a quite simple equation...

In one of the most unexpected developments in television history, the industry was given quite the shock yesterday. What shock, you may ask? One simple math problem...


PLUS



EQUALS...




CBS Corporation and Warner Bros. Entertainment Form New 5th Broadcast Network - The CW

The above article details it all. CBS Corporation will own 50% of The CW, Warner Bros. Entertainment will own the other 50%.

That's right. As of September UPN and The WB will be no more. I think that this is a *truly* stellar idea, as both networks were simply fighting for the same viewers and now they'll be able to successfully compete against the other four TV networks. Limited coverage for both UPN and The WB hindered the success of each network; The CW will be available in 95% of the country, making the new fifth network a much greater threat competition-wise to the other networks.

As for programming, thankfully Veronica Mars and Supernatural have made the cut; nothing's formal yet but all press releases tout that both shows will be on The CW. And with gilmore girls rumored to be airing before Veronica Mars, I think Veronica Mars will finally get the audience it's been desperately needing.

I'm really happy and excited about this development and hope to see some really cool shows when The CW unveils its Fall 2006 lineup at the upfronts this May.

Tribune Broadcasting-owned WB stations will become affiliates of The CW; other cities that have CBS Corporation-owned UPN affiliates will become affiliates of The CW.

As for my city, we have via our cable provider Comcast WBVH WB 15 (Channel 15 on cable), a part of The WB 100+ (a cable-only WB station provided for TV markets below #100. It's through a contract between the local cable company and Time Warner). We also have WGSA/UPN 34 (cable channel 13), a low-power UPN affiliate. It started out as WUBI, an affiliate of The WB until early 1997. Now with the creation of The CW, I have little doubt that WGSA will become an independent station. I just hope that they don't recant their UPN affiliation before September, as I need my "Veronica Mars" fix. When they do go indie, I hope they'll play cool movies. So yeah, I think The WB 100+ will just become The CW 100+.

As far as the future, I have DIRECTV and as such, will receive The CW via Tribune's WBZL out of Miami come September.

seeing this today...

I've really been looking forward to seeing this film. Today at 4:00, I will finally get a chance to. It's playing at Regal's Savannah 10, usually the only place to actually screen arthouse movies here although Carmike's Wynnsong 11 *is* playing Brokeback Mountain. That's a rare occurrence, as Wynnsong hardly ever plays anything remotely resembling an indie/arthouse film.

There are ALOT of good movies out now that I want to see: Tristan & Isolde, Walk The Line, Munich, Underworld: Evolution, and Casanova. I sincerely hope that we get Woody Allen's new film Match Point very soon and by that I mean I hope it gets alot of Oscar nominations on January 31st. If it doesn't it won't expand past its current theater count and that would suck. I also hope New Line Cinema continues to roll out Terrence Malick's The New World as I've been anxious to see that for many months now. I've said it before and I'll say it again - someone really needs to get off their ass and open an arthouse theater in Savannah! It really pisses me off to only get artistic films here in short bursts and if one doesn't leap like a gazelle to the theater in time, the films are pulled to make room for some lame teen comedy or overblown kiddie film to take up 3,000 screens. Was anyone really clamoring loudly for Big Momma's House 2?. Carmike 10 on Stephenson Avenue started to back in the early/mid '90s - they designated one of their screens as "The Screening Room" and always booked arthouse films. I remember seeing their newspaper listing for Trainspotting back in 1996. But after they rebuilt their theaters with stadium seating in late 1998, "The Screening Room" vanished.

But I digress.

Let's look at The Coligny Theater in neighboring Hilton Head, SC. The last week or two they played Michaelangelo Antonioni's long-lost film, The Passenger. This purported '70s gem stars Jack Nicholson and Maria Schneider, when she was fresh off of the controversial Bertolucci film Last Tango In Paris. They're now showing Rodrigo Garcia's follow-up to his films Things You Can Tell Just By Looking At Her and Ten Tiny Love Stories, Nine Stories. Nine Stories has garnered considerable critical acclaim, landing a spot on Roger Ebert's Top Ten Films of 2005 list.

THIS is what we need in Savannah, DAMMIT! I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired! Someone with considerable bank needs to put the wheels in motion and get something going! People need to stop getting scared and/or kowtowing to the stranglehold SCAD (that's Savannah College of Art and Design, for those not in the know; they own all of downtown practically...old theaters, buildings, etc.) has on anything creative in the Historic District. They're not going to open one, as that would infringe on their overhyped and far-too-exclusive Film Festival they hold every year.

As much as I'd love to see something like this on the Southside of Savannah, it'd never fly. There's a Media Play store that's operated in that area since 1995 and is soon closing (as are all Media Play stores). It'd be very cool to see a several screen arthouse theater open, complete with a cafe and/or small restaurant. But the sad reality is quite sobering: the cretins and slack-jawed imbeciles that comprise the surrounding area would never frequent said establishment, as their tastes are far too low on the Darwinian scale to ever want to sit through Francois Ozon's latest film, never enjoy a retrospective of the brilliant and before its time 1968 Malcolm McDowell thriller ...if. These people would much rather let the numbing opiate of a Rob Schneider film deaden their minds and it's a sad statement, a rather alarming reminder of how far we've fallen. When more people vote in the glorified karaoke contest that is American Idol than those that vote in a presidential election, you know the minutiae of vapid conformity has finally won over intelligent articulation and thought-provoking art.

Only if this theatre was placed downtown would it cull favor with its intended audience, that is if SCAD didn't try to close it. Some can laugh and wonder why a college would want to do that. I've already made my case as to why. It's depressing beyond the telling of it. There's a very palpable hunger for something of this nature and if someone would step up to the plate and feed it, they'd get accolades from the entire community. I see a demand to be met here and NO ONE HAS ANY GODDAMN SENSE to do anything about it. I don't give a flying fuck if it's a little two-screen affair in a closet with little to no ambience - as long as it can bring this city the independent films it so richly deserves on a regular basis and keep me and the rest of its audience sated, I'll be fine. And yes, Virginia, I guarantee this enterprise would make money.

It appears until someone wakes the hell up and realizes the potential gold mine they're sitting on, we'll be stuck with one-offs at our local multiplex. I'm glad Regal is trying but it seems that we never get a consistent batch of arthouse titles unless it's Oscar season. I sincerely hope that changes soon.

almost forgot...The Doctor Is In...America!

Yes. SCI FI actually pulled their heads out of their asses and will begin airing the new series of Doctor Who this March. The show is set to return with a new actor as The Doctor on BBC One in the next few months. Hopefully SCI FI will pick up the rights for that season as well. I've never seen any of the series and have heard that this new incarnation is the best. I can't wait to see it! Here's the press release, straight from SCI FI's own Sci-Fi Wire at SCIFI.COM:

SCI FI To Air New "Doctor Who"

Perhaps now SCI FI will start airing this and the spin-off, Torchwood, and maybe, just maybe, they can bring some actual sci-fi back to their airwaves. Aside from Battlestar Galactica, I hardly ever watch the channel and if they keep in the direction they're going with this Doctor Who pickup, I'll be happy and watching alot more.

the day begins anew...

I'm about to head to bed. But first, a subtle reminder...tonight the clock starts ticking all over again...

JACK IS BACK.




That's right, the most suspenseful show on television, the one that redefines the term "appointment television" returns with two nights of nail-biting tension. The series will then resume its normal timeslot, Mondays at 9PM Eastern all the way through the season finale. I have to make sure I make my hours at work (since I'm full-time I have to maintain a set number of hours) so I'm going in this afternoon of my own volition from 4-7 to run tapes. I will be home in time to watch 24! I'll also have to TiVo the Golden Globes tomorrow, as 24 is paramount over that awards ceremony. Don't get me wrong - I love the Golden Globes. It's just that 24 is, well, 24.

I purchased Morningwood's debut album at Best Buy yesterday for the awesome price of $6.99. It's stellar, a really great album full of energetic punk-edged pop and rock tunes. I'll post a proper review in the very near future.

dammit!

Sony to singer: Whoa, Nellie!



The above article is from The Boston Herald. I was very ecstatic for Nellie McKay's (pronounced Mick-i) sophomore release, Pretty Little Head. Her debut album, Get Away From Me, was amazing. On its release I said that Nellie McKay "is an amazing virtuoso who blends '40s piano with a edgy, slightly profane sense of female empowerment and it makes for a heady buzz of musical heaven."

The new album features duets from McKay and great singers like k.d. lang and Cyndi Lauper, was due for release on the 3rd of this month, and had already been sent to and reviewed by music magazines like SPIN and Blender. They raved about the album. Guess what? Sony wanted a truncated album with less songs. Nellie said no. Now this amazing angel of the lyrical word is labeless. This is so lame. I really hope that this album gets released ASAP. I hate this very much.

to the nth degree...

The debut self-titled album from Morningwood was released yesterday (since it's now Wednesday). You simply must go buy this! They're the best band out now, with a dynamic lead singer in Chantal Claret. Visit their website at MorningwoodRocks.com.

And as if that's not enough...



Rilo Kiley lead singer Jenny Lewis's debut CD will be released on the 24th. I can't wait! Finally some music I can really enjoy. I barely own any CDs and need to start getting more. With these two releases, I can confidently begin amassing new titles. I still need to get Rilo Kiley's two other CDs, Take-Offs and Landings and The Execution Of All Things. Indie rock is alive and well and we should all do our part in supporting great music when we hear it. THIS is the future of rock, not worn-out claptrap like Nickelback or Shinedown or 3 Doors Down, lame corporate rock that all sounds the same.

I think I'll see Walk The Line this weekend.

a correction...

No Democrats took *any* money from Jack Abramoff. The claim that the Jack Abramoff bribing scandal is a non-partisan issue is a lie. Click the link below.

Rich Lowry Explains

I apologize for falling for the trap the media's been laying down for and setting up.Wow, those ScAlito hearings are something, huh? Watching this man outright lie and try to obfuscate critical details of his past doings is quite interesting. Trying to distance yourself from a group you were a part of at Princeton that selectively excluded women and minorities and your wanting to overturn Roe v. Wade, among other things, is crazy stuff. Head on over to the best damn blog on the Internet, Daily Kos, at DailyKos.com for more info and commentary on the whole ScAlito affair. This bastard cannot get confirmed; otherwise it's back-alley abortions and racial discrimination, plus civil liberties will be rolled back (yes, I know they're already listening to our phone calls) even further than you can imagine.




I'd heard alot about this 1988 horror film. Way back in the early '90s, I used to devour movie guides (VideoHound, Ebert, Maltin). You name it, I'd buy it. Remember folks, this was *before* IMDb and the Internet was available to everyone. I can recall reading reviews of this and wanting badly to see it. Unfortunately, it's been out-of-print forever and ever and was only released for a very short time on VHS back in the late '80s. So imagine my delight when I was perousing my TiVo for horror movies and this movie popped up! I'd planned to TiVo its airing at 4:35AM on The Movie Channel's West Coast feed, but instead watched the 1:35AM airing on The Movie Channel. I'll still TiVo this and then transfer that to tape later.

After more than a decade, I can safely say that William Wesley's Scarecrows is a creepy horror film that is immensely enjoyable. Military deserters steal $3.5 million from the Federal Reserve and hijack a plane. One of their crew splits...well parachutes....away with the money. The rest of them decide to follow. They discover an abandoned, condemned house with nothing around for miles except a very large cornfield and...dozens of scarecrows.

The film is very well-written, evenly paced, and features some of the scariest-looking scarecrows I've ever seen, plus great cinematography from Peter Deming (who's gone on to lens such films as David Lynch's Mullholland Drive, i heart huckabees, The Jacket, Scream 2, Scream 3, From Hell and the recently released Rumor Has It...)The budget for this film was not that large; however, the makeup and costumes for the straw-filled villains are quite disturbing. Seek this puppy out if ever you get the chance. It's worth the effort.

Interestingly enough, fresh episodes of The WB's horror series Supernatural returned tonight. The series follows two brothers who are in search of their father. He seeks out occult and supernatural occurrences and his sons are following in his footsteps while remaining on his path. Tonight's episode featured the boys contacting their dad, who tells them to stop looking for him and head to a town where people are being sacrificed in a pagan ritual. The episode is titled "Scarecrow" and features possessed scarecrows. That's currently housed on TiVo.

I saw Hostel on Friday. It was quite good. Eli Roth has certainly grown up since his debut feature Cabin Fever. I look forward to the sequel as Lionsgate (all one word now) has given a green light for one after Hostel took in $20.1 million this past weekend.

I also saw Brokeback Mountain. WOW! I'm fairly certain this movie's going to sweep the Oscars. Heath Ledger will get nominated as Ennis, no doubt about it.

Ang Lee has always been an amazing director and he really managed to outdo himself with Brokeback Mountain.

It was a quiet, elegant film with a sad undercurrent. The two wanted so bad to be together yet kept subscribing to the lives they'd been taught to live, hurting others in the process. The scene where Ennis finds Jack's shirt is just *so* full of pain and sorrow.

Michelle Williams and Anne Hathaway (a long way from The Princess Diaries) also did stellar work.

Brokeback Mountain is the one of the very best films of 2005. I will confidently state that I believe it will be nominated for and win the Oscar for Best Picture and deservedly so. Hopefully, capote and some of the other Oscar hopefuls will get some play here soon. Noah Baumbach's The Squid and the Whale will screen at The Lucas Theatre this Sunday; I may just go. It's part of the Reel Savannah Film Group's film series.



I also hope to see director Kevin Reynold's (Waterworld) latest film Tristan and Isolde. Starring James Franco and Sophia Myles, the movie takes place after the fall of the Roman Empire. English orphan Tristan meets and falls in love with Irish princess Isolde. However, she is set to marry Lord Marke, who raised Tristan. While unaware of her identity, he has won her hand in marriage for his lord and future king of the two countries. But now the passion of the two young people causes a rift leading to a devastating battle. I've heard good things and director Ridley Scott and his director brother Tony produced it.

another year

Well I hope that 2006 is treating you fairly well so far. I hope the new year bodes great things for all of you and for all of my friends, family, and acquaintances. I also hope that Democrats will sweep the mid-term election this fall. And with things like Jack Abramoff agreeing to spill all on all of the prominent politicians he bribed, I think they can. By the way, I'm not so daft and nieve not to realize that some Democratic politicians names are being mentioned. Easy fix: the Democrats should disassociate with those people, if the allegations prove to be true. If those Democrats were bribed, then they should be punished. I don't tow party lines just because a crime is committed. If you're guilty, you're guilty and should have to face the music.

WTYB-FM here in Savannah is stunting because they're flipping formats - again. The Cumulus Broadcasting-owned station was first Urban Adult Contemporary as Kiss 104 from 1997-2003. Then Clear Channel made noise because of the station's name (Kiss is the registered trademark for their Top 40 stations). So Cumulus rebranded the station as V103.9. It still didn't matter, as Clear Channel's *own* Urban AC, WLVH Love 101.1 was the dominant station in that format and still ranks in the top three in the city's Arbitron ratings. So after stunting with barnyard animals and the like, WSIS-FM became WTYB-FM and was now Cool 103.9 - Big Hits! Big Fun!

Several months later, Triad Broadcasting flipped their heritage Oldies station (which had retained the format for more than 15 years) to Adult Hits as 98.3 JACK FM. With no Oldies station in the market and an opportunity to garner all of Oldies 98.3's displaced audience, does Cumulus realize this? Hell, no! Of course not! They fired all of the station's airstaff in mid-December, then started playing Christmas music. Rumor has it they're going to try Urban AC yet *again*! Does that make any sense? Of course not. But now they're playing nothing but Johnny Cash songs. A misdirection or just plain diversion? I certainly hope Cumulus brings an interesting station to this market. Besides Air America Radio, I'd *love* to see them take on Triad's boring-as-hell Rock 106.1 with a more alternative-based alt-rock station. It'd be great. But I highly doubt that as the company never makes a sound business decision. Cumulus's Top 40 station Z102 is so schizophrenic, it's sad and also quite transparent in the ratings. I'll keep you posted.

Last night, I missed television history. For the great splotchy one, Bill O'Reilly, was on the Late Show with David Letterman. And from what I hear, it was amazing. Letterman read him the riot act and basically tore him apart. I'm still waiting for the entire video of the altercation to be uploaded at http://www.crooksandliars.com


Casanova and Munich starts playing at Savannah 10 this weekend. I might check them out but I'm looking forward to Eli Roth's Hostel, playing at Wynnsong this Friday. I'm a horror movie fanatic as we all know. Holy shit! I just checked Fandango....Brokeback Mountain starts playing at Eisenhower Square 6 this weekend! What are the odds?! The film's website states that it'll also be playing at Wynnsong yet Carmike's website doesn't say anything about that - yet. Everyone says Brokeback Mountain is the movie of the year, the lock for Best Picture at the Oscars and a tender love story. I can't wait to see it!


I saw Me and You and Everyone We Know the other night. Miranda July's debut feature was beautiful, haunting, lyrical, and a shining testament to how creativity and uniqueness can make a someone a truly wonderful individual yet an utterly undefinable person to others, until that one person that speaks our language comes along. It's one of the best films of 2005.

Arrested Development made me laugh harder than anything I've laughed at in years. It was a total in-joke about how the show's getting cancelled and how alot of people aren't watching their show. It was a masterpiece.

good evening...

I hope the holiday season is treating you well.



I picked up this horror movie at Best Buy today, with the $15 giftcard I had. I searched high and low for something halfway decent. I was uncertain at first but then remembered that I'd heard great things about this early '80s slasher. Word has it that it's got great atmosphere and lensing and is a truly great horror film. Fangoria and The Horror Channel both gave it rave reviews. I also want to pick up the 1982 Jack Palance/Donald Pleasance/Martin Landau horror film Alone In The Dark, directed by Jack Sholder, who made the very excellent The Hidden in 1987. Morningwood's debut album is released in a week or so, as is Jenny Lewis's solo CD Rabbit Fur Coat. Thankfully, I get paid this Friday. Hopefully, the holiday pay will help my pocket money.

For Christmas I received a very nice long-sleeved white shirt from my sister (from Old Navy) plus an awesome brown jacket, Candies cologne, boxers, and sparklers (it's an inside joke; I'll explain it some time). Her friend Toni got me a tin full of homemade goodies (chocolate-covered peanut butter crackers, cookies, etc.) plus a Christmas card that had a book of Carmike Cinemas gift certificates inside - worth $25. My father dropped off a Christmas card when I was at work the other day. A $50 bill was inside; after having to spend it on food while I worked and then I treated my mother and myself to a very tasty appetizer at Chili's, it was soon gone. Oh well.

All in all, it was a very nice holiday.

I watched Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price and Videodrome last night. What a great double feature. The documentary needs to be seen by every single person. Everytime I hear someone mention they got something at Wal-Mart, it sickens me. We haven't shopped there in more than five years and will continue not shopping there. I will aggressively promote this thing, as I did before I rented it last night.

What can be said of David Cronenberg's Videodrome that has not already been voiced? It's a mind-bending odyssey of one man's total self-destruction as he surrenders himself to the blinding brilliance of the flickering television screen. Or is it? You can never really tell, and James Woods is stellar in the lead role. I still think I like Cronenberg's video game/VR analysis eXistenZ more but Videodrome is still aces all around.




We picked this up at Target while getting a few items for the house. Mom received a $50 giftcard for the store from Toni for Christmas. My sister Samantha got her Betty Boop pajama bottoms, a Dr. Scholl's massaging backpad, socks, and we got a brand new cordless phone, with embdedded caller ID. We needed a new phone badly; the old one was cordless but unless one pressed the star key before dialing you'd get a rotary sound as the number was dialed.

But I digress.

Eugenides' novel is purported to be a master work. I certainly hope so as I've tried to read the opening passage when I've seen it in stores at various other times but it didn't gel for me. Here's hoping another whack at it will result in a warm experience.

Syriana is a four-star film. Expect a review in the next fortnight. At first I thought Stephen Gaghan would end this thing with something terribly maudlin but then soon realized Syriana had no other way to end but how it did - the wheels keep turning, as we all know.

Lasagna and garlic bread await me.

off to Best Buy!

Hey you! Yeah, you! Get your ass in gear and go pick up the best film of the year! I'm heading out to grab a bite to eat and pick up Serenity at Best Buy. Then at 4PM I'll be heading over to Robin's apartment where I'll unleash this awesome film upon her and her husband.

I'm off tomorrow also...and I WILL be seeing Syriana, dammit! Mark my words!

#1 on Amazon.com, baby!!! Yeah!!!

Tomorrow you can bring home the best movie of the year, as Universal Home Entertainment releases Serenity, the big-screen follow-up to Joss Whedon's unjustly cancelled FOX television series Firefly, which aired in 2002.

I was going to use the $15 Best Buy giftcard I have on this but my mother informed me that this is one of my Christmas gifts so that was pretty cool. We'll be getting up bright and early to go pick this up as I'm off tomorrow...and Wednesday. I'll post my thoughts on the extras and the DVD in its entirety. I also plan to hang out at Robin's and watch this over there, as she's not seen it and I most definitely want to see and hear her reaction to the film as it's running. She won't know WHAT hit her.

The Golden Globes are an interesting lot...I think Brokeback Mountain is going to clean up and it was no slouch at the box office this past weekend, taking in $2.2 million from only 69 theatres!

I've successfully hooked my mother on Veronica Mars! Disc 4 of Season One arrived from Netflix arrived today and I mailed back Disc 3 earlier today. Two more left. I also am able to rent at work, as my exorbitant account balance at work has been paid. I rented Danny Boyle's dark family film Millions and the Dark Castle Entertainment-produced House of Wax. I'm not expecting much but any movie in which we get to see a character played by Paris Hilton killed is pretty cool.

Arrested Development. It looks like there may just be a bidding war between ABC and Showtime over the series! Whoever wins, I sincerely hope they buckle down for the long run and pair this show with something great. A block of Weeds (and Mary-Louise Parker better win that Golden Globe!) and AD would be heaven. I truly think that Arrested Development can become a beloved institution, much like the very overrated Seinfeld.

I saw King Kong Saturday night. WOW. It was a great film, full of passion and wonderous beauty. It wasn't as great as the hype but then again nothing is. Go see this thing on the big screen; it deserves to be seen in that type of exhibition. The special effects are truly amazing. At no point in time do you think of King Kong as just another CGI creation - it feels like you are watching a very large silverback gorilla on screen.

I still need to see Syriana and will do so ASAP. Hopefully we'll get a few more arthouse flicks before the end of the year and many more after.

Chicken and dumplings is the dinner tonight. Yum.

Behold...the funniest damn thing I've seen on Saturday Night Live in at least five years. It's 'An SNL Digital Short' starring SNL cast member Chris Parnell and Featured Player Andy Samberg. The title of the short is "Lazy Sunday". Enjoy.

'An SNL Digital Short' - "Lazy Sunday"

Veronica Mars-athon in progress...

I just stopped for a second to do some web-browsing.

At work, we had our annual holiday party at 9AM. I received this...



Our gift exchange is called "Chinese Christmas" by our manager. You most likely saw it referred to as "Yankee Swap" on last week's hilarious episode of The Office. A co-worker received a Gumby and a Pokey doll. Then I came home at 10AM, ate two bowls of Yogurt Burst Cheerios - Vanilla and quite yummy -, then slept from 12:30PM-4PM as I'd only had 2 hours of sleep.

I returned the Dane Cook CD I'd bought with my birthday money. The supervisor would only give me store credit. So I now have a $15 Best Buy giftcard. I may just save that to get Serenity on the 20th.

I watched Fantastic Four last night. It was an enjoyable film and not as horrible as everyone made it seem.

On Tuesday, my movie geek badge gets shinier and my love for film is intensified even more, as the awards season officially arrives with the announcement of the nominees for the...



Kate Beckinsale, Steve Carell and Mark Wahlberg will announce 2006 Golden Globe Awards nominations

Kate Beckinsale, Steve Carell and Mark Wahlberg will join Hollywood Foreign Press Association President Philip Berk in announcing the nominations for the 63rd Annual Golden Globe Awards at a 5:00 a.m. (PST) press conference on Tuesday morning, December 13, 2005.

Nominations will be announced in 24 categories. More than 400 media and publicists from around the world will attend the event Numerous radio and television outlets will carry the live announcements from the Beverly Hills Suite at the Beverly Hilton. The nominations press release will be distributed immediately following the announcement to media in attendance and via online at www.hfpa.org. As previously announced, Anthony Hopkins is this year’s recipient of the Cecil B. DeMille Award for lifetime achievement. Dakota Johnson, age 16, the daughter of Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson, is the 2006 Miss Golden Globe. She is the first daughter of a former Miss Golden Globe to ever be selected.

The 63rd Annual Golden Globe Awards will take place Monday, January 16, 2006 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel with a live telecast airing on NBC at 8 PM (EST) and produced by dick clark productions in association with the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Philip Berk is President of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Allen Shapiro and Barry Adelman are executive producers. Chris Donovan is director. Al Schwartz is consulting producer. Ken Shapiro is producer. Ron Weed is co-producer.

Advance word is that Brokeback Mountain is going to clean up. It's already won the Los Angeles Film Critics Association's Best Film and Best Director awards. I'd personally like to see Jenna Fischer get nominated and take home the Golden Globe for Best Actress In A Comedy Series as her role as Pam on NBC's The Office is pitch-perfect. And c'mon Golden Globes! You've GOT to give Kristen Bell an award for Best Actress In A Drama Series for Veronica Mars. There's simply no better actress in a dramatic series right now.

I'm off Tuesday so I may just get up early and watch the nominations live. Or have my best friend TiVo nab the Today show that morning. And if you have TiVo and you think it's NOT your best friend, then you are just so sad. Does a human friend always have new episodes of your favorite television series? I thought not.

Speaking of TiVo, SCI FI's miniseries The Triangle waits, as does their 2-hour movie Painkiller Jane. It's based on a 1995 comic book about a young woman who gains the power to heal quickly, along with increased strength and speed. The delectable Emmanuelle Vaugier (Saw II) stars. If it did well ratings-wise SCI FI will pick this up as a weekly series.

A legend was silenced...

(And for those of you who say it was 25 years ago yesterday...whatever...I was running late for work and couldn't post earlier)



John Lennon

1940-1980

R.I.P.

When I was schlepping through the microcosm of middle school, going from class to class, one thing was a constant: the music of The Beatles. I became immersed in their lyrics, their life stories, the basic DNA of each member. While I enjoyed the music and wore out many Beatles t-shirts, only John Lennon stood out to me. As Paul wore out the songwriting lexicon of love until it was threadbare, John grew from writing the same type of wistful romantic tunes into a master wordsmith who married genius composition with smart, literate lyricism.

Listen to "Strawberry Fields Forever". Listen to "I'm So Tired". Listen to "I'm A Loser". "Yer Blues" is a powerful blast of raw energy. Then you get to his post-Beatles music. Just utter brilliance. "Working Class Hero" should be the national anthem. Of course we all know the big ones: "Imagine", "Instant Karma (We All Shine On), "Give Peace A Chance", and the annual "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)", never more timely than now.

To just think of all of the great music we've been denied, the political activism John would have been a part of, really makes us miss him even more. Five bullets severed our tie to one of the most commanding and real musicians of this or any century. John Lennon is gone; through his music, his writings and his words he will continue to inspire the mind and inflame the soul.

well...alot's happened....

My mother is in the hospital. She had an infected ant bite on the front of her left leg and as she's diabetic, they wanted to admit her in order to pump her full of antibiotics and insulin. They lanced the bite, dug a small inflamed cyst out of the wound, packed it with gauze, and took a culture of the pus inside. She's been in there since Friday and HOPEFULLY they'll let her come home tomorrow. I've visited her twice with my sister, the latest being about six o'clock tonight. I've been feasting upon fast food and my birthday money is all but gone.

Hopefully I can return the Dane Cook CD I mistakenly purchased (I'd heard most of the material on the CD, unknown by me) so I can have some extra cash. I also have to purchase a small, under-$10 gift for our Christmas party at work. The theme is toy so I'm leaning towards a yo-yo. I also want to see Syriana, Aeon Flux (which was scheduled to be my birthday movie), and The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. I'd also like to see Keira Knightley in Pride and Prejudice before it leaves our area. And then there's, of course, King Kong on the 14th. This is the time of year when the good movies come out and I sincerely hope that we get some indie films in a timely manner. Plus there's the $26 balance on my account at work, which is partially Mom's fault as she wanted sodas late last week.

I've got Fantastic Four due to arrive tomorrow from Netflix. I've heard it's great popcorn fare and I shall treat it as such. I've also got sleeper cell, Showtime's new terrorism-related series to watch on TiVo, along with part one of SCI FI's The Triangle miniseries (produced by Dean Devlin, who produced Independence Day and Bryan Singer, director of both X-Men films andThe Usual Suspects). The cast includes Catherine Bell, Eric Stoltz, Sam Neill, and Lou Diamond Phillips. The Triangle debuted to stellar ratings last night, with 4.3 million viewers.



Click the poster to see the official teaser trailer for the Brett Ratner-helmed X-Men 3. I don't care how this trailer looks; I will not watch this movie. Ratner is a hack of the very worst kind and his movies always sacrifice competent storytelling for loud, dumb, garish action. This breaks my heart as X-Men was the one comic book I read religiously in elementary school. If Fox had simply waited, Bryan Singer would have been more than happy to make this film. But Tom Rothman and the morons at Fox are impatient morons, so in order to be truly petulant they wanted to beat Singer's Superman Returns to the theater. Whatever. I'll entertain myself with seeing Singer's film and various other films this summer. It truly doesn't matter what I say - the slack-jawed willfully ignorant masses will line up in droves, not caring that a hack with all the directing ability of a coffee table is behind the camera. Let them deaden their minds for two hours. I'll not suffer that fate.

Dominion: Prequel To The Exorcist was brilliant. It told a stripped-down, articulate story of one man's lack of faith and how he is tested and begins to believe in his convictions and beliefs after feeling like he has no purpose. Stellan Skarsgard was masterful and Schrader's direction was strong and true. One of the best films of the year, Dominion doesn't rely on shock scares and copious gore to convey its frightening notion that evil can be found anywhere, and that it's not always clearly defined as horror films usually present.

So I think I'm going to break out the summer sausage, the cheese ball, and the cracked pepper-flavored crackers (we got those at Fresh Market....oh my God! What a place! Fresh meat, fresh fruit, fresh *everything*!) in a minute.

More later of course...I'm off tomorrow then work Thursday-Saturday, 3:30-close. I hope to cram in many hours of TiVo-watching between now and then. I've also promised to tape the new season of Desperate Housewives for a co-worker who I hooked on the show. She's the same one I hooked on Firefly. Yep, she bought a copy of the show as well. Sadly, she missed Serenity in the theater but she's promised to throw a shindig at her and her husband's on the 20th when the DVD is released.

Your homework is this....






MORNINGWOOD

Lead singer Chantal Claret leads this band. They produce a sound that can veer from punk-sounding explosion to infectious pop-rock. Their debut CD, released by Capitol Records, is coming out January 10th and I can't wait. I haven't fallen in love with a band in a long time. I still need to pick up Tegan and Sara's So Jealous CD. Hell, I'm a White Stripes fan and Get Behind Me Satan is still not in my possession! Anyway, pick up Morningwood's CD. You won't regret it. To get a feel for them, here's music videos for "Jetsetter" and "Nth Degree", the first single from their upcoming CD.

Click here to rock the fuck out.

wednesday. is. today.

Alright...so how was your giving of Thanks? Mine was stellar, until a disagreement broke out between my mother and sister over minute things. All is well now, however. Isn't that how the holidays are at times, though?

Laughter can be a relief. It can bring joy and solace to someone when they need it most. Leading up to and after the 2004 presidential election, the one thing I could compare to a comfortable bed after a long day of hard work was Air America Radio's Morning Sedition with Marc Maron and Mark Riley.

Click here and scroll down to the 14th for my expansive thoughts on the show.

Well, as of January 2nd, the show is no more. Yep, apparently AAR CEO Danny Goldberg doesn't want comedy in the mornings and was not impressed with the show's ratings. It's all in this press release:

Air America Mornings to Take Over Morning-Drive

Mark Riley and Rachel Maddow to Host Shows on “Air America Mornings”

NEW YORK-November 29, 2005- Air America Radio announced today a change in its morning line-up. Beginning Jan. 2, the new morning format, “Air America Mornings,” will broadcast weekdays from 5-9am EST. The announcement was made today by CEO Danny Goldberg.

Veteran radio talk show host and current co-host of “Morning Sedition,” Mark Riley, will lead off “Air America Mornings” from 5-7am EST. Riley will highlight the top news stories of the day and will also interview various guests every morning.

Rachel Maddow will take her highly-rated and acclaimed show, “The Rachel Maddow Show,” to the 7-9am EST slot. In addition to continuing to give listeners fast-paced news and witty soundbites, Maddow will also interview a variety of guests. Maddow has previously guest-hosted the highly successful “The Al Franken Show,” heard weekly 12-3pm EST and will do so again the week of December 12. Maddow continues her night job as contributor to MSNBC’s “The Situation with Tucker Carlson.”

Comedian and co-host of “Morning Sedition,” Marc Maron, is returning to Los Angeles and is currently in negotiations with Air America Radio to host his own syndicated show. He will be a regular contributor to “Air America Mornings”

Paul Marszaleck will serve as Executive Producer of “Air America Mornings.” Marszalek is a twenty five year veteran of radio and television, having served as Vice President of Music Programming at VH1/MTV Networks and having held senior management positions at KFOG/San Francisco and WXRT/Chicago. He has also consulted several NPR stations around the country and various stations and networks internationally.

"The upcoming year is going to be crucial year for Air America, for morning drive time radio in general, and for the United States. In the past several months, Rachel Maddow has experienced dramatic growth in visibility and audience and we are very excited about giving her a bigger stage. Mark Riley is a respected broadcaster and we are equally excited that he will shine in his new role,” said Goldberg. “At the same time, we are well aware of the intense and committed following that Marc Maron's brilliant work on Air America has created and would like him to be a major voice on Air America in the future. "

“We are very excited about the launch of ‘Air America Mornings,’ both in NY and across the Air America Network. Beginning in January, you will hear a tightly formatted, flawless presentation of the most important topics of the day by Mark and Rachel, as well most compelling guests from the world of politics and entertainment,” said President Gary Krantz. “We are also committed to generating at least one show in 2006 from Los Angeles to connect us more closely with the progressive creative community there, and thus to offer our affiliates a widening menu of politics, comedy, information, and entertainment."

“We are thrilled that we finally have found a way to display all three of these great talents on Air America Radio,” said President of Programming Jon Sinton.

With Mark and Rachel we have two of the most intelligent, engaging and committed broadcasters on the air today,” said COO Carl Ginsburg. “I would put them up against any talk radio hosts--- they are sharp, smart and ahead of the curve.”

Rachel Maddow has a Doctorate in Politics from Oxford University and a degree in Public Policy from Stanford. She was the first openly gay American to win a Rhodes Scholarship. Her background is in commercial radio (WRSI, WRNX) and political activism. Prior to launching "The Rachel Maddow Show," Rachel co-hosted Air America's "Unfiltered" with Chuck D and Lizz Winstead.

Mark Riley has been on the WLIB airwaves for more than 30 years, his seasoned experience produced such high-profile interviews with President Bill Clinton, President Nelson Mandela, Jean Bertrand Aristide, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Lena Horne, & Spike Lee to name a few. In addition to radio, Riley is a popular TV political analyst with bi-weekly appearances on the “Road to City Hall” on New York 1 News; commentary on BET, CNN, CBS Early Show, & MSNBC.

As I've previously stated, I've been an avid Marc Maron fan since the early '90s, when his stand-up would turn up on Comedy Central and then as host of that channel's Short Attention Span Theater. He is one of this generation's greatest comedy minds and if AAR doesn't find the right vehicle for his tremendous talent, then he needs to look elsewhere. I hope all works out...but it's still sad to see this brilliant, satirical liberal morning show get cancelled.

From Netflix I will (hopefully) be procuring the following two films tomorrow...




and



Word of mouth, along with Ebert and alot of other film critics, says that Mr. & Mrs. Smith is a fun, action-packed movie, with comedic bursts.

And then there's Dominion: Prequel To The Exorcist. Much has been said of Paul Schrader's film, which was intended to be released as Exorcist: The Beginning. Schrader was hired by Morgan Creek Productions to replace an ailing John Frankenheimer. Schrader lensed his film and turned it in. Upon seeing it, Morgan Creek founder and CEO James G. Robinson was incredulous and threw Schrader's version on the shelf. The reason? It wasn't an Exorcist film in Robinson's eyes. He wanted extensive gore and cheap scares. So he hired Renny Harlin, director of Die Hard 2: Die Harder, Cliffhanger, Cutthroat Island, The Long Kiss Goodnight and the more recent Mindhunters, to name a few, gave him a 90% re-written script and had him shoot a brand new movie, complete with the scenes he felt Schrader's film were lacking! Yes, twice as much money was spent! So after the Harlin version barely broke even and after Schrader's version was screened to critical acclaim at a Brussels film festival, Warner Brothers gave the film a short theatrical release in May and finally released it on DVD October 25th.

We just got it at work this weekend and had I known that I would have rearranged my queue on Netflix; however I didn't find this out until Monday morning. Oh well. In any case, it'll be interesting to see this film. I've not seen Harlin's on purpose to go into Dominion: Prequel To The Exorcist with a fresh point-of-view.

I have to work from 11PM-5AM tonight for store inventory. Hopefully we'll get some money soon. My father, whom I'm speaking to again, said he'd be sending a birthday check. I love my father and am reaching out to him. I was angry at him for many years for hurting my mother emotionally. I've come to terms with what happened (affair) and have realized that you only get one father. It's petty of me to let that stand in the way of quality time I could instead share with him.

I didn't mind to sound impetuous at the beginning of that last paragraph. We need some groceries ASAP and I'd like to be able to buy some breakfast on the way home after work early tomorrow morning. I'll keep you posted as always.

I'll probably be so sore after inventory but it's all in a day's work. Then I'm off Thursday and have to work on my fucking birthday, 6-close. It sucks beyond the telling of it but there's no one to cover it, as one of our assistant managers decided that, since he couldn't get anyone to cover his Wednesday and Thanksgiving shifts last week, he was going to be a no-call/no-show. Proper measures were taken to ensure the coverage was there, however, as his waffling on this issue was very anticipated. And then two other employees, who barely qualified as that, finally quit this week. They had another job (both are employed at said job) and were constantly giving their shifts away. So that's why I'm having to work on my birthday.

Festivities celebrating said birth will either be held on Thursday or early Friday or Sunday; I haven't decided yet. I had to quell my rage when I found that out but now I'm cool. I work 4-10 Saturday - ON THE FUCKING FLOOR! Grrrr....I hate that floor - especially on shop weekends, when a secret shopper comes in. It's fucking irritating!

TiVo is calling ever so much. I think I might buy a book with my birthday money. Maybe Al Franken's latest - The Truth (with jokes). I'm not certain yet. Well, that's all for now. Until next time here's a picture of the gorgeous Cobie Smulders from the very awesome CBS comedy How I Met Your Mother. *sigh* Le swoon...one day I'll marry a cool brunette who's wicked awesome. You'll see...you'll see...

Happy Thanksgiving!

As you feast upon bird today and sleep it off, have a great and happy holiday and don't forget what this day is for: remembering how our ancestors raped and pillaged the Native Americans and their land.

Oh, and it's about fellowship and togetherness. Although what would Thanksgiving be without a little dysfunction? Huh? How about just a smattering, then?

I'm TiVoing the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade and I'll be working from 12-6 and if a customer so much as cops an attitude with me or trots out their, "You're working on Thanksgiving?" spiel (Bitch, I'm getting paid time-and-a-half! I work every holiday! $ is good!), I'll drop-kick them.

Then after work is over, I'll be feasting at my sister's apartment. It'll be my mother, myself, my sister, her boyfriend, and their roommate and his girlfriend. They're frying a turkey, a ham will be cooked, my mother's making potato salad, I imagine stuffing will be involved; pumpkin pie will rear its decadent head. So whatever you do today, have fun, be safe, and enjoy yourself. I'll also be regaling myself with xm's Special X channel of quirky novelty Xmas songs.

BTW, I can safely say that The Office is my favorite comedy on television. It is aces all around.

Also, the company that made the leg lamps from A Christmas Story actually bought the house the movie was filmed in (on eBay!) and they're holding a fundraiser/movie screening/Q+A with some of the cast this weekend in Cleveland. The company plans to restore the home to its original look in the film (it's looking good so far) and then turn the home into A Christmas Story museum! Really cool!

Click the logo to visit the website.





I'm off to watch a TiVoed episode of The Simpsons and then hit the hay. I'll leave you with this timeless holiday image. From Norman Rockwell's famous 1943 Four Freedoms series, this piece is entitled "Freedom From Want". Enjoy the holiday everyone.

radio to the power of x...

A while back, I had SIRIUS Satellite Radio. Air America Radio left their lineup, I did as well. I should have done more research instead of blindly jumping in headfirst with SIRIUS. I soon came to the realization that SIRIUS's playlists on all of their music channels was quite repetitive and overplayed, the very antithesis of what satellite radio should be. A big old yawn is what their music channels are.

I'd listened to their competitor, the #1 satellite radio service in America, xm.



TOTALLY, UTTERLY AMAZING!!!

And now, we have 72 channels of xm satellite radio on DIRECTV! It's really refreshing to hear great music. I love alternative rock, and xm delivers big with three (3), count them three channels:

All of the following channel descriptions are from xm's website for each respective channel.



Fred is where you'll find the music long ago banished from regular radio. This massive library of forgotten music has it's own home on Fred.

Fred likes the Violent Femmes, Simple Minds, Dead Milkmen, U2, New Order, Ministry, XTC, The Buzzcocks, R.E.M., Love & Rockets, The Damned, Bauhaus, The Ramones, Jesus & Mary Chain, Joy Division, X, Social Distortion, Talking Heads, Iggy Pop, The Replacements, Erasure and tons more can be heard on Fred.



The Killers of Alternative

Lucy is all about the most important and well known songs in the history of Alternative Music. While Fred, Ethel, Squizz and other XM Alt channels go deep, Lucy is about the encores...the giants...the defining songs of the generation. Non Stop. Just music. Just the killers. 24/7.



"A.K." Alternative Gems

On September 24th, 1991 alternative music entered a new era. Nirvana's Nevermind was released and grunge became a nationwide phenomenon. Taking the hand-off from Fred - XM 44, Ethel is here to satisfy your craving for all the tunes that have been released A.K. (After Kurt), all completely uncensored. If you don't know the music on Ethel, you may have been unconscious for the last decade...or you may have only been hearing the 3 singles they ever play on FM. On Ethel, expect to hear deep tracks from many HUGE artists...songs that were never played on the radio, but you know 'em cuz you bought the CD. Right?

I'd say it's a toss-up between ETHEL and LUCY as my favorite xm channels. xm has really outdone themselves: ETHEL is heads and shoulders above SIRIUS's alt-rock channel, Alt Nation, due to the simple fact that ETHEL, and every other xm music channel, has one thing SIRIUS is afraid of: a much, much deeper playlist. The reason people purchase satellite radio is to not hear the same top ten songs over and over and over, or the same worn-out top ten songs from a decade or so ago. Case in point, xm is currently airing a theme show on ETHEL, Faded Flannel. It's nothing but great, iconic grunge songs from the early '90s, from bands that rose to prominence from the Pacific Northwest. THAT'S dedication to a genre and THAT'S only one of the reasons xm's kicking SIRIUS's ass in subscribers and marketing. Sure, SIRIUS will amp up their marketing and whatnot when Howard Stern arrives in January, but so what? One shock jock does not a great service make.

There ARE two other channels I also enjoy...



From Grunge to Hip Hop; Techno to Soft Hits. From Old School to R&B; Freestyle Dance to Teen Pop Sensations. The music of the 90s MEANS diversity. And the 90s on 9 brings all the different music styles and the excitement to you 24 hours a day.

Join us for personalities that are fun and upbeat, lots of special guests from the music and entertainment world of the 90s, and all the flavors of music that make the 90s unique!

AND...



The Virus Returns. Spread the Virus.

Beware, this is radio like you've never heard it before. Irreverent, uncensored, so good you won't want to stop listening. Featuring outrageous radio from Opie & Anthony, weekday mornings 7-11AM ET with additional encores around the clock. And, the "Best Of Opie and Anthony" all weekend. Plus, Ron and Fez join the antics on High Voltage. These two comics jump on the air right after Opie & Anthony and deliver non-stop laughter each weekday morning from 11AM - 2PM ET, encores at Midnight ET.

In the early-mid 90s, there was one and only one radio show I adored...I would purchase Maxell blank cassette tapes in the summer and tape show after show after show. I would get up at 6AM almost every weekday morning, turn on WZAT-FM (Z102 - Savannah's Rock & Roll Radio; it's now a crappy Top 40/Hot Adult Contemporary hybrid owned by Cumulus Broadcasting), and bask in the aural glory that was The Ron & Ron Show. Hosted by Ron Diaz, Ron Bennington, and the larger-than-life Fez Marie Whatley, it was comedic gold. They had various characters ("Andre The Giant", "Iris", a crotchety old woman, many others) and Paul-O, their resident movie reviewer who was also their go-to guy whenever they'd want to do a stunt (when Tupac Shakur got a tattoo of the words "Thug Life" on his stomach, they made Paul-O get one too; on New Year's Eve 1996, he was sent, in an adult diaper, to area fast food restaurants and convenience stores to relieve himself). The guys would also devote shows to certain topics - overrated bands, cartoons; one show was Ron Bennington telling the guys how he'd knock out various animals. I simply cannot do the show justice.

St. Patrick's Day 1996, Fez and Paul-O came to Savannah. I actually went with my mother at 9:30 at night and met Fez at the airport. There were only a handful of us but Fez was gracious and happy to see us. The next day he and Paul-O were at the Saturn of Savannah car dealership where I got a Ron&Ron black license plate, ate a few hot dogs, drank some Coke, and chatted with the guys.

After Ron Diaz left the show, various other Rons were tried and then Clear Channel bought the company that owned the show's syndication rights and didn't pick up the show. I was crestfallen. I'd heard of Ron & Fez having their own show on various stations throughout the years: the now-defunct-as-a-rock-station WKRO in Orlando, WNEW in New York, WJFK in D.C., always wishing I could hear them again.

NOW I CAN! It's been a breath of fresh air hearing them again, although Fez had a mild heart attack last week. He's fine - he had an angioplasty and will be back in two weeks (The show's going on a break next week for Thanksgiving). Fez also found out he has diabetes. He's called in a few times (the latest being during today's show). So get well Fez!

Sorry if this was long-winded but I'm happy to have my favorite radio show back.

I'm also really loving xm and am seriously considering picking up their portable receiver for only $99, since they've got some really good discount deals for DIRECTV customers. They also have a car unit available for only $49!

I will be seeing Good Night, And Good Luck this weekend, and maybe Walk The Line.

Masters of Horror is on tonight. Steven Weber scripted and stars in this Dario Argento (Suspiria)-directed episode, "Jenifer" about a cop who becomes obssessed with a very unique young woman.

The first two discs of the first season of Veronica Mars are winging their way to me via Netflix. I've already converted my mother into a Desperate Housewives fan. Now to make her love the best show on television!

Also on the 'TO WATCH' pile from work are Kingdom of Heaven and Layer Cake. I'll update you with any progress I make, TiVo or film-wise.

And South Park really skewered the false heterosexuality of Tom Cruise and the false religion of Scientology in their recent episode, "Trapped In The Closet". It replays all weekend; check it out, it's hilarious.

The Comedians of Comedy airs at 8PM on Showtime tonight. It's a feature-length documentary about the comedy tour of some of the best comedians around today: Patton Oswalt, Brian Posehn, Zach Galifianakis, and Maria Bamford. It's also a series on Comedy Central, but they're both different. By that I mean it's different footage - the series is more about their journey on the road, while I'd imagine the movie features more of each comic's respective stand-up routine.

FUCKING BULLSHIT!

'Arrested Development' gets the axe

If FOX does can this, I sincerely hope that NBC picks it up. Imagine a Tuesday night comedy monolith...

8PM - My Name Is Earl
8:30PM - Scrubs
9PM - The Office
9:30PM - Arrested Development

I'd be there every Tuesday. Plus, I truly believe that the viewer retention going into Arrested Development would be very high. So, c'mon NBC! Make us AD fans happy and make Tuesday nights one of the best nights for comedy, only on The Peacock!

Congrats to Conan O'Brien and his wife, Liza. Beckett O'Brien was born Wednesday in New York.

Moustapha Akkad, daughter, dead in Jordan bombings

:(

Rest In Peace, Moustapha. You and your daughter will live in our hearts forever as I know you both shall in Heaven.

My new personal hero!

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)


He kicked asses all over Washington today by demanding the Senate go into closed session. The move was made to shine an extremely bright light on the shoddy, faulty pre-Iraq war intelligence and it made ALOT of noise today. Kudos to him. Mr. Reid, keep up the great damn job! Hold these Republican bastards accountable!!!

Democrats Force Senate Into Closed Session Over Iraq Data

So last night I spent at the apartment of Robin and her husband. We ate Pizza Hut, Cheetos, that awesome cheese ball thing with Wheatables, mini-3 Musketeers, and drank copious amounts of Dr. Pepper while we watched Night Of The Living Dead, Fright Night, and The Monster Squad. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) was out of the running, though, as both of my hosts went back and forth as to who didn't feel like watching it. It seems that they'd both seen the horrible, awful remake, and were discomforted by it. I tried to convince them that the original shows no gore but it was a lost cause, although they were open for watching it later. I will prevail in that endeavor. Both really loved Night Of The Living Dead. They'd purchased The Howling at Best Buy yesterday and I borrowed it. Now to finally get some time to watch it. TiVo beckons ever so much!

Have a spooky day!

Everyone have a wonderful, great day today! I'll be going to a co-worker's apartment after work. She and her husband are having a horror movie marathon and I'll be bringing Night Of The Living Dead, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), and the always awesome cult classic '80s horror-comedy (only available on out-of-print VHS currently) The Monster Squad. So hopefully it'll be a ghoulish time for all involved. Sorry. But when else can one use these adjectives, except on Halloween?

In any case, have fun and stay safe whatever you do today and tonight!

Some disappointing news but oh well...

I will be unable to attend the Savannah Film Festival as I am broke. But at least Good Night, And Good Luck will start playing at Wynnsong next Friday.

Also, The Horror Channel was due to launch on DISH Network and various other cable outlets at midnight this morning, on The Men's Channel. It didn't. They've posted a response to the delay on their website, HorrorChannel.com

Dear Fans,

It is with regret that we were not able to bring you our special first night of on-air programming. We were notified by our host, The Men's Channel, late yesterday that there was a technical issue that would result in the delay of our much-anticipated launch. We are currently working overtime with our partners to overcome this delay and bring you the successful launch of the first ever dedicated horror programming at the soonest possible time.

For those of you that may have subscribed to DISH recently on the basis that The Horror Channel was debuting but now wish to cancel your installation, you may contact DISH and notify them that you would elect to re-subscribe once The Horror Channel debuts. We continue to urge all horror fans to call their local cable or satellite provider and "Scream for The Horror Channel!"

In the meantime, consistent with our "No Fan Left Behind" campaign, please tune in to our website (www.HorrorChannel.com) on November 11th to watch the launch show, A Tribute to George A. Romero in its entirety. You will be able to view it on your PC, and if you are a broadband subscriber, you may be able to view the program in full screen with little or no buffering time. We will be making additional public announcements regarding The Horror Channel Online broadband channel in the near future.

Despite the technical difficulties in airing our launch, we nonetheless were able to unveil the show to a packed private reception at the Chiller Theatre Convention last night. Among the attendees was none other than George A. Romero himself. The show was a huge hit, and the crowd went wild!

Please be patient as we work through our growing pains. We are diligent and steadfast in our quest to bring to you, our dedicated fans, the first 24-hour cable television horror channel. Stay tuned!!

--Nick Psaltos, Founder, and John Giunti, Co-Founder


I just want this damn thing on the air! Hopefully all of the legal red tape will get sorted out soon. It's a shame that different variables and roadblocks keep popping up but I wish them the best.

Today, we called DIRECTV and ordered Showtime. For tonight, they'll be unleashing...



Pop some popcorn, turn off the lights, and get ready, fellow horror fans!

Showtime's Official Masters Of Horror website

The Official Masters Of Horror website

A Yahoo! News Article About The Series

Masters Of Horror brings together the creative minds of horror's greatest nightmares, including John Carpenter (Halloween), Tobe Hooper (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), Poltergeist), Joe Dante (The Howling), John Landis (An American Werewolf In London), Dario Argento (Suspiria), Don Coscarelli (Phantasm), and many more, for an anthology of 13 all-new one-hour horror films. Upcoming installments will be helmed by other genre faves including John McNaughton (Henry: Portrait Of A Serial Killer), Stuart Gordon (Re-Animator), and Japan's famed horror auteur Takashi Miike (Audition).

The directors could bring a story of their own or use one already published.

The series will replay on Comcast ON DEMAND and each weekend at 10PM after it debuts that Friday.

Tonight's installment is "Incident On And Off A Mountain Road", based on a short story by Joe R. Lansdale. It was directed by Don Coscarelli and co-stars Angus Scrimm, otherwise known as The Tall Man from the Phantasm films.

Synopsis:

A woman seemingly at the mercy of the serial killer who has kidnapped her turns out to be more resourceful and cunning than expected.

Upcoming films in the series include...

"Dreams In The Witch House" - Stuart Gordon (Re-Animator) returns to the work of horror novelist H.P. Lovecraft for this story about a physics student experiencing visions of another dimension where sinister forces conspire to kill his neighbor's baby.

"Dance Of The Dead" - Director Tobe Hooper and writer Richard Christian Matheson (son of novelist and Twilight Zone writer Richard Matheson) adapt this classic short story about a naive young woman who discovers the horrifying secret behind her survival of a nuclear holocaust.

"Jenifer" - Dario Argento directs this version of the classic comic book about a girl with eerie powers who destroys the life of a police officer (Steven Weber, who also adapted the script).

"Chocolate" - Writer/director Mick Garris's story of a divorced young man (Henry Thomas, best known as Elliot from E.T.) who creates artificial food flavors for a living and starts to experience sensual psychic flashes from a woman with whom he falls in love.

"Homecoming" - Directed by Joe Dante, "Homecoming" depicts terror and scandal when the media discovers that the living dead has swayed the Presidential election. This adaptation of Dale Bailey's award-winning short story "Death & Suffrage" blends zombie horror and contemporary political satire with chilling results.

"Deer Woman" - A series of bizarre murders lead a cynical detective (Brian Benben, HBO's Dream On) to suspect that an ancient Native American mythological creature is real in this sexually-charged horror comedy, directed by John Landis and written by Landis and his son Max.

"Cigarette Burns" - John Carpenter directs this script by Drew McWeeny (also known as Moriarty at entertainment website Ain't It Cool News) and Scott Swan. Kirby Sweetman knows how to find rare film prints. However, nothing could prepare him for the daunting search of 'Le Fin Absolue du Monde', a film allegedly shown only once and rumored to have driven its audience into a murderous frenzy before the theater mysteriously erupted into flames. Working for a shadowy patron, Jimmy's increasingly obsessive investigation becomes nightmarish and deadly. Finally he discovers 'Le Fin Asbolue du Monde''s infamy is well deserved. This supernatural Chinatown is a chilling look at the power of cinema and the lengths to which we will go to satiate our private demons.

"Fair-Haired Child" - From the director of House On Haunted Hill (1999). Tara, a lonely 13-year old outcast, is kidnapped and locked in a basement with their 13-year old child Johnny. Despite the fact that he is kind and sensitive, Johnny keeps a terrible secret. These two children form a special bond to find a way to battle a curse and survive the night. The film stars Lori Petty.

"Pick Me Up" - From the writer of The Crow comes this tale, directed by Larry Cohen (writer of Phone Booth, writer/director of the It's Alive! trilogy). Two urban legends collide on a desolate roadside when Wheeler, a serial killer who slays hitchhikers, offers a ride to Walker, a hitchhiker who slays any individual unlucky enough to offer him a ride. Caught between these two bearers of death and destruction is our heroine, a 25 year old woman who will need to choose her ally carefully or become another bloody notch on a belt in this deadly game of cat & mouse.

"Haeckel's Tale" - When Ernst Haeckel seeks shelter from the wilderness in a secluded cabin in the New England countryside, he is given one explicit instruction: No matter what he hears, he cannot go outside. As the cries of an unseen baby intermix with horrifying guttural moans, Haeckel disobeys his host and becomes embroiled in an orgy of the undead. Based on Clive Barker's short story, "Haeckel's Tale" is a sexually-charged campfire story with a terrifying twist.

"Imprint" - Japanese horror master Takashi Miike searches the corpse-strewn riverbanks of 19th-century Japan in this tale of an American journalist escaping a dark secret. Hoping to find the love he left behind, the journalist's hunt leads to a dark island where the only refuge is a brothel. Spending the night with a unique woman, he learns the danger of dredging up old ghosts. Based on an acclaimed Japanese novel.

"Sick Girl" - Lucky McKee (May) directs this gender-bending lesbian love story about two women and the bug that got between them.

So I'm very excited for this! Plus, hopefully there'll be some good horror movies on the Showtime networks in the coming days. I also have TiVo to wade through. More posting will follow soon. I plan to review the Masters Of Horror episodes as they air, and will hopefully have a movie review or two to post in the very near future.

HBO & The Creator of Six Feet Under To Reunite For New Vampire Series

I've always debated whether or not to read the 'Southern Vampire' novels. Now I have a good reason to.

And here's the teaser trailer for Final Destination 3.

FD3Movie.com

I can't wait! Plus it's good to see Glenn Morgan and James Wong returning to the franchise they created.

I *WILL*, dammit!

OCTOBER 29th - NOVEMBER 5th

Yes, it's that time again. Time to shake off the shackles of tyranny and oppression that mainstream cinema usually foists upon us year in and year out.

The institution that owns this city's lifeblood whether or not the city wants to admit it or not, SCAD (Savannah College Of Art And Design) is putting on the annual film festival. It's been going strong since 1998, I do believe. Click the logo to see this year's screening schedule.


As much as I bitch about SCAD not coming through with an indie/arthouse theater downtown, they've really come through with this year's lineup. Time permitting (and it better!), I'll be seeing George Clooney's directorial debut good night, and good luck.



That'll be preceded by a tribute to director Sidney Lumet. I hope his new movie Find Me Guilty is good.

Then there's a conflict: do I see Noah Baumbach's (co-screenwriter of The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou) The Squid And The Whale or the "Project Greenlight"-birthed horror film Feast? I know Feast will be on alot of screens whenever the Weinsteins decide to release it so maybe I'll skip that in favor of the indie film, since Savannah's never too kind on arthouse films.



The Squid And The Whale will have one of its stars, Jeff Daniels, in attendance. It's getting really good reviews, raves even. I think that will be my choice, between Feast and this.

On Wednesday, November 2nd at 7PM there'll be a "Special Screening" of a highly anticipated film due out this holiday season from a major studio. I don't care what it is; that's intriguing.

Earlier that day, a customer from work has a film of hers screening at 3PM, Red Thread. The website's at www.redthreadthemovie.com

I'll try to go but I might be working at 3PM that day. I just hope that my schedule is somewhat normal (i.e. back to its original format) so that I can see these screenings, as most are in the evening.

Thursday, November 3rd at 7PM is the screening of the Pierce Brosnan-Greg Kinnear starrer The Matador.

www.miramax.com/matador is the official site, BTW. It's a joint distribution between the new Miramax films and The Weinstein Company, the Weinstein brothers new shingle. Wow, a nice website for the film when the Weinstein guys don't even have one for their new movie company yet!

But I digress.

Friday, November 4th sees the enchanting Ellen Burstyn honored for her remarkable body of work. She was cruelly robbed of the Oscar she deserved for Requiem For A Dream, in favor of the boring offal known as Erin Brockovich and Mrs. Horse Teeth.

Anyway, after her well-deserved honor, the much-buzzed about Capote will unspool. It's about Truman Capote during the time when he was writing In Cold Blood. I will be there for this!

And closing night sees animation giants Don Bluth and Gary Goldman honored for their works. I was a big fan of An American Tail so I'm happy for Bluth and Goldman. Following this, the closing night film will be the first incarnation of Pride And Prejudice in 65 years. It stars my future wife, Keira Knightley. Yeah, I know I'm dreaming.

Come hell or water high, I will attend this. I'm through talking. I keep meaning to attend. But meaning isn't doing and I'm going to put my money where my mouth is. So if you're in the area and want to see some cool new movies that don't turn your brain into nacho cheese or want to attend filmmaking workshops, stroll into our fair city for a fun time.

oh yeah...

There's a brand spanking new episode of


Click the Night Stalker logo for more info.

tonight at 9PM on ABC. I've still got the second episode to watch. I'm lukewarm on it so far. I'm a fan of Stuart Townsend, Gabrielle Union is a marvelous actress, and Frank Spotnitz is proven but I don't know yet. My work schedule is all out of sorts so until I'm back on mornings, I may have to sacrifice this for FOX's Reunion when it returns in November. The only other option is if ABC does the smart thing and posts podcasts on ABC.com to catch up viewers who may have missed an episode, like FOX is doing.



When I get paid (or if I can trade in 11 or so DVDs at work..hell I don't know if I have that many to trade), I need to pick up Veronica Mars: The Complete First Season. No extras to speak of, besides an extended version of the pilot episode and some deleted scenes. Oh well. We got a voicemail Tuesday at work saying that they'd sent the show to the stores as rental-ready but then realized that it wasn't bought for the stores for rental. So if stores want Veronica Mars for rent, they'll have to use the allocated store funds to bring it in. But guess what? That little treasure has been suspended until further notice because we don't know how to make money for our store? WTF? Like it's our fault?! So I think when cooler corporate heads prevail (perhaps mid-November), I may just buy Veronica Mars and then trade it in so we can get rent it. It's the best damn show on television and more eyeballs need to see it.

It was also nice to see Related's audience fall 30% last night from its debut last week. I love Lizzy Caplan (she was spot-on in Mean Girls) and I'm happy she has a show, but I'm ecstatic that Veronica Mars got the ratings win for Wednesday. I hope Veronica and the entire gang of 09ers and non-09ers is around for a very, very long time. And Joss Whedon's cameo as a rental car company manager will be in episode six, which is titled Rats Saw God.

tremendous thoughts...

Well, well, well...I've casually wasted my two days off. I was off yesterday and today; I work tomorrow and Saturday 4-close. And TiVo is patiently waiting for me, like a sad and forlorn puppy. It's because I'm addicted to...


and have sadly been forsaking my TV-watching duties. I'll also add in there DVD screener-watching duties. I may rectify that tonight, or stay up late and watch alot of stuff.

Here's a recent music log of the new station.

98.3 JACK FM Music Log

I'm trying to correct my blogging lack thereof. I will try harder, I promise.


Click the candles.

Pink Is The New Blog has quickly become a daily read of mine. It's a great pop-culture treat, with webmaster Trent gathering up all of the movie, celebrity, music, and television news and gossip, hitting puree' on the blender and serving up a very witty and entertaining website. Check it out; you'll be bookmarking it before you're done reading it.

More later if the mood compells me and thoughts strike me.

The before bed post...

Well to recap I've now seen Serenity 5 times. It just keeps getting better and better, folks.

I have a review of that film to post as well as the one I saw tonight (and really enjoyed) A History Of Violence. Let's just say that Cronenberg is back...not that he went anywhere.

I purchased Fiona Apple's new CD Extraordinary Machine. I'm mulling it over. I think this one will be a slow burn so I'm going to spin it several more times.

Stephen King's new crime novella The Colorado Kid is out. It's a throwback to the old pulp detective novels of the '40s. Yes, I bought it. New Stephen King for only $5.99? You know I'm there.

And in really good news...

Our main Oldies station here in Savannah, Triad Broadcasting's WGCO-FM (formerly Oldies 98.3) has been around for more than eleven years. It's always had a very loyal audience. But after what happened today at 10AM, I imagine they'll all be flocking to Cumulus Broadcasting's less-than-a-year-old Oldies station WTYB-FM, Cool 103.9...



That's right, ladies and gentlemen! We now have an official JACK FM station in Savannah! ABC Radio Networks distributes JACK FM and that's what WGCO is using. I was just bemoaning the fact the other day that I was tired of Freedom 104.7, the lame imitator of JACK FM locally.

JACK FM is all about the presentation. Plus the playlist is killer.

Clueless as to what the hell I'm talking about? Click the following link.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_FM

No new website or logo has been released yet. I hope that will change very soon.

So this new radio station was a rather nice discovery today.

I'll try to blog some more this weekend but TiVo is filled to overflowing presently and I have several DVD screeners from work to watch, chief among them High Tension, Happy Endings and The Mangler Reborn which I've heard is excellent.