The Junkyard - A Titanic Treasure-Trove of Traumatically Tempting Tid-Bits Tastefully Tossed Together to Tease and Tantalize Thee!

Some folks call it "linkblogging", we just call it "The Junkyard"... What is it? Basically an every-once-in-a-while collection of those items I've run across that don't necessarily need a full write-up or maybe just little bits that I find amusing or quirky or.... Anyway, just follow the links in each item for more info... You get the idea... anyway, enough preamble, on with the show...

ITEM! If you think, like i do, that ice cream is one of God's true gifts to mankind, you might want to try Immaculate Confection...

ITEM! Two questions come to mind when reading about the government's new Cash for Clunker Refrigerators program... One, how many miles per gallon does the average refrigerator get, and two, do you figure Indiana Jones is gonna try to trade in his magic fridge?

ITEM! You mean kitties aren't going to be part of the rapture? Then I'm not sure I want to go...

ITEM! I always knew there was a reason it was called the "stimulus" package...

ITEM! Not surprising, I suppose, but here ya go... more not-really-a-change you can believe in...

ITEM! Also, perhaps someone should use some stimulus money to buy Mr. Obama a dictionary so he can look up the definition of the word "transparancy"...

ITEM! Could we please have a little less nannny state? I mean, c'mon... everyone knows you can't pull a proper pint into plastic...

ITEM! What does it cost to lie on top of Marilyn Monroe? Apparently 4.6 million dollars...

ITEM! Apparently some people will NEVER get it...

ITEM! It appears John McCain is still reaping what he's been sowing...

ITEM! Please, no... just... no... or in other words, "f@C# me gently with a chain saw"...

ITEM! It seems it only took six Thursday robberies for New Jersey police to notice a pattern...

ITEM! Remember the gang rape scene in Bye-Bye Birdie?... yeah, well, neither did I, but apparently it doesn't matter since it's gone now...

ITEM! I can't help but wonder - if the lesson plans are falling through, can this new teacher rely on a "clips show" to get him through?

LAST ITEM! Finally, for all of you Nessie believers out there, Google Earth fianlly has your proof...

I'd like to meet his trailer...

Here it is... the first trailer for the Benicio del Toro / Anthony Hopkins remake of Universal's The Wolfman:

Christmas in August?

Well, unfortunately no, but... perhaps realising that the wait through the next five months until the next special is gonna be a long one, the BBC is apparently trying to whet our appetites with a new three hour-long special called Dr. Who's Greatest Moments... The hour-long special will be broadcast over three nights in one hour segments beginning tonight... Unfortunately, the focus is solely on the revived program and will not include any segments from earlier incarnations of the show... Still, it appears to have new interviews with the stars and should at least be an entertaining way to pass an hour... No word on when it will officially air in the U.S., but...

Here's a preview:

Speaking of Mrs. Ain'tBehaving...

Or is that Mrs. AintAQuitter? I dunno anymore... and apparently neither does she... Yep, we're talking Sarah Palin again... (hey, i'd stop if she would... matter of fact, I'm willing to make a deal... if she doesn't say anything else stoopid, I won't make fun of her saying stoopid things anymore... how's that?)

Anyway, much has been made of Ms. Palin's "death panel" remark a couple of weeks back, but what has largely been ignored (as DailyKos points out) is that just a year ago Ms. Palin was IN FAVOR of the establishment of exactly the same kind of death panels... to the point of declaring April 16th, 2008 Healthcare Decisions Day... OY...

From the declaration:

WHEREAS, Healthcare Decisions Day is designed to raise public awareness of the need to plan ahead for healthcare decisions, related to end of life care and medical decision-making whenever patients are unable to speak for themselves and to encourage the specific use of advance directives to communicate these important healthcare decisions. WHEREAS, in Alaska, Alaska Statute 13.52 provides the specifics of the advance directives law and offers a model form for patient use.

WHEREAS, it is likely that a significant reason for these low percentages is that there is both a lack of knowledge and considerable confusion in the public about Advance Directives.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Sarah Palin, Governor of the state of Alaska, do hereby proclaim April 16, 2008, as: Healthcare Decisions Day in Alaska, and I call this observance to the attention of all our citizens.

Hmmm... sound at all familiar? Probably not to Ms. Palin...

(Of course, a large part of the irony in this post is based on the concept that Ms. Palin actually read and was able to comprehend what she was signing when she was governor... a large assumption, I know, but I'm trying to give her the benefit of the doubt here...)

Ain't MrsBehaving either...

Ok, back from boston (had a great time, thankeeverymuch) and trying to catch up with what's going on in the "real" world... Fotunately most everybody's been behaving, so it's been rather slow... everybody except this guy:

Still Kickin' Him Around...

One of the things that we missed recently was the anniversary of the resignation of President Richard Nixon which occurred 35 years ago yesterday... In looking for footage of the resignation, one of the things that I ran across was the short piece embedded below which actually shows outtake footage of Mr Nixon preparing for the speech, and in a lot of ways is an interesting insight into the man as he prepares for what one would think must have been one of the most traumatic moments of his life...



And below is fotage of the actual speech...



Hmmm... one thing I can't help but wonder is how Mr. Nixon's claim not to be a quitter as he is resigning can come across as so much more thoughtful and honest than Sarah Palin's similar claim during her resignation... maybe it has something to do with the fact that he was able to do it without resorting to refernces to chachacos and sourdoughs or pining for the fjords or whatever the hell she was talking about...

Yeah, I Know It's August and Not June, But...

I'll let Mark Evanier break the news...

That's a photo of Bill Scott, who was the voice of Bullwinkle and the producer of his show, and June Foray, who was the voice of Rocky the Flying Squirrel. This photo did not make the cut and is not found in June's newly-released autobiography, Did You Grow Up With Me, Too?

But dozens of other great photos did. They illustrate the wonderful anecdotes and the delightful tale of how this tiny lady with the big voice became the First Lady of Cartoon Voices...and by the way, she's also been heard in hundreds and hundreds of non-animated movies and TV shows and commercials, and she founded the L.A. branch of ASIFA and she was on the Board of Governors of the Motion Picture Academy and she's just an amazing woman.

The book made its debut at the Comic-Con in San Diego, where the line of June's fans backed up to Frostbite Falls. Not everyone had a chance to purchase one with her autograph so we've decided to make that possible. We've set up www.juneforay.com where you can go — right this minute, even — and order your every own copy, signed by June...and she'll even autograph it to you.

Earl Kress and I helped her write it, and our pal Leonard Maltin contributed the foreword. But never mind us. Get one because it's June Foray. That's reason enough right there.

Once again, that's www.juneforay.com. Your one-stop destination for copies of June Foray's autobiography signed by June Foray.

Iron Man, Iron Man, Does Whatever an Iron Can...

So one of the most talked about clips from San Diego has finally hit the web... and will probably be pulled soon, so I suggsest ya watch it while ya can... it's the five minute clip that Jon Favreau showed from Iron Man 2... Yep, its your first chance to see Scarlett Johanson as the Black Widow, Mickey Rourke as Whiplash, and Don Cheadle as War Machine, plus some returning favorites... Yeah the quality isn't that great, but hey... here it is anyway...

Iron Man2 trailer
Uploaded by CelticSnake. - Check out other Film & TV videos.

Quote of the Week... so far...

First off, sorry for the lack of posts recently... along with life's usual traumas, been working to help the gf get ready to move to Boston... and there will probably not be many updates for the next week or so, as I'll be out of town from the 12th through the 18th... of course, that just means that much more to enjoy when I get back...

Anyway...

"It's ironic... paddlin' now is inhumane, but druggin' a kid is the way to go..."

-Rep Jack Kingston, (R) Georgia on Real Time with Bill Maher this past week sums up one of the main problems with parents and children today...

You CAN go Holmes again... but maybe you shouldn't...

One thing that has struck me lately is the large number of Sherlock Holmes projects that are "in the works" at the moment... why, I can't help but wonder, is Holmes suddenly the hot property? I honestly don't know, but right off the top of my head I can think of at least three different Holmes movies that are being prepped... And I'm sure there are more...

First, of course, and probably the most highly anticipated, is the Guy Ritchie directed pic starring Robert Downey Jr as Holmes and Jude Law as Watson... Now personally, though I love Downey and really like most of the roles he's done lately, the more I see of this movie there more I can't help but think he's really too young for this role... Of course, since it seems that Ritchie is persuing the "Action Holmes" angle, perhaps it needs a younger than usual Holmes...

Here's the latest trailer:



Next up, moving from the possibly sublime to the definitely ridiculous is a supposed vehicle starring Sacha Baron Cohen (yes, Borat himself) and Will Farrell... Fortunately, rumors of this one have been kicking around (and reported repeatedly in Variety and other places) for years, but so far nothing has come of it, and hopefully nothing will... However reports that Ethan Cohen has recently been signed to direct the movie indicate that some movement is being made...

Then there's the upcoming "Sherlock" from new Dr. Who showrunner Steven Moffat... Now Moffat has proven he can do suitably creepy with his Who episodes "Blink" and "Silence in the Library", and he has also previously done the "updating of a classic character" shtick with his show "Jekyll", so his take promises to be intersting at least... if, that is, the BBC can decide which way they're going to go with it... whether it's going to be (as Variety reports) three 90-minute dramas or simply a single 60 minute comedy as reported here... either way, it seems the plan in to bring Holmes into the present day, a take that very rarely works, and one which will then have to go some way to distinguish itself from shows already on tv like "Psych" and "The Mentalist", both of which use some of the same "super-observant" techniques that Holmes himself is known for employing...

Of course, any new take on Holmes is also going to have to rprove itself against the inevitable comparisons not only to Basil Rathbone's classic take on the character



but also my personal favorite (and the one considered the best by many) portrayal of the detective by Jeremy Brett...

Why can't we get these kind of probing questions on his real news broadcast?

To be honest, not being a CNN junkie, the first time Anderson Cooper really came to my attention was when he hosted the first two seasons of "The Mole"... Even then it was obvious that he was a newsman with a sense of humor... Nonetheless, in this guest hosting spot he proves he still has the ability to ask just the right question... (And no, I'm not really gonna comment on the fact that he's slumming doing Regis and Kelly or ask what it does to his "journalistic integrity" because a)I figure everybody just needs a good paycheck every now and then and 2)he works for CNN - I'm not sure the concept of journalistic integrity even comes into the picture)...



Of course, what I really love about the clip is the fake outrage from everyone involved - including the audience who you know was salivating to hear the answer..

Like a Rock(ford)...

Y'know, in the midst of all the remake-mania that's been sweeping the movie and tv industries lately I was just chatting the other day with some friends speculating on who could possibly make a good replacement for James Garner in his iconic role as Jim Rockford... Now comes word from Variety that just such a remake is in the works...

Not sure how I feel about this really... when i called the role iconic above i truly meant it, and it's tough to think of anyone that could take it over...

Of course, perhaps just as important a question is who could they tap to play Angel?



Ideas?

Fakin it...

One of the new tv shows that got a trailer preview at ComicCon last weekend was Spartacus coming in January from cable network Starz... executive produced by Sam Raimi, Rob Tapert, and Joshua Donen, the show provides a 300-esque take on the slave revolt/gladiator saga... Here's the preview:



One of the more... interesting... items that has come out in relation to this show is that the male members of the cast will be supplied with fake... male members...

A Guest Named Brian

So last week I was watching the Daily Show and Jon stewart had Brian Williams (of NBC news) on as a guest... Now whenever these two get together you can rest assured the sparks are going to fly... So I got to thinking and decided to go digging back in the archives a bit to dig up some other Williams appearances...

The first I found was from Nov 30, 2004 - an appearance that's especially interesting in light of Mr Williams most recent appearance, because even back then Jon was asking him about what the major news organisations were willing to do to get people to appear on their shows and talk to them... His response? "We don't do deals"...

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Brian Williams
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Joke of the Day

This next clip is from July 31 '08...

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Brian Williams
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Joke of the Day

Next we move to Sept 2, '08...

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Brian Williams
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Joke of the Day

And finally, Mr Williams' latest appearance on July 20 '09...

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Brian Williams
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Joke of the Day

ASpray you need...

y'know, if they keep making real commercials like this one, the parody makers are soon gonna be out of business...



(Gotta say, my personal favorite part is the testimonial... "m-m-m-m-my butt"...)

He's the Shat, She's Just Sh....

If you watched the clip in the last post, you know, of course, that the Daily show of course led yesterday's show with the Palin resignation... Here's the clip of their coverage...

(BTW, one thing I just don't get in all of this is how someone who's so into killing animals doesn't understand the concept of a "lame duck"... of course, there seem to be quite a few concepts Mrs. Palin doesn't understand, like what the word "quitter" actually means, and that running for and being elected to a position such as governor means actually making a commitment to the people you're supposed to be serving that extends beyond the attention span of your average moose, so...)

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Quitter
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Joke of the Day

still, i think the person that may have actually begun to figure Mrs. Palin out is Conan O'Brien...

Bill Kristol says Sarah Palin should "Do Jon Stewart"

Oh, if only more televised "news" could be like this... or even the opinion programs... instead how sad is it that we have to turn to what is ostensibly a comedy program to see two people with very divergent opinions, and rather than having them shout at each other or cutting off people's microphones or calling people names instead sit down and with what is obviously mutual respect actually have a discussion about the issues... sure they both show their biases, but you know that going in... and there are moments of tension, and moments where Jon is obviously going for the comedy, but at the same time each man manages to get his points across and there isn't that "dirty" feeling afterwards like you've been watching a complete train wreck...

That's why I'm dedicating this post both to JW who, like Kristol, thinks that Palin should actually have been the Republican nominee last year, and MOO who couldn't disagree more...

(Oh, and for myself, though I think Kristol does make a couple of good points, I definitely think Stewart pwns him on the military health care bit)...

Bill Kristol Extended Interview

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Joke of the Day

Send the Kids Out of the Room...

No, seriously, send the kids out of the room... because it's time for Kevin Smith to hold court at ComicCon... And if you know Kevin Smith at all, you know that it's gonna be R-rated and it's gonna be funny... So make sure the coast is clear, then enjoy...

(Ive embedded the first part of the show below... for the rest I've set up a playlist you can access by clicking here which should play the whole show... there is some overlap after section 6 because I had to use two different sources to give ya as complete a show as possible... just fast forward about 7 minutes in and you'll be fine)...

Going Back to Mars

So here's a non ComicCon post that I've been saving for a little while... wanted to give MOO a chance to get through all three seasons first... plus, with Kristen Bell recently weighing in on the topic of a movie, now seems an appropiate time to run this...

Backing up a bit... One of the shows that I definitely miss from recent years is Veronica Mars... Unfortunately it was one of those "too smart for TV" shows... Only lasted three seasons, and honestly the third definitely showed the signs of interference from the networks... and ever since it's been off the air there have been rumors and speculations about a Veronica movie - either to tie up the loose ends left dangling at the end of season three or to move the story forward...

But, what if there had been a season four? Series creator Rob thomas answered that question on the Season Three DVD set when he created a "trailer" for a possible fourth season with the working title "Veronica in the FBI"...

(This video was posted in two parts, but they should play one after the other if I've done my embedding right... if there are problems, please let me know...)



As far as the actual future? Well, this is from the series's Wikipedia page:

Thomas stated that he was interested in writing a feature film based on the series, in the interest of providing closure to the storylines and character arcs. In September 2008, Michael Ausiello, now a writer for Entertainment Weekly, reported that Thomas still planned to make a film, even though he was busy with other projects. He met with Bell to discuss the plot, which would likely involve Veronica solving crime in college rather than as an FBI agent. Thomas felt that the "FBI scenario was more of a 'What if...?'", aimed at getting a fourth season, and that he "would want to bring back our key players, and it would be tough to believe that the FBI stationed Veronica in Neptune." Ausiello later reported that Enrico Colantoni would be involved in the project. Colantoni said that he was fully aware of the talks taking place, adding, "cult shows have translated well into the film arena. Nothing's official, but they're talking about it." In addition to the feature-film possibility, Thomas has had a meeting with DC Comics to talk about a Veronica Mars comic book series.

In September 2008, Thomas told Entertainment Weekly that "I thought I had the idea broken, but I've hit a wall in the final act that I haven't quite figured out". Thomas exclaimed that he was very busy writing for Cupid and Party Down, both of which he created. In January 2009, TV Guide reported that the film was Thomas' first priority after Cupid. Thomas noted that as well as writing the script, someone would need to pay for the film, but indicated that producer Joel Silver was ready to green-light the film. In June 2009, Bell said "I don't think it will ever happen, and here's why: [Series creator] Rob Thomas and I had a powwow, and we were both 100 percent on board. We took our proposal to Warner Bros. and Joel Silver told us that there is no enthusiasm [there] to make a Veronica Mars movie, and that is unfortunately a roadblock we cannot compete with."

Nonetheless, check out the link above to find out what you can do to possibly support Kristen and Rob in their efforts to somehow give us more Veronica...

Quote of the Week...

(Remember, naming it quote of the week doesn't mean I necessarily agree with it, just that it's the one that really caught my attention when I heard it)...

"New Rule: Not everything in America has to make a profit. If conservatives get to call universal health care 'socialized medicine', I get to call private, for-profit health care 'soulless vampire bastards making money off human pain'."

-Bill Maher

For the full "New Rules" segment from this week's show, see below...