP BELOW.

CALVIN AND HOBBES: THINK HAPPY THOUGHTS

I was reading one of my Calvin and Hobbes books the other day. Man I loved Calvin and Hobbes.

WORST. ENDING. EVER

3:10 to Yuma. No spoilers.

Obviously with no spoilers, this post can't go too far. The movie was beautifully shot and quite good up until the craptacular cinematical climax. And this isn't my American sensitivities speaking...it's not about good or bad winning or losing...it was just stupid. I'll have to read the original short story by Elmore Leonard to see if the story has always had this fucked up ending.

It's a shame, because I did like the film, up to that point.

Just an interesting aside: I watched The Magnificent Seven the other day and the lead, Yul Brynner, was sporting a significant Russian accent...in 1960!! But come 2007, we have to an Aussie fake an American accent in the lead. What gives? I was thinking about it and I don't think that foreign accents would have been that strange in the West during the late 19th and early 20th century. What with all the immigrants moving West to strike it rich.

DRINKY DRINKY: PAULANER OKTOBERFEST BIER

EDIT 1: Damn it, I took a picture and everything and forgot to post it. Here it is (sorry for the Guiness glass, I have not had the opportunity to, ummm, "acquire" a Paulaner glass).

Really quick Drinky Drinky column since I haven't posted one since who knows when (don't worry, it's not because of a lack of drinky drinky on my part...it's probably, at least partially, because of an excess of drinky drinky on my part).

Anyway, despite the fact that those wild Germans ended Oktoberfest like 3 weeks ago (without me) it's still Oktober where I live. Although I didn't get to Munich this year (for the 29th consecutive year), I will be at Novekmberfest in the Rhein valley. I'm 99% sure I just made that holiday up, but I am going to be at a wedding in November near Nürburg (I'm still trying to figure out how to rent a Porsche and escape for a few hours!) and I'm counting on good beer (don't tell anyone but that's the major of the reason that I'm going).

Anyway, without further tangential meanderings...this beer der Tradition des ersten Oktoberfestes von 1810 is good. But in following the footsteps of most things German, that's kind of expected. Bit on the alcohol-heavy side at 6.0%, but it doesn't have an over-bearing alcohol tint to it...Gives a nice amber color. Decent 2" head or so, Nice carbonation, flavor of berr...Ok, I don't have a fucking idea what I'm saying. I review beer and wine and most everything else that I ingest the same way:

1. I like it
2. I hate it

As funny as this may sound, most wines from Bordeaux and beers from Germany fall under 1.

If I had the chance to buy it again (i.e. if my lazy ass manages to get to the beer store before they're sold out) I would. End of story.

viva oktober.

#1 THREAT TO AMERICA IN 2008: COLBERT!

Stephen Colbert is running for president in 2008! Appearing on "The Daily Show", he said he was ready to consider a run but he said he'd prefer to do it on a "more prestigious show"--his own. He's also going to run as both a Democrat and a Republican so he can lose twice.

Obviously, this is a funny idea that might sell him some books, but hopefully it's just a joke and he's just doing it to get the youngsters to register and ROCK THE VOTE. The best by-product of "The Daily Show" and "Colbert Report" is that they (allegedly) make people more politically aware, even if it's in a humorous way. I just hope the same hipsters that are complaining about the current administration don't turn around and waste a vote on him. What kind of idiot would do that? Personally, I'm voting for Christopher Walken in 2008.

Although, voting for Fred Thompson because he guarantees "the hottest First Lady in US history" is a tempting choice, too.

WEEKLY TOP 10: LOVELY CASHMERE THROWDOWN

10. Why is the term "in broad daylight" only used to describe a crime scene? Why can't you say, "I played golf today in broad daylight"? No, it's always "the victim was brutally beaten with a golf club in broad daylight".

9. There no better way to announce "it's over" than putting a marginal talent in a popular, award winning musical. I thought it couldn't get any worse than "Tony Danza in Mel Brooks' 'The Producers' In Vegas!" until I saw this: Clay Aiken joins Broadway's 'Spamalot'. Okay, it's now officially over.

8. Quote from the NY Times Magazine that I never thought would be attributed to an NHL hockey player (New York Rangers' Sean Avery):

"I just got a lovely cashmere throw from a friend who works at Calvin Klein."

It's lovely? Seriously? He also says he'd like to be the "editor of a fashion magazine", that his next big purchase will be the "spring/summer Dior men's collection". Wow, I'm speechless. He also says the most annoying piece of equipment is his helmet, "It's always tight no matter how much I loosen it." Hey, how about you make your next big purchase A HELMET THAT FITS! What, does Armani Exchange not sell them?

7. Reason #2934875 Not To Watch Fox: Subliminal Messages during playoff baseball games.



Gee, I wonder if that Transformers DVD is out yet. Sweet buttered christ.

6. iAppleRipoffTunes is now selling its DRM-free 256 kbps songs for $0.99 each, down from $1.29. That's funny, because Amazon has been selling those (most of them at a cheaper price) for a month now. Feeling the heat, are we, Stevie? Reminder: I must buy something from Amazon this week.

5. TV, I tried. I tried to enjoy your new offerings this season, but they left me feeling empty. I sat through "Pushing Daisies", "Cavemen", "Carpoolers", "Tell Me You Love Me", "Curb Your Enthusiasm"--none of them are horrible, but none of them are exciting. I even watched 20 minutes of "Journeyman" and "Reaper", and accidentally viewed 30 seconds of "Chuck". Ugh. I guess it just wasn't meant to be, TV. Let's just be friends and watch hockey together, okay? Meanwhile, I'm going to catch up on "The Wire" before January.

4. Action-packed hockey game on Monday night between the Maple Leaves at the Miller-less Sabres (on VS HD, no less), where the two teams traded goals back and forth in the final 10 minutes, seemingly scoring on every shot, ending in a Sabres 5-4 OT win with :03.7 remaining. Although there's a nice NHL highlight video of this, sometimes it's best to enjoy games like this through the open thread on Bfloblog. When they Sabres are on, they're ON (they had 19 shots in the 3rd + OT). Crazy, and it's only game #5.

3. Congratulations to the Colorado Rockies for making it to the World Series, basically by beating the living crap out of everyone in their path. They've won 20 of their last 21 games, including sweeping the Phatally Phlawed Phillies and the Uninteresting D-Backs. After the miserable 40 degree rainy weather at Coors Field on Sunday night, I think they're just motivated to wrap this shit up before it snows.

2. Screw the NFL! NCAA college football has been incredible this season. Somehow, every major team has been upset in some amazing way, from last week's Kentucky upset #1 LSU in OT and Oregon State beating #2 Cal, to the 40 point underdog Stanford beating USC two weeks ago. This weekend #2 South Florida (?!) visits Rutgers . . . could we be looking at another upset? Regardless, it will be interesting to see. Oh, and Notre Dame being winless is completely hilarious.

1. NOMINEE FOR BEST PRODUCT OF THE YEAR (thanks Kris):



"The Back Up: some people are buying one for each side of the bed!" Sure, it's great and all, but I'm constantly tripping over the legs of my bed and falling over, so I'm sure I'll blow my nuts off if I had one (or two) of these.

THINGS I DON'T HATE: SHARON JONES

Wow! What a voice this woman has and to think, she was working as a prison guard in my old neck of the woods, Ossning, until the mid-90s...As she put it in an interview: In the 70s, the music execs where saying that that she was too short, not pretty enough or too fat. After she hit 25 she was too old...

Saw her last night. Only down part, with noise ordinances that kick in at 12:00 midnight, you shouldn't let the opening act play until after 10pm. I'd have much preferred that they forgo the opening act for more of Sharon Jones and the Dapkings...Oh well. Still great music.

RANGERS IN THE NIGHT

That will be the name (thanks Jeff!) of my irregularly published post concerning the New York Rangers and their quest for Lord Stanley's Cup, as well as other protective gear like Lord Kensington's shin guard and The Earl of Oxfords chin strap. After a listless couple of periods, the Rangers snapped to life and won game 1, 5 - 2 over the much improved Florida Panthers. Again it was Chris Drury with the late game heroics, only this time he scored a goal that didn't pierce my heart like a thousand daggers. This took a bit of the sting out of the Yanks loss to the Indians, in which Chin Ming Wang looked like he was throwing batting practice. Andy Pettitte needs to come up big today. (Took me what, 2 sentences to completely get off topic?)

I was supposed to publish the above nonsense some time ago and it is now, much like the canceling of "The Ropers" old and sad news.

In the interim, the Blueshirts have lost twice to the Ottawa Senators and as Jeff said earlier, the Sens look awesome. Big, strong, fast, and committed to team defense. Even though the Rangers outshot them in both games, most of the shots were from outside and rebounds were rare. I think the Rangers are going to be a very good team very soon, but it is clear they have work to do to be on the same level as Ottawa. A win over Washington and a typical loss to the Islanders, (in which they kicked fishstick ass up and down the ice and managed 1 goal) brings the Rangers to 2 - 3 in this young season. Next game, Thursday the 18th at the Atlanta Thrashers. The Thrashers will try to get some measure of revenge for the Rangers sweep in the first round of last seasons playoffs. Which makes no sense, since, as just reported, it was last season.

Back to those 2 games against Ottawa, the shots AT goal, which according to my research (none) is an official stat now, I'm going to say the Rangers had 945 and Ottawa had 5216. Honestly, does Bettman (who sucks) have an out of work nephew who's only skill is counting? Why else would they pay someone to keep track of this utterly pointless statistic? OK, Marik Malik winds up and sends an errant shot AT goal, missing by some 20 feet, caroming off the boards out of the zone and resulting in a breakaway opportunity and goal for the opponent. Eddie Bettman then puts down a little tick mark on the score sheet? Malik is credited with an offensive stat?

A word about TBS's coverage of the ballgames this post season - shitty. Try to keep the focus on the field fellas, I don't care about the guy banging the drum in the back row or LeBron James. And your little red light green light 1-2-3 graphic at first base is pointless.

[the following was written a couple weeks ago, and unposted due to extreme laziness and inebriation.] Oh and this is for the guy at the bar who wanted to watch Kentucky vs South Carolina last night, stay home. Both of those teams suck and will be out of the top 25 by the end of the month. [end]

Well it's not the end of the month, but SC and Kentucky are 6 and 8 respectively. This is why I don't gamble anymore. I suck at it. I also went on and on yesterday about how the "home, dome, monday night dog" Atlanta Falcons were a lock. Well, they were dogs allright, (nope, no M Vick reference coming) old, slow, blind dogs, and the Giants pretty much put their season to sleep.

Now lets see whats on TV tonight:

10 PM, Discovery, American Chopper - Will the bike be done on time, or will tempers flare?

11 PM, Discovery, American Chopper - Tempers flare when the bike isn't done on time.