Movies

[KevinP]

I'm loving the Marvel movies, and the latest GL trailer has him doing some very Silver Age things with his ring, giant springs and catapults besides that big stupid phallic machinegun.  The monster, though, looks like one of those Black Snakes you light on the 4th of July and watch it grow.  Only bigger. I don't even care about the differences between the movies and the comics, because they get the spirit of the originals.  Adventure, fun and optimism.  Which is more than I can say for the comics now. 

Hated STAR TREK, THE GREEN HORNET and THE SPIRIT movies because they totally and deliberately ignored the spirit of the properties. ST because it had to be an action flick - ST:TOS was a drama -, GH because it couldn't take heroes seriously, and THE SPIRIT because Frank Miller made his own vision instead of Eisner's.  All three underestimated the audience.  Abrams thinks people only want smartass characters and big explosions and won't notice plot black holes - like Kirk just walking into Starfleet and getting aboard with no application, testing or screening.  Not even a physical.  Rogen thinks we're too cynical to accept a hero at face value.  And Miller either doesn't think we can appreciate the subtle humor and humanity of the strip (or more likely, had no clue how to handle it.)

Anyway, I'm ranting, when my original comment was just gonna ask: anybody else find it funny that the stories that got us laughed at for reading in high school are now the hottest thing in popular culture?

kevin

[John C]

Anyway, I'm ranting, when my original comment was just gonna ask: anybody else find it funny that the stories that got us laughed at for reading in high school are now the hottest thing in popular culture?

Analytically, I'm torn.  I mean, I know that every generation's counter-culture basically becomes pop culture for the next generation as it gets sanitized and homogenized, so it's partly to be expected.

But all the same...where the heck did all the nerds go?  I mean, when the captain of the football team can rattle off members of the Justice League and gets excited about buying a new computer (even if disguised as a phone), there's probably less of a draw for the kids who feel (or want to feel) excluded.

And by the same token, when's the last time you saw the stereotypical nerd out in public?  Back when I was growing up, you couldn't swing a pocket protector (which was before my time, actually) without hitting a smelly, morbidly obese kid (or adult) in thick glasses clutching his Japanese flashcards.  But most of my jobs (as a programmer, no less, or teaching programmers) look like they're behind the scenes at an Old Navy catalog.

Was there a pogrom and nobody invited me?  (Sniff) Isn't that always the way...

[narfstar]

Since Bill Gates most people have come to accept nerds more because basically they rule the world through computers.

[John C]

B-but...they're all into sports and stuff.  It's creepy!

Actually, my question is a little broader than that in the "what's today's comic books?" sense.  I mean, somewhere, the disenfranchised hang out late on weekends and talk about stuff in painstaking detail.  It wasn't new when any of us were kids, and it didn't stop just because the first Spidey movie made a ton of money.

I think this may well be the ultimate sign of getting old:  That point when you can't think of anything people might do that isn't mainstream...

[Yoc]

This kinda reminds me of tattoos and body piercings.  Somewhere in the last 20 years they've gotten Very Mainstream.  I'm seeing 60 year olds with 'tats' now!
Smoking is uncool by most standards so teens will still gravitate to that and Lady Gaga has to do some pretty radical things to raise our eyebrows.  (is Marilyn Manson jealous you think?)  So what does today's 'young rebel' do to rebel?
Anyone with teenagers care to reply?

[JVJ (RIP)]

Was there a pogrom and nobody invited me?  (Sniff) Isn't that always the way...

It's really sad, John, when we don't get invited to our own obsolescence pogrom. Sigh... Nobody remembered to ask us and we are SO out of the loop. It was all over Twitter and Facebook!

You're probably still using cellphones and email, aren't you? Or posting on message boards? Ewwww!

Peace, Jim (|:{>

[John C]

You're probably still using cellphones and email, aren't you? Or posting on message boards? Ewwww!

No, no cellphone, actually.  I never like phones to begin with, so the idea of carrying one around and paying for the privilege of taking care of it?  Blech!

[Roygbiv666]

You're probably still using cellphones and email, aren't you? Or posting on message boards? Ewwww!

No, no cellphone, actually.  I never like phones to begin with, so the idea of carrying one around and paying for the privilege of taking care of it?  Blech!

I will only listen to music recorded on a wax cylinder. It retains the warmth and intent of the artist best.

Books are too new-fangled, I only read from papyrus scrolls.

Maybe Louis Pasteur believes in these new "vaccines", but leeches are where it's at!

I'm 42 and I only have a mobile phone, no home phone. Which is problematic in an emergency when the battery is dead, but hey - live on the edge!

As long as people remember that "technology" is only fancy talk for "tools that do work", then we should be ok.

[John C]

I will only listen to music recorded on a wax cylinder. It retains the warmth and intent of the artist best.

I...uh...actually have a wax cylinder coming to the house later this year.  The first professionally-produced one since the 1920s, as far as I know:

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/337503446/2011-cylinder-record-to-tape-to-vinyl-all-analog-r?ref=live

Still ten days and quite a few left, if anybody wants to be as dorky as me...

And yes, I didn't mean to suggest other people shouldn't have cellphones.  They're just not for me.  Other people have very different tradeoffs.

[JVJ (RIP)]

The project seems very "arty" to me, John. It's a challenge to create some things the old-fashioned way, that's for sure, but I'd like to hear of some sort of improvement using new technology. I understand that's not the point of the project, but, for instance, a better wax compound that is truer to the input seems like it might not be out of line and would be maintaining the original tech, wouldn't it? Proving that you can still do something 100 years later doesn't ring my "oh, wow" chimes.

I agree with you about cell phones, John (Karen agrees with about phones in general - says she hates them, but I have noticed that she actually uses them more than I do). I have one that I put $25 on every 3 months and rarely, if ever, go through the minutes that buys. As a backup, emergency, senior moment/goof rescuer it comes in handy, but I hate the extended use of them in public and, even worse, in drivers around me.

When Karen's sister came to visit us in Paris and she and I were out sightseeing (Place Saint Michel/Notre Dame), she was wandering around, quite literally, taking cell phone pictures of everything and virtually watching the scenery on her cell phone's display. Mindboggling. Rather than look at the magnificence of Notre Dame right in front of her, she was opting for a 2"x3" digital image. Bizarre. Cell phones distract and detract from real life and I am happy to use them when real life makes them necessary or handy, but "virtual-ness" has little appeal to me.

So how did you ever find out about the cylinder project, John? Is that something you're specifically interested in, or a chance encounter on the web? Curious minds want to know. I'm constantly amazed at how much time members of this group seem to have available to them. By the time I get through half the daily goals I've set for myself, I'm ready to defocus for an hour so that I can actually get to sleep. That's generally reading a book for me (last night was "Genius Isolated: The Life and Art of Alex Toth"). How one finds time to learn the many things you seem familiar with is daunting to me. I guess I work too slowly. Speaking of which, I best get back to it...

Peace, Jim (|:{>

[John C]

Oh, yes, I know it's about the art.  That's what I appreciate about it, in fact, and don't have a cylinder PLAYER.  You know...yet.

As for the project, I take a few minutes every night to check out Kickstarter to see if there's anything interesting running and what rewards are offered for pledges.  I have about a dozen CDs and DVDs coming, a handful of games, some concerts to go to, and so forth.

This guy, I actually found because I pledged to another of his projects, a reprint of the (bringing this back within the bounds of a comic-oriented discussion) "Cursed Pirate Girl" graphic novel, which struck me as interesting.  But I really can't resist owning a new, professionally-produced wax cylinder, just on principle.  It's a different artform, especially when you remove the microphone.

And part of me also completely agrees with advances, but figure that'll never happen if there's no proven market.

(And I also have to agree on the camera phones.  Unless "getting the picture" is the top priority, just relax and take in the view!  But then, I get annoyed when I see people in the park jogging with their headphones, sunglasses, and smartphone running.  If you're not going to look up, why did you go to the park?  You could've just jogged around your coffee table, at that point.)

[JVJ (RIP)]

Oh, yes, I know it's about the art.  That's what I appreciate about it, in fact, and don't have a cylinder PLAYER.  You know...yet.

Now, THAT'S a quest and a project for you. The demand can't be very high, but I'll bet the supply is even lower.

As for the project, I take a few minutes every night to check out Kickstarter to see if there's anything interesting running and what rewards are offered for pledges.  I have about a dozen CDs and DVDs coming, a handful of games, some concerts to go to, and so forth.

It's enough for me to actually check my email and GAC and DCM. Anything else is just asking for trouble, in MY life.

... But I really can't resist owning a new, professionally-produced wax cylinder, just on principle.  It's a different artform, especially when you remove the microphone.

I can actually understand the appeal of a real cylinder. It's equivalent to my acquiring an actual wood-engraved block for a Gustave Doré illustrated book from 1873. Who WOULDN'T want it?

And part of me also completely agrees with advances, but figure that'll never happen if there's no proven market.

No, no proven market, but that would just be the appeal to me. If you're going to recreate an obsolete technology/art just for the hell of it, I'd want to see what I could do better without changing the basic approach. After all, we HAVE learned a few things in the last century that might be applicable. Just my personal bent...

(And I also have to agree on the camera phones.  Unless "getting the picture" is the top priority, just relax and take in the view!  But then, I get annoyed when I see people in the park jogging with their headphones, sunglasses, and smartphone running.  If you're not going to look up, why did you go to the park?  You could've just jogged around your coffee table, at that point.)

You're absolutely right! The headphones/glasses/phones etc. make perfect sense if you're on a treadmill in a basement gym, but, gee, out in the REAL world, it seems like a total waste. Real life in that real world has a distinct advantage to me. Perhaps we're just in an old-fashioned minority. After all, you have a wax cylinder on the way and I've got a wood-engraved block on my mantle.

Stay sane. (|:{>

[John C]

Oh, yes, I know it's about the art.  That's what I appreciate about it, in fact, and don't have a cylinder PLAYER.  You know...yet.

Now, THAT'S a quest and a project for you. The demand can't be very high, but I'll bet the supply is even lower.

A quick check on eBay looks like they run from about two to seven hundred dollars.  Not terrible (for no work put in shopping), but a little higher than I'd spend just now.

However, I also see that the cylinders themselves run about two dollars apiece, and now I wonder (back to the "with modern technology" idea) if it'd be easier to build something to play non-destructively.  After all, the track is physical, and a small camera/microscope rig should get enough information to reproduce the sound.

Hm?  Oh, sorry.  I get like this, sometimes...

I can actually understand the appeal of a real cylinder. It's equivalent to my acquiring an actual wood-engraved block for a Gustave Doré illustrated book from 1873. Who WOULDN'T want it?

Exactly.  Certain things are just too unique to...allow to fall into someone else's hands, I guess...

No, no proven market, but that would just be the appeal to me. If you're going to recreate an obsolete technology/art just for the hell of it, I'd want to see what I could do better without changing the basic approach. After all, we HAVE learned a few things in the last century that might be applicable. Just my personal bent...

No, what I meant was that one successful project is likely to spawn copycats.  One of those musicians, to cut costs, might wonder what can be used to replace the wax.  (I admit, I try to spend money strategically.  Every once in a while, the dominoes start falling and I get my moment of smug satisfaction when the thing I actually wanted shows up.)

Stay sane. (|:{>

Heh.  Is that the modern equivalent to "may you live in interesting times"?

[narfstar]

My wife and I went to see Super 8 today. She liked it a lot more than I did. She usually does not over think things as much as I do. The action was enjoyable for its own sake. I could not get over all the stupid elements and silly actions. Those things can bug me enough not to really like a movie. I did not dislike it but could not recommend it to those who like their movies to be a little more sensible.

[Roygbiv666]

Oh, yes, I know it's about the art.  That's what I appreciate about it, in fact, and don't have a cylinder PLAYER.  You know...yet.

Now, THAT'S a quest and a project for you. The demand can't be very high, but I'll bet the supply is even lower.

A quick check on eBay looks like they run from about two to seven hundred dollars.  Not terrible (for no work put in shopping), but a little higher than I'd spend just now.

However, I also see that the cylinders themselves run about two dollars apiece, and now I wonder (back to the "with modern technology" idea) if it'd be easier to build something to play non-destructively.  After all, the track is physical, and a small camera/microscope rig should get enough information to reproduce the sound.

Hm?  Oh, sorry.  I get like this, sometimes...

I think those are called CDs.