we're at my mom's for the holiday and my nephews are spending the night too (I suspect this is mostly due to me allowing them to use my World of Warcraft account to play "their" characters, lol)

We took them to see fireworks and then once we got back it was time for them to go to bed.

They brought stuffed animals with them, and suddenly I was hit hard remembering my own stuffed tiger...

I can't imagine how I ever forgot about that. I had a tiger and a bear who would sleep with me every night.

I miss those guys.

My hotel is booked...

Who's going to be in Chicago?

I've never really been a fan of baseball.

Sure, come October I'll go so far as to turn on the playoff games for an inning or two - usually after 10 p.m. and when whatever I have been watching is over.

I played on a little league team for four years. We even won a championship, but it was a mostly traumatic experience. I didn't like the majority of my team mates... and the less said about it the better.

As far as the pro game goes. Like most young boys my age, I loved Reggie Jackson and had a fascination with the Yankees, but really when it came right down to it. I just didn't like the game enough to care.

Now as I got older, I had a lot of friends who were Pittsburgh Pirate fans and during their heyday in the late 80's early 90's I jumped on that band wagon too. I even went to two games of the NLCS, only to see them fall short of the World series. My interest held out for another season and again we watched them fall in the NLCS. Since that loss, they have become the joke of the MLB.

Twenty years later, I find myself once again infatuated with the game. This time though it's a direct result from another hobby.

Totally out of the blue, I got an itch to play some video-game baseball and I picked up MLB 2K9 for the xbox360 while my friend Chris was visiting. Turns out the game was a whole lot of fun and we played a bunch of games over that weekend.

I kind of thought that would be the end of it, but then I started to play a season.

Now since I didn't really have much team loyalty, owing to the fact that it would be ZERO fun losing as the Pirates for an entire season, I opted to look through the teams and see if I could settle on one.

For whatever reason, I'm an American League guy. Maybe this is all still a holdout from my youth and those days of Yankee admiration, but for whatever reason, that's how it turned out.

I knew I wanted an AL team.

The obvious choice would be the Yankees, right? Or maybe even Boston. But you know, even I know that those teams are too good, and it's seemingly all about payroll in baseball. Playing either of those teams felt like cheating.

After all, with no fan loyalty, what I really wanted was to maximize my enjoyment of the video game. I needed a better than average team in a competitive division, one where I'd have a reasonable chance of making the post season, while not making the game too easy.

What I settled on was the Chicago White Sox.

So I started my season, and a funny thing happened. I actually began to form some attachment to these guys.

Thome, Konerko, Dye, Rameriz and Pierzynski became my virtual friends, lol. I started to know their hitting tendencies, how to use them to best advantage and etc.

This has now bled over into the really real world.

Curious to see if what I knew from the video game even remotely carried over to actual MLB. I started looking up the White Sox to see where they were in the standings, how the players were performing and if they were on TV in my area and when.

Now, since there's no way in hell I'm subscribing to the MLB, package on DirecTV, it turned out that the only possible White Sox game I could see all season was on Sunday afternoon. A game against the Cubs on WGN, which I happen to get in my subscriber package.

And I watched the game...

The whole game, start to finish.

and

I enjoyed it...

WTF?

It was a very surreal experience to be honest, going from virtual to reality. But the game really seemed to be an accurate reflection of how this team plays in real life. They beat the Cubs 6-0, and it wasn't so much that they won, but rather how they won. It jived with what I had experienced in the video game.

So what does all this mean?

I guess I'm now officially a White Sox fan.

so, I just watched Chocolate...

this is one of the greatest things I have ever seen in my life.

words cannot describe how awesome this movie is.

I'm kind of surprised that the trailer is so frivolous, the movie plays as much more serious...

from article on Sci-fi wire...

"The first movie, Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl, was based on the classic Disneyland theme park attraction. It introduced the character of Sparrow, a bumbling pirate whom Depp based in part on rocker Keith Richards. The massive success of the film led to back-to-back sequels, Dead Man's Chest and At World's End. The chance to see more Jack brought in the audience, despite complaints about the overly complicated storylines."

Seriously? Complicated storylines?

How about the fact that they took a great adventure movie and turned in two stupid slapstick comedies as sequels?

idiots.

Wizard World Philly facts:

1. I am not Greg Horn.
2. Becca's boobs didn't sell.
3. My Asian import DVD connection was at the show and I forgot my want list! (I did manage to buy Azumi, Chocolate and Naked Weapon.)
4. Sales were down. (Had a great start on Friday. Saturday was off from previous years by about 25%. Sunday tied my worst sales day ever.)
5. lots of empty tables in artist alley.
6. smallest WW Philly yet. This show has gotten smaller every year that I've been there. I'd be surprised if there is a WW Philly next year.
7. Made two significant contacts, which may lead to good things.
8. saw muse Mel, yay!, and her husband Josh and the rest of the PLB comics crew.
9. Brenda went to the BSG panel and the Emma Caufield panel while I sat at the table not selling things. She said they were great.
10. Of things that did sell, many were a total surprise. I usually have at least one of everything with me, and a few more of the usual hot sellers. More than any previous show, I sold prints that I'd never sold before. Weird.
11. Talked shop with Dave Nestler.

more later... probably...

copied from skype...

Today Monday, June 15, 2009
[8:46:42 AM] David Kelly: I'm going for coffee.
[8:47:27 AM] Ryan Burke: can't must hold down fort
[8:48:59 AM] archeon: why do I suddenly have visions of ATS as F-Troop?
[8:49:57 AM] Ryan Burke: quickly googles f-troop ...... hey! (finger)
[8:50:05 AM] archeon: lol

(Matt Freed/ Post-Gazette) Penguins captain Sidney Crosby lifts the cup after defeating Detroit in game 7 of the Stanley Cup final last night.

Poetic justice is served...






been saving that all week, LOL

That's the third time I've watched the Penguins win the Cup, and I think I enjoyed this win more than either of the first two, what with all the adversity this team faced this season. Just an incredible finish to an incredible season.

Plans are afoot to go to the burgh for the parade...

Sorry to all my friends who are Detroit fans...

This morning I had what might be my best dream ever. It was like a film noir episode of Doctor Who, only I was playing the role of the Doctor. I was more like a space traveling P.I. though and there was no space travel in the dream. It was just kind of implied that I had been to other planets and such.

My two best lines were:

"Mars might need women, but they can't have mine!"

and

"Sod your fucking game!"

LOL

I've never use the word "Sod" in my life, so I don't know how that snuck in there.

The plot involved a gang of human looking aliens hellbent on kidnapping the daughter of an old flame. (She was entirely made up, but in her few scenes it came out the we had some kind of involvement in the past.)

Another funny thing, apparently my brain lacks imagination when it comes to naming other planets and fell back on referencing two locations from Star Wars to fill in the blanks. (The Hapes Consortium, and some kind of Cluster that I can't spell, ha!)

Ryan: Did you own the Adam Sandler tape too?

Me: No, I'm not a big fan of him. I don't think he's funny.

Ryan: Not dark and grim enough for you?

Me: I like a lot of comedians, just not him. I like George Carlin, Lewis Black, Sam Kinison...

(at which point everyone laughs...)

damn... they know me too well!

apparently, a lot of you...

The internet is so silly sometimes.

There's a stereotype: the girl who falls in love with her college English professor.

I've often held the belief that Neil Gaiman is like everybody's college English professor.

I honestly don't understand the fixation so many people have with him, but putting him in that context... it all suddenly makes a lot of sense.

As for Amanda Palmer, isn't she just Tori Amos 2.0?

"So what? Big Deal." - Black Lectroid, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai, Across the 8th Dimension

the Pocket Books take over of Juno Books has pushed me out as cover artist.

The cover gallery of my work is gone and looks like they've got some cover art for Carole Nelson Douglas' third Delilah Street book posted on the home page.

There was talk about my doing that one since I had done the first two but apparently, not.

I've just added a discount coupon feature to my online store. Now, I need to make sure it works. So the FIRST FIVE PEOPLE who use the following code get

15% off any order of $15 or more.

This is valid ONLY until 6/6/2009.

Enter the store - http://www.stygiandarkness.com/store/index.php

Use the discount code - LJTEST on the checkout page to receive your discount.

PLUS! - I'll throw in some nifty freebies, when your order ships!

Thanks!

there's about a 100 variations of this, one of which will be the cover for a new Holmes anthology this Fall. This is the version I think I'll be making prints of.

(Review)

TMC aired a Memorial Day marathon of war films over the holiday weekend. As I scanned through the on-screen guide, I didn't see much that interested me. I don't really enjoy the old 50's war movies that much, and beyond that I'd seen just about everything else that was being shown. (Bridge on the River Kwai, Dirty Dozen, etc.)

I was nearly about to give up when I spied The Dawn Patrol on the list.

Errol Flynn, Basil Rathbone and David Niven? Plus WWI era planes? OK, I'm sold.

This film is great.

I've seen a few Errol Flynn movies now, and I have to say I'm a huge fan. It was odd seeing him here without a sword in hand though, but if anything it really proves that he was a more talented actor than he may have been given credit for. He'll forever be the swashbuckler of Robin Hood and Captain Blood fame, but his performance in Dawn Patrol is really what sells the whole picture.

Flynn and Niven are two hotshot aces, who defy the odds with their daring flying and constantly find themselves at odds with their commander, played excellently by Rathbone. This all comes to an end however when Flynn gets promoted to Rathbone's position and now he must make the difficult decisions himself.

The film is really a story about honor and how to adhere to a sense of duty, even when you must follow orders that seem hopeless.

There's a lot of flight footage in this film which is delightful. To see these planes actually fly and maneuver is pretty awesome, especially if you are a WWI aircraft buff. Now, of course it's not anything near as exciting as Flyboys, with all the modern movie magic, but these are the actual real planes in use here, not just some Hollywood CGI.

There's also a magnificently filmed bombing run toward the end of the film that leaves you scratching your head over how they managed to pull that off with the special effects technology in 1938. It really looks amazing and is more convincing than some stuff I've seen recently.

Also, for you Rocketeer fans, this is the film that Cliff takes Jenny to see on their date, before they end up back at the Bulldog Cafe.

Unfortunately, it doesn't look like this film has been restored, which is a shame. There's a lot of scratches and screen blemishes, and a solid black horizontal line that runs through about 5 straight minutes of the climax. Of course, that could be just the print TMC has, but I doubt it. They are usually pretty good with showing the best available copy.

Ok, here's my one plug on this topic. If you would like to help preserve our national film history, you can find out more information here: National Film Preservation

Back to the movie...

The Dawn Patrol is a great film and comes whole heartedly recommended.

(Review)

Recently, I bought a few of my favorite noir titles on DVD. When I placed that order, I took a chance on Black Angel without really knowing anything more than it was part of the Universal Noir Collection.

I guess I figured if it's anywhere near the same quality as This Gun for Hire or Touch of Evil (also part of the collection) that it would be a well worth the purchase.

As the opening credits rolled, I was surprised to see the name Cornell Woolrich. At some point I'll stop being surprised at just how tied to Hollywood these pulp writers were, but today was not that day apparently.

I have one of Woolrich's novels in my ever growing "to be read" pile (The Bride Wore Black) but I keep putting it off as I make my way through Jim Thompson and Ross Macdonald.

Now, after seeing Black Angel, I feel Woolrich may be more akin to James M. Cain, rather than Hammett or Chandler, but that's not a bad thing at all since I love Cain's work.

Like most films of the genre, Black Angel centers around a murder. This is no hard boiled PI story however. Sure there's a mystery and the cops are definitely involved, but the focus here is on the others affected by the crime.

The oh so beautiful June Vincent plays Catherine Bennett, the devoted wife of a man accused of murdering a nightclub singer. The movie follows her desperate plight to prove her husband's innocence despite all the evidence pointing the opposite direction.

Curiously, the film let's you know he is in fact innocent right up front, which I thought was a missed opportunity as it really would have kept you on the edge of your seat not knowing.

At any rate, what's really on display here is Catherine's story, she's forced to confront many emotional turns throughout the film and it's a fascinating character piece that really comes to life because of Vincent's performance.

Now being it's a Hollywood film from the 40's, there's a lot that's implied but not shown. This is often the case with book to film adaptations from this era, the page was a lot more free than the screen, and I'm wondering if Woolrich's book might be even more of an emotional journey for Mrs. Bennett.

Black Angel is definitely worth your time and recommended, but I think it's fair to say this film plays more like Mildred Pierce than the DVD cover would have you believe.

(Review)

I had seen this in the premium movie channel listings countless times, and it seems to be a staple of Starz in Black, (worst channel name ever?) but I never bothered to read the description until a few weeks ago. Once I did find out what the premise was, well, I knew I had to see it.

Devil in a Blue Dress is adapted from the novel by Walter Mosley, the first in his series of mysteries featuring the character Easy Rawlins.

This film was released right around the time I had discovered Raymond Chandler's work, but somehow I missed it completely. Had I but known what the film was about, I'd have sought it out much sooner.

Devil, is neo-noir: that category of films which tries to recapture the era of Chandler in the way that L.A. Confidential does so perfectly. It's not nearly as successful, but it comes with a twist. You see, Easy Rawlins is a black man and his world is on the other side of the segregation line. I've seen a lot of films, and read a lot of novels, from this era, but not many of them show this side of society, especially from the inside looking out, as does Devil in a Blue Dress. Chandler's Farewell My Lovely, probably comes the closest, but still, it's from Marlowe's point of view that we see.

The film is fairly entertaining, and Denzel Washington is great as usual, but I have a few problems. I suspect that most of my issues come from the fact that the book was written in the 90's and set in the 40's. As a result, I think Rawlins comes across as a little too modern. Now maybe this is more a result of the actor's performance and not the book, which I haven't read yet. (But will be seeking out)

Another problem is that the big mystery surrounding a pivotal character is kind of ruined by the casting of Jennifer Beals. Not to give too much away, but when everyone keeps referring to her as "the white girl" well, you see where this is going right?

The budget for this film seems modest, and a lot of the sets feel like sets and that is kind of distracting. This shows in a lot of other ways too. I wanted this film to be darker, grittier, and have more weight to it. There's not a lot of dramatic tension and while there are several stories all converging at once, a common trait of the genre, none seem particularly riveting or powerful. I never really got the sense that anyone was in danger either, which made it kind of hard to care.

Overall I'd say this is above average, but just barely, by virtue of the racial twisting of the genre giving us a view from the other side of the color line.

There was probably a great film in this book, but it didn't show up on the screen.

(Review)

Freebie and the Bean

My earliest memory of this film is my mother telling me I wasn't allowed to watch it. Seeing as I was five when this came out, I suspect that memory is in relation to a television broadcast of the film rather than a theatrical viewing. Odd though, considering I'd been watching James Bond films with my father by that age on the ABC "movie of the week" airings.

So finally some 35 years later I see Warner has added this film to their Warner Archives, DVD on Demand Service.

First, let me say how much I love the Warner Archive, and the DVD service. When I first heard of this I got really excited. Finally I was going to get to see some long forgotten classics or own copies of some old favorites. Well, so far, that hasn't quite been the case as most of the released films to this point aren't of interest. I mean, sure I flirted with the idea of Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze and Captain Nemo and the Underwater City but neither of those films were strong enough to get me to pull the trigger and order a DVD at $20 when I kind of know enough about each to think they're more likely $10 films at best.

Freebie and the Bean though? Call it a curiosity of my youth, coupled with some legendary reviews pointing this out to be some precursor to the age of 80's action films (A genre I hold dear) and well, I broke down and placed my order.

The DVD is bare bones. You get the film and the trailer. The sound quality is a little rough and I had to jack it up to hear the dialog. (and hurriedly lower the volume during the many action scenes) There's some visible film snags and it's by no means a remastered copy, but I knew that going in. That's the deal with the archive films. You get the best copy of what's available, but there's been no money spent on improving the quality. For what it's worth though, it was highly watchable and the quality didn't detract too much from the viewing experience.

Now, as for the film itself, Freebie and the Bean is Lethal Weapon 2 70's style. It's also Bad Boys, The Last Boyscout and any number of similar films and clearly a precursor of things to come. Only, it's less polished. A lot less polished to be honest. The fights are terrible when the actual actors are involved. So many obvious "near-miss" punches you could make a drinking game out of it. (Alan Arkin deserves a special prize for being unable to sell a punch.)

All of that's kind of forgivable when the stunt men are front and center though. There is a lot of action in this film, a lot of cars get totaled. I mean a Blues Brothers amount of cars.

The comedy was probably considered edgy for it's time and there's a lot of racial slurs being thrown around. Many of which seem like they are there just to be shocking, but for the most part aren't used cleverly enough to stand up today.

This is starting to sound like a bad review and I don't want to give that impression.

What does work in this film is James Caan and Alan Arkin's camaraderie. They make a great pair and play off each other as easily and fun as Gibson & Glover or Smith & Lawrence. There's a great scene with Freebie and his mistress, an educated English teacher, that was a nice surprise character bit. Also, the whole ending climax, set during a San Francisco hosted Super Bowl, works great and I have to say I was caught by surprise over one of the twists.

As to why I wasn't allowed to watch this film? I honestly have no idea as it all seems pretty tame by today's standards. Well, that's not entirely true. There's a lot of foul language and racial slurs and implied sexual situations, though without any actual showing of the goods (apart from the cute ass of some skinny chick who makes a very brief appearance early in the film.) AND there's the gay/cross-dressing tranny, which is most likely why my mother put the kibosh on this when I was under 10. I suppose that was probably pretty shocking to a 70's audience who hadn't yet seen The Crying Game. However, it all comes across kind of harmless in the end.

I suppose I wouldn't recommend this to a general audience, but clearly 70's film aficionados and action film fans interested in seeing the origins of the genre should definitely check this one out.

The rest of you, give it a pass.