Harlan Ellison's Art Deco Dining Pavillion RSS

Mason Proffit album "disappeared"?

shandragore — Wed, 16 May 12 16:24:23 -0400

I may be totally misremembering this, but it seems that I read in
"The Glass Teat" about an effective anti-war album by Mason Proffit being pulled from the market despite brisk sales.

If this is correct, or even nearly so, can anyone provide me with the name of that album?

No title.

W. Owen Powell — Wed, 16 May 12 15:10:31 -0400

Just saw this posted elsewhere, had to toss it in:

WHAT DO WE WANT? TIME TRAVEL!

WHEN DO WE WANT IT? IT DOESN'T MATTER!

Carlos Fuentes' final works

Alejandro Riera — Wed, 16 May 12 14:50:12 -0400

Carlos may have left us, but he also left behind two completed works that will see the light of day in Latin America and Spain this year: "Personas," a memoir of those individuals who influenced his work and his life (Buñuel, Julio Cortazar, François Mitterand, etc.) and "Federico en su balcón" (Friedrich on his balcony) where Fuentes' literary alter ago holds a series of fictional conversations with Friedrich Nietzsche who just happens to live nearby.

When these works will be available in English, who knows. Fuentes published five works (novels, essays and short story collections) that have yet to see the light of day In Shakespeare's language.

21st century co-worker

Phil Nichols — Wed, 16 May 12 14:41:07 -0400

Jeff R., has it occured to you? Maybe she's not dumb.

Maybe... she's... a time traveller!

Just When I Thought They Couldn't Get Any Dumber...

Jeff R. — Wed, 16 May 12 14:34:13 -0400

Yesterday, a co-worker asked me if this is the 21st century. She wasn't sure.

I swear by whatever you guys would have me swear by that I am NOT making this up.

No title.

Diane Bartels — Wed, 16 May 12 13:32:15 -0400

Hi Tim. I cant get my email to work. So I may post some poems here. I have to finish my story, it isnt science fiction or horror, it's just a story. Maybe I will win the lottery and fly to LA with my stories for the powers that be to review.

No title.

Frank Church — Wed, 16 May 12 09:22:05 -0400

Fuentes was a great man. Clasped hands over a gaggle of doves.

Condolences, Sympathies and Prayer

Brian Phillips — Wed, 16 May 12 07:50:09 -0400

As always, Harlan, I and others on the Pavilion grieve and (some) pray for the families, friends and fans of these men.

I wish to add one person to the mix, although none of you knew her: my cousin, Harriet Broadus. She passed last week, however, I am not as sad as I could be, because I saw her in March. She was happy, in her right mind, got around on her own power, aided by a walker. She even sang one of her favorite spirituals...

...at her 100TH BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION!

Sad she's gone? Of course, but as I tend to say, do tell someone that you love that you love them. I'm glad I got the chance with my cousin, because I almost didn't make the trip to Baltimore. I'm glad I listened to my wife.

Love to all of you.

Dad told me that I have to say that.

Brian Phillips

Tony DeZuniga

Tony Isabella — Wed, 16 May 12 05:25:12 -0400

I echo Harlan's comments about Tony DeZuniga. The man could draw and draw anything. His romance comics were amazing, just like his work on Conan, Jonah Hex, Thor, and so many others.

I only met Tony once or twice while I was on staff at Marvel, but he was a good guy. I probably couldn't list everything we did together when I was an editor. He also drew one of my favorite of my own Marvel stories: Bounty for a Vampire.

Easiest sale I ever made to Marv Wolfman. Four words. Dracula versus Jonah Hex. He gave me the green light.

When I turned in the plot, Marv made my week:

"Oh, yeah, Tony DeZuniga will be drawing this."

Tony

P.S. The Hilliker Curse

DTS — Wed, 16 May 12 04:50:12 -0400

Hey, ALL:
Meant to include this p.s. on the last posting, but somehow managed to post before finishing my typng. So I hope I'll be forgiven for this, and I will, of course, go radio silent for three days.

While on the subject of great reads (Harlan's forthcoming reprint below), I wanted to also recommend, THE HILLIKER CURSE by James Ellroy. It is, in my estimation, one of the finest memoirs by a writer that I've ever read. It is, by turns, funny, frustrating, moving and enlightening. Sometimes it's almost too much -- which is a reflection of the author, and his stage persona. Other times, it is spot-on perfect, like prose poetry. And, although I admittedly only got to know the man just a little (from two separate meetings and interviews while both of us were living in Kansas City), I think it is a stunning portrait of a troubled guy --someone who came from a background of childhood abuse and violence (something with which I'm familiar, to a lesser degree) -- who is reshaping himself, and his future, via the love of several good women -- and one woman in particular. One line in the book, near the end, says it all: "She commands me to step out of the dark and into the light."

Although I certainly don't agree with his political view of the world most of the time (he still sees Reagan as someone to be admired over Bill Clinton -- on the other hand, he comes out and calls "Dubya" odious and says he voted for Obama), I do enjoy Ellroys novels and found him to be a truly nice guy, at core (at the time I met and spoke with him, he was still struggling with inner demons, but his stage "persona" -- and much of the talk was just that -- all talk). Ellroy and his new-found love, Erika Schickel, may not last as long as Harlan and Susan, but after reading this memoir (especially the last section, Part VI, HER, which details Ellroy's final transformation into a better man and human being), I find myself hoping they certainly do.

In any case, pick up a copy of the book -- it's in paperback, so it's cheap. The writers among you will dig it (who among us hasn't "conjured" a woman now and then -- especially through his writing?), and I think others will, too.

Disappearing for awhile.
Cheers,
DTS

No title.

Mark W. Tiedemann — Wed, 16 May 12 04:41:16 -0400

Mr. Barber,

Great camera work. I took the time (finally!) to go through the rest of the images on your site.

Very good, sir. Every good. Thank you.

PULLING A TRAIN -- preorders at Norton Records site?

DTS — Wed, 16 May 12 04:25:38 -0400

Hey EVERYONE: I _think_ that PULLING A TRAIN may be available for preorder (from Kicks Books and Norton Records). If you got to the Norton Records site, you'll find the book -- in "vanilla" and "chocolate" flavors (that is, regular and boxed/limited editions), as well as "Sex Gang" perfume, available for order via Paypal (and/or via email).

Cheers,
DTS

You expected me to say something pithy, didn't you?

Tim Raven — Tue, 15 May 12 23:53:27 -0400

Monicas Contraption

I built a contraption
For Monica
It had no moving parts
This thing will last a thousand years!
I said.

When the future people dig it up
they will exclaim in future language
Look at this contraption!
and they will be
exactly
right.

Give me a little more time.

Tim Raven

Tony De Zuniga

John Williams — Tue, 15 May 12 22:29:11 -0400

Very sorry to hear of his passing. As a kid I devoured hundreds of pages of his work, especially his finishes over John Buscema's wonderful pencils on CONAN and THOR. I believe no one was better suited to Buscema as a collaborator than Tony.

Harlan, you have my condolences.

No title.

Rob — Tue, 15 May 12 22:07:23 -0400

Oh, fer chrissake, re: my last post/reply to DTS...I meant the impact of words here are "NOT unalterable"

--------------------------------------------------

In any event, my condolences, Harlan.

---------------------------------------------------

If there are any SHERLOCK fans here, I was disappointed - I THINK - with the show's take on HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES, aired in America last weekend. More convoluted than it needed to be - I THINK! The segment was not scripted by Moffat, and that may account for the letdown.

-----------------------------------------------------

A current film titled KEYHOLE: I'm very interested in seeing if this one works. I really love the LOOK!
-----------------------------------------------------

The Lakers need Phil Jackson back!

Another...

Mark Barsotti — Tue, 15 May 12 21:13:39 -0400

...PM post about Harlan, from 2005, before the curtain opened on his "third act," still happily well-underway.

http://www.popmatters.com/pm/feature/050714-ellisonharlan/

DREAM WITH SHARP TEETH and other stuff

Mark Barsotti — Tue, 15 May 12 21:06:56 -0400

Other stuff first:

Tim Raven: Welcome back. I enjoy your rants to greater or lesser degrees (the one that got you banished I found both odious & very well-written), but they never bore and crackl with energy and uncensored outside-the-box opinion, traits that I value. All the best in harnessing your demons to productive ends. In that battle, you're certainly not alone.

Frank Church: in re: the Prez pandering on gay marriage. Politicians sometimes do the right thing because they feel it's to their advantage? I'm shocked, shocked I say.

Link below is to a review of DREAMS WITH SHARP TEETH. If any fellow diners have yet to see it, correct that oversight with your next click on AMAZON or NETFLIX. It's a fairly insightful review from a great website, POP MATTERS, where clicking around can find one articles on Mort Sahl and Lenny Bruce, reviews on all musical genres, comics, movies, and our esteemed host. The only bad thing to be said about PM, and it's a fairly grievous sin, is that they don't pay their writers.

And Harlan, happy pre-birthday. Bets hell out of the alternative, eh?

http://www.popmatters.com/pm/post/93953-harlan-ellison-dreams-with-sharp-teeth-2008/

Mark by the beach

FIRST GALLERY

Steve Barber — Tue, 15 May 12 20:04:02 -0400

HARLAN: I have published the first seven shots Bud Webster sent me of the Milford Conference.

They be here: http://mysite.verizon.net/res7n0zi/id59.html

BUD: The shots not yet loaded are proofs, not jpegs. I can't open them. Do you have them in another format???

No title.

FinderDoug — Tue, 15 May 12 19:56:37 -0400

It'll be Harlan's birthday, but Kicks Books is giving us the gift: PULLING A TRAIN has a street date of May 27.

More info - including that great gender-flipped cover homage to SEX GANG - posted in their blog:

http://www.kicksbooks.blogspot.com/2012/05/harlan-ellison-is-on-loose-do-not.html

No title.

Sara Slaymaker — Tue, 15 May 12 19:44:24 -0400

Boy, I go away for a few months, and look what I come back to.

Tim Raven, I missed the brouhaha that sent you away. No matter, I don't need to know. Welcome back. As Wayne Dyer says, "When you judge other people, you do not define them; rather, you define yourself as someone who needs to judge." I would like to believe that I am, and I continue to strive to be, someone who does not need to judge. And as someone who nearly lost her only child to the same demons that stalk you and Harlan, I know your pain. Hang in there, kiddo. Don't lose sight.

Harlan, dammit, I've missed you. The rest of youse guys, too. I'll try to stop in a little more often. Life has been interesting, but pretty much only to me, so I won't bore you. I look forward to reading and participating in great discussions. And, oh yeah, what did happen to Fishheads in Aspic??

DEATH IN THREES

HARLAN ELLISON — Tue, 15 May 12 19:17:27 -0400

It is said, ridiculously, death comes in threes. By that, I presume, it is meant "three notables" (to whomever) are presaged by the deaths of two preceding. Death, of course, works blue-collar overtime double-golden-time hours: hundreds a day. No doubt thousands, Darfur, Indonesia, the Sudan, the Sandwich Islands...and we take no note.

But on this day of the going of Jay Kay, and the inimitable, the oh ever so great Carlos Fuentes, I have been apprised also of the recent passing of the comics maestro, the fine writer Tony De Zuniga, creator of--among a host--Black Orchid and Jonah Hex.

Three may be the number. But it is a mugg's game.

Sadly, Harlan

Addendum: Words

Steve Perry — Tue, 15 May 12 17:49:36 -0400

About the Tim Raven matter: Nothing new to add.

About the subject of words? Um. A simple truth: Words are the only toy we have to play with here. Sure, we can add a link -- using, ah, words and symbols -- to pictures or movies or ancient maps of Atlantis, but the name of the game in this kind of forum is words on a screen.

That, as Minnesota Fats said to Fast Eddie, is all you get, kid.

Can I pick up the phone and call? Sure. Maybe even get together, circumstances permitting. But here? HERE BE THE WORDS. Period.

It is disingenuous to go off on a tear about how meaningless words are in such a setting. They are all we got, and while smell-o-vision and pheromone TV might be in our future, along with telepathy and radiopathic orgasms, what we have right here, right now, are -- wait for it --

Words.

Input, these are, by vox or keyboard or some other instrument that strains 'em into the aether and zips them across time and space to appear on our computer screens.

Doesn't do you any good to lament how ineffective they are, vis a vis face-to-face communication, we all know that. It's what's for dinner, folks, and if you don't care for the menu, try another restaurant.

(And the idea that NOBODY ever goes past that, EVER? Patently wrong. I've gone to meet folks face-to-face that I've met online, to see the bigger picture, and I know a shitload of others who have done the same.)

I got your humanity right here.

Perry

Ignore!

Phil Nichols — Tue, 15 May 12 13:56:00 -0400

Hah! Barney replied to himself while I was replying to him!

Jay Kay Klein's work preserved

Phil Nichols — Tue, 15 May 12 13:54:38 -0400

Barney, I have read that at least some of Jay Kay Klein's archive was donated to the Eaton Collection at University of California Riverside before his death. (If you Google Jay Kay Klein and Eaton, you should find plenty of details.)

This has to be one of the safest places his work could have gone to.

- Phil

United States

Barney Dannelke — Tue, 15 May 12 13:52:38 -0400

*** Jay Kay Klein ***

Please ignore my last post. It seems it's covered...

"...He donated his collection of fandom photographs to the Eaton Collection of Science Fiction & Fantasy at the University of California Riverside."

United States

Barney Dannelke — Tue, 15 May 12 13:48:50 -0400

*** Jay Kay Klein ***

Does anyone know (perhaps this is too soon) who will be handling his estate? It would be more than a bit of a thought crime for that trove to not be properly preserved - or, at least archived/copied before being scattered to the winds. There is at least one well intentioned person I would nominate (not myself) if it's something that's just going to sit around.

- Barney

No title.

Jan — Tue, 15 May 12 12:37:49 -0400

Advance review of Shadow Show: All-New Stories in Celebration of Ray Bradbury (July) which will in turn be celebrated at Comicon
www.bleedingcool.com/2012/05/13/auto-draft-5/

Sorry to hear about the deaths.

FUENTES and JAY KAY

HARLAN ELLISON — Tue, 15 May 12 12:21:50 -0400

This is a great sad day.

-he

And, alas, Jay Kay is not the only one

Alejandro Riera — Tue, 15 May 12 12:15:18 -0400

The Grim Reaper took with him another dear and important cultural icon: Mexican novelist Carlos Fuentes died this morning of cardiac complications at age 83.

Two giants, two fountains of knowledge, gone.

Alejandro

R.I.P. JAY KAY KLEIN

HARLAN ELLISON — Tue, 15 May 12 10:41:05 -0400

Notice of the pssing of photographer (longtime fan historian) Jay Kay Klein, via Spider Robinson's post, should not be taken lightly. If there has been one person who preserved our genre's past, and the likenesses of our icons, it was good friend Jay Kay, alwys there whenn you needed a photo, a fount of accurate information. His passing is a landmark; not a happy one; but one that all should pass a moment of silent memory to honor, for a lifetime of service and camaraderie to an infinitude of the grateful among us.

Goodby, Jay Kay, old dear.

Yr. grateful pal, Harlan

ATTN: Susan--MIND FIELDS well received!

Le — Tue, 15 May 12 10:38:54 -0400

Susan --

Just picked up the book from the Post Office now! Thank you for the prompt shipping and the careful packing job. (My postman actually attempted a delivery yesterday, but I has just gotten off from another grueling 12-hour night/graveyard shift that morning, so slept right through his knock.)

MR ELLISON --

Thank you very much, sir, for signing and personalizing my book! I love the gorgeous blue ink you used, too. Am always in awe every time I see your unmistakable, angular signature. I shall treasure this book forever.

It is a beautiful day, and the air is sweet with the scent of honeysuckle....

No title.

Frank Church — Tue, 15 May 12 07:05:27 -0400

Obama's stance on gay marriage is soooooooo tiresome. He obviously did it to pander to the gay people who donate to his campaign. It is the usual political trick.

Hate to admit, but Sarah Palin was correct, it was mostly a bunch of 'Hopey, changie' bunk.

Psssst, cough, cough, Jill Stein, cough, cough...

----------

According to Chomskers only ten percent of Americans vote on issues, while the rest vote on personalities, emotions.

Sad.

---------

Rob, your words towards me just bounce off, right?

No title.

Steve Barber — Tue, 15 May 12 04:40:08 -0400

Thanks, Bud!

HARLAN, I do indeed have the pics. I'm back in town this evening and will post them for your perusal.

A Bit Early

Rob — Mon, 14 May 12 23:05:23 -0400

DTS,

Words do, indeed, have power. They have the power to hurt, in some cases destroy. They also hold the power to heal, to reconcile, and in some cases broaden self-perception.

Whether it was a fault in my phrasing or just cursory reading on your own part, I NEVER implied words havent POWER!

I am arguing that in the setting of social discourse, words hold the force of water, able to push great masses in any potential direction. Few instances, CERTAINLY this one, given our hosts chose to allow Tim Raven to stay, are UNALTERABLE. This is true BECAUSE of the power of words.

Note that in my last post, I used affect as a noun, meaning, in psychology, influence over something that already exists. In this example, how we and Tim Raven act upon the words earlier is what can potentially reshape the dialog and perhaps even lead to a new understanding within ourselves and each other. POTENTIALLY! BECAUSE of the power of words, this is not unalterable.

"By words we learn thoughts, and by thoughts we learn life."
- Jean Baptiste Girard

Just so ya know...

DTS — Mon, 14 May 12 21:38:45 -0400

Just so ya know -- I KNOW it's not for a while, yet. Which is why I wished Harlan a happy (actually it should have been Merry) UN-birthday.

Words, the (hopefully) passing imbroglio and...Harlan

DTS — Mon, 14 May 12 21:37:11 -0400

ROB:
You couldn't be more wrong.
But don't take it personally when I tell you that. A LOT of people, including some writers, often think "words are just words". In a thoroughly humane and (at core) kind-hearted stage routine, Lenny Bruce tried to convince his audience one could drain words of power by repetition. Not so. Words hold power. They are, after all, the means by which we communicate with each other. Nigger, which was a bastardization of the word negro (meaning black) came to be a derogatory word for Africans and anyone with a mix of that race in their bloodlines. Although African-Americans have tried to drain it of its power by "claiming it" for their own ("You my nigger", "What's up, nigger?" and so on), it still retains the power to infuriate because of the way the epithet was wielded beginining some time during the slave years in the United States.

The word cunt used to be an erotic term, and matirarchal societies applied it to women as a term of respect and sensuality. Priests of patriarchal societies (chiefly from the emerging Christian sects), men who despised women and the power their sex holds over our gender, twisted the meaning of the word until it became one of the worst, if not _the_ worst, epithet someone can sling at a woman.

Young women of recent generations believe they have reclaimed the word "bitch" as their own (Things like "Hey, bitches! What's up!" and so on, are often said in gatherings of young females). They are dead wrong. When a man wants to refer to a woman as an asshole, someone who underminds his authority, or as an object that vexes him, he just about always calls her a bitch. And, of course, since the original definition of the word referred to a female dog, one can easily figure out why the word became a favorite epithet of men who wanted to express dislike for, and disdain of, women. Women and men alike repeat it all the time, saying they are only using it in a "street patois" sense, and that doing so further drains it of any negative power. Yeah, sure it does.

Our words, and the way we invest them with meaning, have power. _Especially_ hurtful words spoken by someone you love or respect. But angry (and/or hurtful) words spoken _about_ something, or someone, that means a lot to you also have power.

Don't fool yourself, Rob. Words have power. Perhaps a certain word holds absolutely _no_ power over _you_. But that doesn't mean it won't hold sway over the emotions and lives of others. And that doesn't mean there aren't some syllables and words out there which can lay you low when uttered by the right person.

Words have power.

REGARDING THE (hopefully) PASSING IMBROGLIO: ATC, and a few others who have said so, have it right. This is "Harlan's house", built and maintained by the estimable Rick Wyatt. We should all respect his wishes.

And, last but not least, regarding the subect of

HARLAN: Here's hoping we can get to subjbects pertaining to his writing. Because I, for one, am DYIN' to know more about the BLOOD'S A ROVER announcement.

I mean, is the forthcoming publication going to be BLOOD's A ROVER the novel, or "Blood's a Rover" the teleplay? (After all, Harlan did a long teleplay, that was to be a pilot, I believe, which was never filmed/produced -- and which included a new character in the "Vic & Blood" universe, a certain person named "Spike", I think.

Also:
HARLAN: Will the long essay preceding "Weariness" (forthcoming in the SHADOW SHOW, Ray Bradbury tribute anthology, in July) be allowed to stand -- especially since it was alleged to explain why "Weariness" was your last short story -- something you wrote at a time when you thought your illness was far more serious)?
(Whew! Hows THAT for too many parenthetical asides?)

And what the heck ever happened to A FISH HEAD IN ASPIC? Or "Stallactites"? Or "Sticks and Stones May Break Your Bones"?

These, and many other Harlan Ellison-writing questions lay waiting, at the foot of Ellison Wonderland, nuhdzing/niggling you for answers (left there by your favorite nudhz-cum-honorary jew -- either that, or they were left there by a dog-like beast with strange joints...the same one that left that gobbet of meat).

Cheers to all from oz,
--DTS
P.S. Oh, and HAPPY UN-BIRTHDAY, HARLAN! (Yr pal, Dorman)

Photos uploaded

Bud Webster — Mon, 14 May 12 21:19:30 -0400

Harlan, Steve Barber has them, and I'm sure he'll pos here when he's made them available.

You're in several of them, along with people like Avram Davidson, Silverberg (of course), and Damon.

No title.

Martens — Mon, 14 May 12 18:38:36 -0400

Johnny Carson's on my tube tonight. Caught Roger Ebert's "heads up" tweet to:

http://blogs.suntimes.com/demand/2012/05/johnny_carson_the_man_behind.html

An AMERICAN MASTERS, voiced by Kevin Spacey. "I did not know that." (wink)

Harlan's Comics

Chris — Mon, 14 May 12 18:00:17 -0400

Thanks for the tip on Blast Off Comics. I just bought X-Men #9 where they meet the Avengers for the first time. Very cool.

happy birth month Harlan

irrelevant — Mon, 14 May 12 17:27:29 -0400

50 years ago...A Clockwork Orange

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2012/may/14/happy-birthday-a-clockwork-orange

authoritarians come to the rescue, if only for a moment, of the adolescent drive.

kubrick is on my tv tonight.

Unca Harlan's Comics

Alejandro Riera — Mon, 14 May 12 15:22:53 -0400

A brief break in the discussion here to draw your attention to the following video produced by blasroffcomics.com where our good host shows off (part of) his comic book collection:

http://www.blastoffcomics.com/2012/05/the-harlan-ellison-collection-is-only-at-blastoff/

no native uprising

cynic — Mon, 14 May 12 15:11:29 -0400

"you knew the job was dangerous when you took it fred"

brave, brave man that fred...
(wyatt)

Sigh - In Response To Emails

ATC — Mon, 14 May 12 14:41:20 -0400

My Raven comments a few posts back were directed generally, not specifically. No one person was targeted. I was not "sniping" at anyone. Okay?

No title.

Duane — Mon, 14 May 12 12:51:48 -0400

It wouldn't surprise me if Harlan sees in Tim a kindred spirit. And I mean this in a good way. There are people in all our lives (particularly those of us who hang out in places such as this) who's relationships with us can be real head scratchers to others. Harlan's literally a "one in a million" guy, and it's my opinion that he sees in a few rare individuals things about himself that he likes. Perhaps Tim is one of the lucky few. Just a thought.

BUD WEBSTER REPLY

HARLAN ELLISON — Mon, 14 May 12 11:46:52 -0400

TRY JUST POSTING THEM HERE, AT THE pAVILION. i AM USELESS WITH THIS SORT OF PHOTOTECHNOLOGY, BUT CERTAINLY sTEVE bARBER, HERE, OR wEBMASTER rICK wYATT CAN AFFECT THIS FOR YOU. i'LL HELP AS MUCH AS ai CAN.

yR. pAL, hARLAN

No title.

Rob — Mon, 14 May 12 11:19:01 -0400

When The Trigger Is Pulled

Words are just words. In the capriciousness of the social setting, seldom are words unalterable in their affect. This is particularly true when people don't know each other beyond cyber-posting.

Speaking for myself, I can't take it TOO seriously when a guy who is spiritually destitute channels his pain thru an invitation to "cum on his face"!

Human beings simply don't engage each other enough. We are quick to judge or distance ourselves from those we cannot relate to or "figure" out, inevitably measuring them from the confines of our own individual experience, often invoking standards we set for ourselves (standards even we ourselves often fail to meet) readily assuming everyone else can do likewise.

NONE of us here - without exception, hosts included - try to learn anything about the guys and dolls outside personalities we relate to, in order to understand them. Honest personal engagement between people - the approach of listening, learning, and finding a shared understanding - would, I believe, make us a nobler species.

My suggestion to Tim Raven, if he chooses to invest time on this board, is to talk about his experiences and his struggles, that we, in turn, who face our own demons and quagmires, might relate to Tim what solutions we sought or FAILED at. That's, in part, how groups find a meeting of the minds.

Focus on solutions, or SEEKING solutions, rather than the lingering pain itself. It helps you move on.

NO final trigger has been pulled. That ultimately depends on how unreachable we choose to remain as individuals. Most words can be reconciled. The EFFORT, from all parties, to reconcile is what determines the outcome of your isolation.

We all need to engage each other. Otherwise, our primal defense mechanisms make us nothing better than a pack of dogs.

------------------------------------------------------
God! This is heavy stuff to wake up to in the a.m.! And I haven't even had coffee yet!

In MY Defense.

Lori Koonce — Mon, 14 May 12 11:15:09 -0400

ATC: If you take a good look at the timing of the last few posts, you'll notice that I didn't speak up until Rick mentioned the fact that he saw no objections to Mr. Raven's return.

Had Rick made that post in the forums, that's where I'd have responded, if he sent an Email blast, I'd have responded in that manner. But, he chose to say that HERE, and here is where I chose to log my response.

I was going to do that anyways, because it's the only place where Harlan would see it. Having Rick claim that there were no objections just made it that much more important to me that I speak up.

If you'll allow me to send you an Email, I'll more than gladly explain the motives behind what I said. I think once you know why I did what I did, you'll at least understand why I had to do it.

An Inconvenient Truth

ATC — Mon, 14 May 12 10:59:06 -0400

Guys, it's also true that if you're a regular guest in a man's home, and one of the other perennial guests strikes you as an abrasive boor, you take your cue from the host's reaction to the person acting as irritant. If the price of being allowed into the cocktail party hosted by someone you love is dealing with another guest who irritates you, then you swallow your visceral displeasure and move on, satisfying yourself with the unambiguous rewards the party does provide. Harlan has made his wishes on this matter clear. You only make the matter worse by refusing to let it drop.

Lalo Schifrin's Score to Memo From Purgatory available on CD

Bob Engesser — Mon, 14 May 12 10:51:15 -0400

Lalo Schifrin's score to the TV adaption of Memo from Purgatory has just been released on the CD, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, Volume 3 (Volumes 1 and 2 contained Bernard Herrmann's music for the series). It is limited to 1,000 CDs and is available from specialist soundtrack vendors and here: http://www.varesesarabande.com/servlet/the-1042/Alfred-Hitchcock-Hour%2C-The-cln-/Detail

No title.

Frank Church — Mon, 14 May 12 09:41:31 -0400

Obviously Raven will be on a very short leash--he understands this. Will be interesting to see what he says.

-------------

Lori, you are my girl, but you have said similar things to me that are similar to Ravenism. I have said things, taken in bad faith, sometimes I make a bad attempt at humour. Best that we see what happens. Remember, the leash?

Armor!

Steve Barr — Mon, 14 May 12 09:37:14 -0400

"...there are men whom one hates until a certain moment when one sees, through a chink in their armor, the writhing of something nailed down and in torment."
Gerald Kersh

...just sayin' S

Echoing Lori About TR

shagin — Sun, 13 May 12 21:13:59 -0400

This is not my internet home, and it is my hope that the choices made here are made in good faith, but I have to agree with Lori. Apologies don't do a damn bit of good once the trigger has been pulled or set out in the open, no matter how sincere the admission that frightened animals bite.

shagin

No title.

Steve Barber — Sun, 13 May 12 19:56:03 -0400

BUD - Email the files to me if they're not too overwhelming. I'm equipped for photographic display (don't the punchlines just write themselves?) and can post to my website for our host to see -- and get them to him hardcopy should he so desire.
----------------------------------------

HARLAN -Confirming our conversation Friday last that a packet did indeed hit the mail that morning. If you didn't get it Saturday I'd expect it on the morrow.

---------------------------------------

For some godknowswhy reason, I'm headed to PHX tomorrow for meetings all day and into the night.

It's 104 degrees. One Hundred Plus Four. Degrees.

There is a REASON I live near a flipping ocean, folks!

Two years ago I'm snowbound in Philly, now I'm to roast in the desert.

I need to update the resume...

--------------------------------------------
Cheers to Lori. Harlan and Rick run the place, and it's strictly their decision. I've met Tim and he was quite a nice guy, but I've seen the vitriol his dark side can throw about. I don't envy him his challenge. I know Harlan is extremely supportive. Tim needs that kind of friend.

But kudos to Lori for having the cajones to speak up if she has a concern.

Milford 1956

Bud Webster — Sun, 13 May 12 18:43:32 -0400

Harlan, mon vieux:

The family of Ted Thomas has sent me a set of photos taken at the 1956 Milford Conference and asked me if I can identify those present. Silverberg has IDed a number of them, including one in which you're standing to one side in a pair of checked swim trunks, but there are others that he (and others) can't place.

Short of printing them out (which I can't do right now anyway) and mailing them, is there somewhere here at WebderLand I can upload them for your perusal?

About Mr. Raven

Lori Koonce — Sun, 13 May 12 16:23:51 -0400

I was going to sit on this for awhile, make sure that I wasn't speaking out of turn or being rude.

But I do have one question for HE and the powers that be.

Mr. Raven is healthy enough to know he's got a problem and even healthy enough to know when it will cause problems. Why should a person with this level of awareness be aloud to continue to do the things he does?

Mr. Ellison, this is your internet home, and you have the right to see that it's run in the manner that pleases you most. But, please consider the following:

I too suffer from Major Depressive Disorder and go off medication at times. But, knowing that I'm capable of causing you and the others here nothing but a heap of trouble, I stick to the forums when I'm off medications.

This is rather crude, but it's the best way I can think to ask...
How many times does a dog get to shit in the corner before you refuse to let him back in?

Raven

Rick Wyatt — Sun, 13 May 12 15:43:06 -0400

Harlan knows that he and a few close friends are allowed to post as often as they like. And I've taken a couple people back on his word. But aside from that, this is the first time he's ever given someone a vouch. And there appears to be no native uprising here over that.

So Tim, you're back in the treehouse. You're not on any sort of probation, and you're welcome to post here (within the 24 hour rule of course) as often as you like.

Now, I don't hold depression as giving one any special dispensation to be rude to or inconvenience others. I have sympathy for you, but I gotta be clear about that or it will become a blanket excuse for misbehavior around here. You still have to answer to the people here if you misbehave. But on Harlan's say, you'll always get a chance to explain.

Welcome back. I hope I continue to hear from you rather than about you.

No title.

Chuck Messer — Sun, 13 May 12 13:59:03 -0400

Tim Raven:

Peace, dude. I know what it feels like when the animal is clawing you apart from the inside. There were times when it left me on the floor sobbing. One of the best things you can do is let us know when it happens.

Chuck

Re: Gor

Jordan Owen — Sun, 13 May 12 13:21:43 -0400

Harlan,

Thank you sir.

-Jordan

Tim Raven

Phil Nichols — Sun, 13 May 12 13:16:09 -0400

Welcome back, Tim. Your return is, er, copacetic.

- Phil

REPLY TO JORDAN OWEN

HARLAN ELLISON — Sun, 13 May 12 13:13:11 -0400

I have nothing to add to the new Gor conversation, save to note that though the Gor books were held in low esteem by the majority of professionals of my era, I once actually met "John Norman," and he was a charming, erudite academic. I have never read the series, so have no opinion, one way or another. Sorry, troops.

Yr. Pal, Harlan

@ATC re: Gor

Jordan Owen — Sun, 13 May 12 12:20:38 -0400

Thanks mate, and additional thanks to everyone who responded. Book 7 is Captive of Gor, so I'll definitely be reading that. Here's an overview from a Gor website:

"Spoiled, rich young Elinor Brinton was no longer on Earth. She had been kidnapped from her New York apartment and carried across space to Gor by alien slavers. Then the ship was wrecked and she was stranded on the strange world of Counter-Earth, where women were only property, to be beaten and subjugated at the will of the men who were their Masters. Life to her became a never-ending nightmare. In the great luxury city of Ko-ro-ba, she was trained in the provocative skills of a pleasure slave. In the Northern Forests of Gor, she was captured by the fierce outlaw Panther Girls. And finally came Rask of Treve to teach her what all women should learn!"

Sounds like an intergalactic "Story of O" to me.
-Jordan

ps, Kudos to Tim. HE, if you have anything to add on the subject of Gor and John Norman, would be greatly appreciated.

Raven

Keeney — Sun, 13 May 12 11:45:35 -0400

Welcome back, man.

peace,
Keeney

HARLAN NOTES TIM RAVEN'S RETURN

HARLAN ELLISON — Sun, 13 May 12 10:52:31 -0400

By now, those of you who are regulars at this little coven will be aware of the retrun from Webmster banishment of our often-posting associate Mr. Tim Raven.

It is with my full blessing and backing. I have spoken with Tim on several occasions and I ask your friendship, forbearance and camaraderie in making him welcome. Tim suffers from the same ailment that has laid me low, and from tme to time, to put surcease to the anguish of the meds, he will forsake them, and turn to beer to ease the pain. I reveal the foregoig not as apologia, merely as advisement. Tim has assured me he will do his utmost not to go off his chump when the beer and the pain get too much for him. This is a small home or him, and we must all admit to our occasional, sometimes, extreme, schmuckdom. As the Heir to the Throne of the Kingdom of Schmucks, I am guiltier than most; and you have always been forgiving to me. Tim is a very good guy, he has said what we all feel from nonce to nonce--fear, fright, derangement--and I ask that you welcome him back in my name. I believe him when he says he will struggle against further outbursts. I think that is a fair option so we can benefit from his poetry and conversations. I stand at his back. He has said to me that if he strays again, when he sobers up he will apologize. I ask that no one stick pins till said has happened. You know who you are. Please. On my behalf, restraint.

This is a GOOD GUY. Give him, in my name, the break you would give me....and yourselves.

Thank you in advance, Yr. Pal, Harlan

2nd half of prior post

ATC — Sun, 13 May 12 09:46:02 -0400

Jordan - you are not covering GOR if you do not read at least one of the books written from the point of view of women ultimately rendered grateful for their imprisonment.

Pre-emptive Clarification / More GOR

Adam-Troy Castro — Sun, 13 May 12 09:43:30 -0400

Folks here may run across news headlines reporting the death of author Peter David. This is of course a sad event, but the headlines refer to non-fiction journalist Peter David (who is affliated with THE ECONOMIST), and absolutely not sf/fantasy/comics writer Peter David, a friend to more than one of us. Important clarification.

No title.

Diane Bartels — Sun, 13 May 12 06:54:47 -0400

Tim. I too have a secret. And it is the same one. I too am afraid. Most of the time. Of all the things you mentioned. Of brushing my teeth. Of God. And of myself. It was a long time b4 I accepted that Harlan and Susan and Rick and Steve make this a safe place. I am your friend. I never give up on my friends. One little thing I have in common with Harlan. Be well. DB

Gor

ATC — Sat, 12 May 12 21:06:38 -0400

Jordan,

Quite a few years ago, decades, I read two of the Gor novels from later in the series, which had nothing to do with the Tarl Cabot storylines. They were KAJIRA OF GOR and DANCER OF GOR, both the stories of wowen shanghaied to Gor who came to be deeply invested in their own enslavement. Whatever you make of me finishing not just one but two novels in the series, I report only that it was a woman in her early twenties who enthusiastically recommended them to me.

Captain Midnight

DC5 — Sat, 12 May 12 21:06:00 -0400

Do any of you think The Powers That Be will ever bring Captain Midnight to the big screen? Can it be done? Better yet, SHOULD it be done?

Jordan

Tim Raven — Sat, 12 May 12 19:24:22 -0400

Email me. I'll explain to you why both men and women respond sexually to Slave Girl of Gor.

Tim Raven

Gor

Steve Perry — Sat, 12 May 12 19:14:15 -0400

Jordan --

Talk to Betsy Wollheim. I asked her about these books, back in the day, and there were a couple of things she told me I found fascinating: The books paid for a lot of new writers when they were selling. (DAW did most of them.) And a lot of women read these things and wrote in to to say how much they loved them.

Go figure.

Perry

I spoke with Harlan this afternoon

Tim Raven — Sat, 12 May 12 19:04:38 -0400

I wrote a poem in responce to the group here. It is titled:

He seemed so nice

I am afraid
of getting up in the morning
I am afraid
of trying new things
I am afraid
of writing poetry
because of the bad stuff that I might sing.

I am afraid
that I am a failure
I am afraid
that Im losing my sanity
I am afraid
that Ive become weak
and afraid of
This March of Time

and I am afraid
of
You.

So watch out frightened animals
tend to bite.

Tim Raven

A humble request for insight into an unsavory subject...

Jordan Owen — Sat, 12 May 12 18:13:34 -0400

Dear Webderlanders and HE,

I write asking for any insights you all may be able to provide regarding the upcoming topic of an entry in my video blog. I am preparing a blog on the "Gor" novels by John Norman. The novels began in the 1960's as a Conan-meets-John-Carter sword-and-planet adventure series but quickly devolved into an on going, multi-volume series of diatribes on how men should be in charge of women and it is right for men to beat, rape, enslave and, if it pleases them, kill women.

I think those ideas are wrong and vile but I intend to counter them by rising to the challange presented by Norman, who has often conjectured that books present a philosophy that supports his worldview and that critics attack him without engaging with the philosophy itself. I intend to counter and refute his ideas fully and completely.

To this end I am reading the first eight novels in the Gor series (beginning with Tarnsman of Gor and ending with Hunters of Gor, though there are over twenty more novels in the series.) The novels follow the adventures and development of Tarl Cabot, a character who is initially opposed to slavery but, in the course of the books, becomes a cold hearted slave driver who is held up as Norman's ideal of manliness. My argument, on the whole, is that the process by which Cabot develops as a character is the same process by which an innocent boy grows up to become an abusive boyfriend or husband.

I write to Webderlanders and Harlan for any insight they might be able to provide on the topic of the Gor novels and their author that might help in this project.

PLEASE NOTE: I am NOT asking for mindless gossip about John Norman nor am I attempting to rock the boat with regards to professional relationships that may exist. I am not interested in sparking controversy or flame wars. I ask only for any insights into the man's ideas that might be gleaned from personal interaction with the man, which I have not had. I mean this in the sense that, for example, if one were working on an analysis of Scientology, HE's story of having been present at the dinner party at which it was conceived would be invaluable.

Additionally, I am interested in any perspectives on the books from others who might have read them.

Lastly- I realize that there is a considerable role-playing BDSM subgroup that is built around these books and I am not in any way shape or form contesting their right to consensually participate in those activities nor am I suggesting the books be banned or removed from sale. This is only a battle of ideas.

Yours in wonder,
-Jordan

ps- I have to think that if persons in anthropomorphic fandom are "furries," shouldn't fans of Gor be "Gorries?"

No title.

Frank Church — Sat, 12 May 12 11:17:46 -0400

Orson Welles, what about Orson Welles?

No title.

Rob — Sat, 12 May 12 10:49:46 -0400

Jan ~ re: Harlan's list

Definitely! Still, even Harlan's "active" list of the day had left out Bergman, Truffaut, and Herzog - all still in their "pre-cadaver" days! (How's THAT for a new word?). If the goal of the list was to demonstrate that anyone outside the list is "merely" a "craftsman", well - it holds no merit (I mean from where I sit). Those, and others, were artists by every definition - attuned and proprietary in their own voice and vision.

My issue with Harlan's occasionally "absolutist" approach in an argument is feeling he needn't clarify - e.g., ADMIT those on the list were the artists who had profound impact on said viewer. At least, then, the list has "context".

Oh, well - I'm just "BLAH-BLAH-BLAH-ing", it's morning and I'm not a morning person!

No title.

Jan — Sat, 12 May 12 04:02:39 -0400

Ann and Jeff VanderMeer: The Weird Compendium - Table of Contents
http://weirdfictionreview.com/2012/05/the-weird-compendium-table-of-contents/

Neil answers frequently asked Harlan question
http://neil-gaiman.tumblr.com/post/22782765050/ive-never-really-known-where-to-start-with-harlan
http://neil-gaiman.tumblr.com/post/22774259087/when-i-was-in-my-teens-and-early-twenties-with
---
Of course I was just teasing Harlan about the six directors because he was lazy and dropped the adjective "real". I know he said it many times before and some people have actually argued with him about it here. I don't know what got into Harlan in the first place to put the list out there but let's at least remember he was originally talking about active directors of the day. Harlan should remember it too, unless he's trying to get people to send him free copies of films they think he's not aware of: "Hey Harlan, check out this guy, Buster Keaton/Murnau/Eisentein!"

Harlan mention

Dennis C — Fri, 11 May 12 21:41:47 -0400

Our host is mentioned in this review of the LOGAN'S RUN TV series DVD set:

http://insidepulse.com/2012/05/11/dvd-review-logans-run-the-complete-series/

If your Irish, come into the parlour...

Brian Phillips — Fri, 11 May 12 18:26:28 -0400

Our Esteemed Host gets a mention in the Irish Times:

http://bit.ly/JHfemn

To clarify:

For those who are scratching their heads over what "irrelevant" is going on about, in one of the what I like to call "smart-aleck weeklies(free newspapers"* that Los Angeles had/has, either the L.A. Weekly or the L.A. Reader, there was a comic strip called "The Angriest Dog in the World" by David Lynch. All of the strips I saw looked the same; they had the same introduction and someone inside a house would say something provocative and the last frame would show the dog growling.

Official Space Helmet/Decoder off, Captain Video!

In light of President Obama's and Vice President Joe Biden's announcements regarding marriage equality, read what I wrote on April 25th:

http://bit.ly/dpbAYA

- Brian Phillips

*San Diego had The Reader, and here in my Peach Pie Paradise, we have "Creative Loafing". Sometimes the articles are dreadful, but, to be fair, others are quite good.

A speck of ink in a growing blot

Chici P. Ompous — Fri, 11 May 12 15:38:34 -0400

My lover lies over
the ocean of fat globules
which surround the heart
of my matter.

Bring back
Bring back
Bring back my fishcakes to me.
To me.

Like a speck of ink in a growing
blot on a paper, he/she does not
claim responsibility for actions...
...that...
...were...
wrought.
My kingdom for a blotter.

Hie thee now, to the house of
my father.
And remember:
eschew obsfucation.

"The Angriest Dog in the World"

irrelevant — Fri, 11 May 12 12:29:57 -0400

"The dog who is so angry he cannot move.
He cannot eat.
He cannot sleep.
He can just barely growl.
Bound so tightly with tension and anger, he approaches the state of rigor mortis"
----------------
"Unfortunately, life contains an unavoidable element of unpredictability."

"The psychological origin of the idea of space, or of the necessity for it, is far from being so obvious as it may appear."

"It must be clear even to the non-mathematician that the things in this world just don't add up to beans."

"The only way you have exceeded my expectations is in weight."

"It doesn't get any better than this."

No title.

Frank Church — Fri, 11 May 12 11:05:56 -0400

Holy sheet guys, Close Encounters is real:

http://worldnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/05/11/11655018-world-war-ii-kittyhawk-fighter-found-in-sahara-shedding-light-on-pilots-fate?lite

-----

You want to indulge in a mind centered fuck fest, watch Lynch's student films.

This just in: Bean dip is brain food.

The Wisdom of Dale Cooper

Bob Homeyer — Fri, 11 May 12 10:42:35 -0400

"Every day, once a day, give yourself a present. Don't wait for it, don't plan it, just...let it happen." -- Dale Cooper, to Sheriff Harry S. Truman.

James Cameron meets Harlan Ellison

Ben Winfield — Fri, 11 May 12 09:41:26 -0400

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqUSE8ktYFM&list=UUEtdTEXkNcmDy3Bsrn5c83g&index=1&feature=plcp

On encountering the ocean that is the heart

Janet Gamache — Fri, 11 May 12 09:31:11 -0400

Everest/
The
Greater
Magellanic Cloud,
both marvels.
But rumour has it
the bars been raised.

Elevated by wit:
Hi, frenz, thissis Raf Wiyummz agen,
an ritenow at my hunnerd an seventy locations

Energy:
Jesus, I feel good today.

And wonder:
Otherwise, why would you have traveled all this way...
just to be alone?

It cannot fall back,
nor,
in my opinion,
will it ever be reset.

J.

"COOPER, YOU REMIND ME TODAY OF A SMALL MEXICAN CHIHUAHUA..!"

W. Owen Powell — Fri, 11 May 12 02:09:54 -0400

April 2010 was the 20th anniversary of Twin Peaks, and just on a whim because of a news item on NPR mentioning it I plucked the DVD set off the shelf and ended up spending the next few weeks plowing through that and every other David Lynch video I could get my hands on. The pilot and the rest of season 1 are still brilliant, after that it gets to be tough sailing although the finale manages to be bewildering in a somewhat interesting way.

My favorite David Lynch anything was always the short-lived sitcom On the Air which showed up about a year afterward. It didn't take itself seriously for a moment nor was it around long enough to suck (only 3 of the 7 episodes filmed made it to air), and as far as I'm concerned it still makes Twin Peaks look like Petticoat Junction.

You want Lynch's real masterpiece though, try Mullholland Drive on for size sometime.

No title.

Rob — Thu, 10 May 12 21:11:19 -0400

Sorry ~ just want to finish this:

Jason: Sorry to read your follow-up; was looking forward to the ORIGINAL themes. The stock stuff is ok, but the work those guys did at its jazzy conception is where the gold lies. Oh, well. I'm checking out your link, anyway.
-------------------------------------------------
Jimmy, an afterthought about our editing discussion. It's easy for me, admittedly, to say, like Hitchcock, my methods would leave little remaining on editing room floor (because I admire such a discipline). But that's probably bullshit: I am EXTREMELY improvisational by nature, and I can imagine so many new ideas hitting me during a filming process. Part of it would be tightly planned, yes, but I can imagine lots of additional stuff passing the shutter.

We'll see when I really get "hands-on".

No title.

Rob — Thu, 10 May 12 18:59:38 -0400

TWIN PEAKS: I drifted from the series before the end of the first season, but considered myself a fan, in part because I LOVED Kyle MacLachlan's Special Agent Cooper - with his hilarious fixations like coffee and his rather unorthodox reliance on mysticism in investigative procedure (yet, behaving as if it's "all by the book"!). A great character.

-----------------------------------------------------------

I'm a BIG fan of SHERLOCK. I hope, as the series progresses, they don't go too far with the humor to the point of making it inane and self-conscious. It's already walking a thin line there, but I have great faith in the virtuosity of writer Steven Moffat.

Incidentally, I think the 3rd episode in season one features an already-CLASSIC scene - where Martin Freeman's Watson discovers a decapitated head in the fridge when he comes home, Sherlock shrugging it off as completely routine. Freeman's reaction timing exceeds that of anything I've seen by past Watsons, rivaled at best by Nigel Bruce.

Freeman and Benedict Cumberbatch have consummate chemistry.

**Will get back to Jimmy and re: Spidey Jazz

44074

Brian D. — Thu, 10 May 12 18:36:01 -0400

Hi Mr. Ellison--
Sitcom writer Ken Levine has an interesting blog post about writers and getting paid for DVD commentaries that I thought you'd enjoy (and someone in the comments section offers the link to the YouTube page of your "Pay The Writer" soliloquy:

http://kenlevine.blogspot.com/2012/05/writers-indignity-2756.html

Bushrod Lane (only a slight return)

Martens — Thu, 10 May 12 18:05:43 -0400

The inner geek (or maybe freak) in me wanted to see Bushrod Lane so I visited Google maps in the Streetview mode and was taken to the intersection of Bushrod and Beverly Glen Place. Even at that particular location, nowadays, there exists an area between two homes that seems ready for a treehouse. Speaking of directors, I felt like I was sort of anchored in an Antonioni or Lynch film location:
"What am I doing here?"

Okay, that's a sign telling me to get some real fresh air outside. Cheers!

The ISS sailing above and through the Northern Lights

driftglass — Wed, 31 Dec 69 19:00:00 -0500

Enjoy.

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap120305.html

Like our esteemed hosts' litterbug-kicking robot on B5

driftglass — Wed, 31 Dec 69 19:00:00 -0500

There are usually some lovely gimmicks sailing past just outside the main story-line in the BBC series "Sherlock" (which is pure crank of Holmes junkies.)

For example, in "A Scandal in Belgravia", as a bored Sherlock "speed dates" candidates for his next case, a clutch of comic book aficionados visit 221b because, 1) they have a website which discusses the "real" meaning of certain comic books (boring) and, 2) their treatises seem to be coming true in the real world (Aha! Suddenly our hero is interested.) We never hear of this case again...except via Watson's blog where he refers to it as "The Geek Interpreter".

Ahhhh.

Twin Peaks

Bob Homeyer — Thu, 10 May 12 16:25:31 -0400

Cynic - the first season of "Twin Peaks" was a moody, compelling mystery, while the second season evolved into really bad, pointless science fiction after the murderer was revealed.

Abrams' "Fringe" and "Lost"

cynic — Thu, 10 May 12 14:58:04 -0400

When I first watched "Fringe"; finding Blair Brown and a sensory deprivation tank as prime to the plot and a likely homage ("Altered States"), I decided to visit the show when I could. Till the Gene Wolfe reference, I hadn't noticed others.

"Lost" was often flashing or waving about books that gave inspiration to the story. I only saw the first few episodes on-air, so in watching the rest (years later) on formats that could be viewed frame by frame I was able to (rather obsessively) determine ; "Ooo, what are they reading ?".

Of course all that has been done for us now by other obsessives, or just mildly interested fans, made available in the interweb-cloud.

Deconstruction gone wild.
No... That doesn't sound quite right.
-------------
from Buñuel to Lynch; when either, or comparing them, can be appreciated as reasonable.

The little I saw of "Twin Peaks" was intriguing, if only as a self administered Rorschach. I keep telling myself to watch it all, and I will... but...

Anyone care to offer an opinion on the tv show?

No title.

Josh Olson — Thu, 10 May 12 12:39:26 -0400

Steve Perry,

Love your baboon story. My first experience with that sort of thing came early in my writing career. I was writing the sequel to a very low budget and obscure science fiction thriller for a cheese ball director. Basic log line was Aliens in a hi-tech super prison.

I got a call one Monday from the director. He'd just done acid for the first time, and it had been revelatory. He wanted to change the ending of the film from a climactic battle between the martial arts-wielding hero and the alien-knockoff creature into a scene in which the martial arts-wielding hero is dosed with hallucinatory gas and discovers his true nature as a man. Or something like that.

Truth be told, his new ending would have actually made the film noteworthy, albeit even more incomprehensible.

I'm still pondering the monkey idea. Just had an experience with a director that made me think you might not actually need to train a monkey to direct. Just let him do it.

Harlan mention

Justin — Thu, 10 May 12 10:44:47 -0400

Harlan's name is briefly mentioned in this movie review on Salon.com.

http://www.salon.com/2012/05/10/johnny_depps_delirious_dark_shadows/

No title.

JOE WEHRLE, JR. — Thu, 10 May 12 09:37:40 -0400

Something about Ray Ellis- I have a four-record set of Billie Holiday recordings, and the notes say that most of the songs were made with the large orchestras of Toots Camarata, RAY ELLIS and Gordon Jenkins.
Diane Bartels- I agree entirely with your post yesterday about attacks from the Right. It seems every day there's a new assault on something that fair-minded Americans hold sacred. Definitely interferes with one's peace of mind. I donate to Progressive causes when I can afford to.

Yes, I do check in from time to time.

Brian Siano — Thu, 10 May 12 08:13:14 -0400

To Brian Phillips: The shout-out to Gene Wolfe reminds of an episode of the old John Larroquette show. Larroquette's a book collector in real life, and in the show, he learns that one of the other characters is friends with Thomas Pynchon.

The show's producers contacted Pynchon for permission to use his name and to say that his next novel would be titled "Pandemonium of the Sun." Pynchon agreed, but asked that he not be portrayed by an actor (even as a faceless extra) and that he be described as wearing a Roky Erickson t-shirt.

On an unrelated note, we now have a wonderful beagle named Olive living in my house. Since we've been talking about wonderful dogs and stuff, is all.

Writers on the fringe

Andrew J. Wilson — Thu, 10 May 12 07:45:34 -0400

Brian Phillips: As I recall, Jonathan Carroll's "Land of Laughs" made an appearance in an early episode of "Fringe". It's high time they tipped their hats to our host. Which book, though? That's the question. Always one to look to the future, I humbly suggest "A Fish-Head in Aspic" or "Blood's a Rover"...

No title.

Diane Bartels — Thu, 10 May 12 07:14:15 -0400

Frank, my friend, I know we have had our disagreements in the past, and this may seem a trivial thing to argue about, but I have to assure you that I am really not greek. Not that I think being greek would be a bad thing to be. Greek are wonderful, Aristotle, Plato, that crowd. And sure they may be in a little economic trouble right now,but I don't think that they carry pencils any more than the .. wait excuse me. What Barber? .... Uh huh... oh !!!!
Never mind.....

No title.

Frank Church — Thu, 10 May 12 06:46:52 -0400

As our side said from the beginning, it was a war against Islam, not terrorism:

http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2012/05/total-war-islam/

Imperialism is so blah.

-----

We are all geeks. We do need to admit that. You don't need loads of pens in your shirt pocket to show that.

Gene Wolfe

driftglass — Wed, 31 Dec 69 19:00:00 -0500

Brian,

A Gene Wolfe drop-in...on "Fringe"...using Marlowe's dodge out of
"The Big Sleep"?

Geek trifecta.

GENE WOLFE

jimmy — Thu, 10 May 12 06:12:20 -0400

Brian-

That is so cool! I hope this starts a trend. More Gene Wolfe!

jimmy

No title.

Christine — Thu, 10 May 12 05:58:54 -0400

Woke up this morning to word that Michelle Bachman holds dual U.S./Swiss citizenship...not by accident of birth, mind you, but by recent application.

Will her office staff now be overwhelmed by all the shipments of Swiss chocolates from outraged right-wingers? Will Trump interrupt working on his comb-over to get to the bottom of this?

Sure. Just as soon as those pigs lift off the runway. *Sigh*.

Mention the Writer

Brian Phillips — Thu, 10 May 12 05:27:25 -0400

It probably won't sell one more copy of any of his books, but in an episode of "Fringe" ("Nothing is as it Seems" by Jeff Pinkner & Akiva Goldsman), two of the main characters walk into a used bookstore to see if the fellow there can translate a Sumerian cuneiform something-or-other. They walk in under the pretense that they are looking for "Lake of the Long Sun" by Gene Wolfe.

I have NEVER heard the name of Gene Wolfe mentioned on any show I've watched until now. I nearly fainted.

Brian Phillips

clarification

Jason Michelitch — Thu, 10 May 12 05:07:03 -0400

In my haste to share that last link, I neglected to clarify: there were two different sources for Spider-Man incidental music. In the earlier episodes, original music by Ellis and Harris were used (Webster contributed only to the theme song, I believe), and in later seasons the cheaper method of purchasing music from a central sound library was used. The WFMU podcast is about the latter music, from the KPM library...but it's some pretty groovy material nonetheless!

Sorry for the double-post, just couldn't abide my lack of clarity.

Spider-Jazz

Jason Michelitch — Thu, 10 May 12 04:55:58 -0400

Rob,

On the blog of the terrific WFMU a while back, there was an article about digging up the incidental music from the Spider-Man cartoons, well worth reading: http://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2007/01/the_music_every.html

The best part being, at the very end of the article, there's a podcast of a WFMU show that spends about an hour playing clips of the show with background music, and then immediately playing clean versions of the same music from unearthed masters. Absolutely fantastic stuff!

Here's a link to the podcast mp3 directly: http://playlist.citr.ca/podcasting/audio/20080520-130334-to-20080520-140549.mp3

No title.

Rob — Wed, 09 May 12 23:03:00 -0400

Perhaps this opens doors to a new level of GEEKDOM, then, again, it may open the doors to perception, but I would like to ask all the Jazz lovers here if they are familiar with any or all of these composers: Bob Harris, Ray Ellis, and/or the Academy Award winner, Paul Francis Webster.

These were the guys who did the music, theme, and lyrics of the 1960's Spider-Man cartoon series.

Without explaining myself, I dove into a batch of the Ralph Bakshi-produced episodes. The animation was crude, the stories hilariously puerile...but the score (even sans Websters memorably jibing lyrics) is absolutely brilliant!

I don't how they inspired these musicians so much, but their themes are SO well thought out - uniquely - in tempo, beat, cadence, pulse, and string! (To spare the pain, one segment titled 'KING PINNED' features a set of the themes really well; check it out on youtube).

There are 6 or 7 remarkable jazz/rock themes I identified as original - right down to an almost avant garde guitar pick in ONE of them.

Just curious: any of you know these talents?

The voice of Spidey, too. An actor named Paul Soles - it's the voice I hear every time I pick up a Spider-Man book. I wished they'd learned from this in the latter animated incarnations, AND in today's movies!

In animation, the voice carries the character!

Reply to Chris

shagin — Wed, 09 May 12 22:15:14 -0400

If I miss my guess (and I went back to check my own audio collection of THE DEATHBIRD & OTHER STORIES), "The Deathbird" is narrated by Stefan Rudnicki, one of my all time favorite voice actors/narrators. If you wnat to hear some great stories, seek him out on any of the Escape Artist or Starship Sofa podcasts.

I have a confession...

I wish I had enough money to pay Harlan read my works, with a few extra dollars to pay Mr. Rudnicki to polish off the rest of the stories. Don't get me wrong, I don't want critiques or comments or anything, it's just that, that sometimes, okay, many times, I'm polishing a piece and Harlan or Stefan will sit beside me and read the story out loud. Their voices, diction, and reading styles are so wonderfully unique and passionate that I would make recordings for myself alone, if only to keep my dreams company.

shagin

The Deathbird

Chris — Wed, 09 May 12 19:32:56 -0400

I just listened to THE DEATHBIRD & OTHER STORIES and was completely knocked out by the reading of "The Deathbird". I've read the story, but the gentelman who recorded it was simply stunning. I bring it up because I was just reading through the posts and saw Harlan reference Ahbhu. It made me think of the essay about him in that story and how it came out of nowhere, man, and broke me up like a windshield. I had to pause the thing and I thought, "You know what? It's all about love." Which made me cry harder, damn it. So here's to the sharing of our humanity, yeah?

No title.

Duane — Wed, 09 May 12 17:47:42 -0400

Josh said: "One of these days, I'm gonna get off my ass and train a monkey to direct. Everyone who's ever been on a set knows it can be done, and done well, but no one's actually bothered to take the time to prove it."

Doesn't the cinematographer do most of the heavy lifting anyway?

REPLY

HARLAN ELLISON — Wed, 09 May 12 16:19:36 -0400

I did. I lived, happily, for four years, in a treehouse--washed away now, sadly--on Bushrod Lane. With Ahbhu.

Yr. Pal, Harlan

Babe Didrikson Zaharias Lives

driftglass — Wed, 31 Dec 69 19:00:00 -0500

As an avid listener to our host's audio recordings, I know that one of the signposts on the road to Hell at which he sometimes flashes his high-beams is the fact that almost no one remembers who Babe Didrikson Zaharias was or what she did.

But not today.

Today, in a hot gymnasium during a 3rd grade musicale on the subject of "Heroes" (the end-product of their month-long research project) Ms. Didrikson Zaharias got her propers.

A little light in the darkness.

Best regards

Welcome to the 21st Century USA!

DTS — Wed, 09 May 12 14:16:38 -0400

DAVE: Glad to be thought of! :)

ALL: I'll voluntarily exile myself for a while, but I've a deeply personal stake in it all and after reading the news, online, about President Obama (Finally!) publically supporting gay marriage (and by extension, more), I had to say, It's about time! And good on Joe Biden for not backing down, either. As for all of the morons who are fellow citizens in my country (those who backed the recent ban in North Carolina are good example), one must wonder why people who take the name of a man whose basic tenets were purported to be "love one another" and "be kind to one another" would continue on in such an intolerant and hateful way of life. Welcome to the 21st Century, USA!

Here's a wise and thoughtful clip from another favorite writer, addressing the issue of intolerance.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOz5-vp8SSk&feature=relmfu

Cheers from oz,
DTS(now officially in exile -- on Feeling Groovy Street)

up all night

Dave Martens — Wed, 09 May 12 13:41:37 -0400

Reading Richard Matheson's THE SHRINKING MAN for the first time. He is one of those writers as smooth as a chocolate milkshake. Cover image of Scott Carey sort of resembles a drummer friend of mine, which adds to the hook. A few years ago I devoured RM's HUNTED PAST REASON.
This edition of TSM is from Gollancz (Orion), part of their SF Masterworks series from Great Britain. Seems like we're getting some remainders on this side of the pond.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
DTS, I know you're not related to dts (multi-channel audio), but seeing those three letters in a distinctive logo on my dvd player had me thinking of you last night (in a free association kind of way).
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Didn't Harlan live up in a treehouse for a while, typing away?

Note to Frank

DTS — Wed, 09 May 12 13:22:42 -0400

FRANK: Although I understand an aversion to state rule or a system that involves groups of human males organized to try and work together to perform a task (setting up systems to police for criminals and crimes, setting up fire departments, etc., all the stuff that goes with organised government and establishing city centers), because groups of people gathered together in one place are easily led astray and easily corrupted...although I understand one having aversions to the concept, anarchy as a solution strikes me as something (and don't take this as an insult or a poke in the eye) that a person who is still UNevolved (as an adult) would come up with. To me, one has to be childless, and/or without a relationship which involves your loving so much you _want_ to make sure the other person is as safe and protected as possible. And anarchism, which by nature is given to dissolution, or to social and political schisms, isn't very stable.

Evolution and change is the natural order, as it should be. But mankind has reached the point where tossing anarchism into the mix would be the equivalent of...I don't know...being a guy with a shy bladder who longs to get kinky enough to give "golden showers". It just won't work.

Cheers,
DTS

No title.

Frank Church — Wed, 09 May 12 11:32:02 -0400

Anarchism is a natural state of nature, so my evolution makes complete sense.

Nobody owns the trees or the rocks or the land, birds just build nests, bears just hybernate in caves--no real estate agent sells scruffy the cave.

Libertarian Socialism, it's not just for breakfast anymore.

No title.

Diane Bartels — Wed, 09 May 12 10:16:18 -0400

I thought I would become more conservative as I got older. Exactly the opposite has happened. The last two election cycles, the hatred President Obama has experienced from the radical right, and the flagrant lying and lobbyiing of the so-called moral majority, whose leaders display flagrant immorality at every chance, have hardened my liberal leaning to fiery molten ice.

A Guide To Concert-Going Etiquette

Adam-Troy Castro — Wed, 09 May 12 10:15:59 -0400

We went to another show at The Hard Rock last night. Neil Bergs 100 Years of Hollywood. Five great Broadway singers, an evening of terrific music. We enjoyed ourselves tremendously, and thats all you hear me say about that, right now.

More to the point, I would like to offer these apparent excerpts from the official handbook of concert-goer etiquette, as traditionally understood by vast numbers of the Hard Rock audience and as demonstrated with particular verve by hundreds of those who attended last night.

1) Always remember that this concert hall is attached to a casino and that large numbers of you are comped. Therefore, remember that the show is worth exactly what you paid for it. Ignore anybody around you who actually did pay for it; treat the concert hall as if its a casino lounge, the performers as if theyre the house band, and the venue as if just a place to sit down until the ache in your legs goes away and youre ready to go back to losing this weeks social security check on Zeus.

2) To accomplish this: if the show is supposed to start at eight, make sure that the majority of you don't start filing in until EXACTLY eight. Make sure that the auditorium doesn't look even remotely close to filled until about a quarter after eight. Since this means that all shows must start at 8:20 or even 8:30 to accommodate you, you must also make sure that some of you start filing into your rows long after the actual show begins, at 8:45, 9:00, or even 9:20. If you file into your row during the last song, or even as the guy on stage is thanking everybody for being a great audience, then you win. Extra points if it's a comedian and you're in the front row, filing in just as he's wrapping up, so he can look at you in aghast amazement and say, "Shall I start over?" A good way to make sure you do this is to go out to dinner at one of the good restaurants at 7:30 or so, when anybody with sense knows that you need an hour to be served, to settle up, and hobble over.

3) Conversely, remember that the concert is a big imposition on your time and that the performers are lucky to have you show up at all. A good trick is to file into your seat just before the concert begins and then, only ONE song into the show, grimly file out, forcing everybody in your row to stand so you can escape. Remember that everybody who just had to stand up to let you in now has to stand up again to let you out. Dont let the fact that there is no possible reason for this behavior stop you. Show-stopping numbers are also a great possible time for you to suddenly realize that it's been almost half an hour since your last visit to a slot machine and that you really need to go play Zeus RIGHT FUCKING NOW. A particularly polite time to make your bold escape is when the leader of the performers on stage mentions that theyre about to sing their last song and takes the opportunity to introduce the back-up band, one at a time; you have absolutely no possible reason to respect this information and should use this opportunity to beat the crowds, forcing everybody in your row to stand up so you can save a few minutes getting back to Zeus. Remember that the last song is never, never anything good, anyway. If it was good, they would have put it somewhere near the beginning, within your attention span or the carrying capacity of your kidneys.

4) Alternatively, you can be one of the diehards who stay in your row until the final song begins and THEN suddenly decide its time to file out. Thats good. Always remember, this is television. Those arent people on stage. Those arent other audience members around you. This is just television, only bigger. You can come and go any time you want. If you MUST listen to that last song, then at the moment you hear the final note, then, by all means, hundreds of you, all stand up and start walking out, without so much as a single grudging moment of applause. Why should you applaud? Other people are. Theyre suckers. Theyre the folks who stay behind to show some consideration while you get back to your car, or to Zeus, a few precious seconds earlier. This is especially important if youre in the first row; by all means, all stand up at once and start fighting your way to the exits, because the most important message you want to give the performers at this particular juncture is that their show was an ordeal and that you couldnt wait for it to be over.

Shadow, Chuck, and Rod

jimmy — Tue, 08 May 12 22:14:23 -0400

I'd swear I'd fixed that.

But while I'm at it --

Shadow

Are you sir or madame?

regards

j

Shadow, Chuck, and Rob

jimmy — Tue, 08 May 12 22:06:30 -0400

Thank you, sirs. I look forward to re-reading those stories. My memory is good on some things but not others. Much obliged to you for filling the gap.

ROB
Many years ago, I once shot a 16mm film for my brother's high school film appreciation class. He directed. It was a silent film version of Shakespeare's Macbeth (I swear this is the truth). Everything was edited in camera. One take only. It even included special effects a la Georges Melies (witches popping on and off screen). I don't think it was more than a 100' ft load of b&w reversal, which means that after processing he was projecting his camera original and it was only slightly more than a minute long. Anyway, I'm sure it was dreadful. But there is a part of me that is amazed that it was made at all.

So, my advice to you. Please go and amaze me.

jimmy

No title.

Cindy — Tue, 08 May 12 21:20:37 -0400

No title.

JOE WEHRLE, JR. — Tue, 08 May 12 19:53:17 -0400

Anybody here a fan of Robert E. Howard's western stories? I've just been commissioned to do a Breckenridge Elkins drawing for the Howard journal, Two-Gun Raconteur, and since I'm not illustrating an entire book, I think it should be one specially distinctive scene (or maybe a montage?) that epitomizes the entire series. Any ideas? The stories have a lot of humor in them, and I'm thinking I'd like to get a kind of Jim Garner-ish comic/rueful look to the character, without actually making him look like Garner for obvious reasons. A leaping horse somewhere in the composition would be good, too. I have just ONE of the books about Elkins, so I hurried and ordered another with the remaining stories, and I hope it arrives within a week- time's a-wastin! Only have a few days!

placeholder

HARLAN ELLISON — Tue, 08 May 12 12:35:18 -0400

Just a simple placeholder. -he

Bikini Atoll

Phil Nichols — Tue, 08 May 12 12:25:36 -0400

For Steve Barber:

a gentle and slight correction to (your report of) your dad's Martini anecdote. Bikini Atoll didn't come under US control until after WWII, and the first atomic test there was in mid 1946. It doesn't alter the beauty of the yarn, though!

No title.

Rob — Tue, 08 May 12 10:17:15 -0400

Jimmy re: approaches to editing:

LOTS of people believe in the cutting room floor. Kubrick a pre-eminent example. Others, like Hitchcock, have other approaches as "pre-visualists", who plan out every shot and its purpose like an engineer (Hitch was originally trained as an artist and engineer). It all depends on the individual and how his mind works. Speaking for myself, knowing how extemporaneous my eye can be, I'd be planning out key shots in detail, but shooting "stock" to catalog when a visual hits me and I know it would have subtextual impact in a sequence.

I have Mel Brooks' BLAZING SADDLES on dvd. Mel talks about his editor - I THINK this was John Howard - and how Howard saved his ass. Howard told Brooks to shoot individual objects - a cup, a clock, a chair, "ANYTHING" - and he would assemble the images inserting these shots with the effective timing. Howard became Brooks' editor-of-choice on most of his movies thereafter.

That's sort of how my own instincts work. A part of my brain plans tightly, another part is uncontrollably abstract and impromptu. In fact, it actually begins in the latter process - because my mind drifts, man, it DRIFTS...in "WHIRLING transient nodes of thought careening through a cosmic vapor of INVENTION!!!"

-------------------------------------------------------------

Speaking of "BRAIN" stuff:

Lori,

I'm very grateful for the info, but I'm pretty well set with the articles I gathered. SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN alone shed some light on the variable nature and causes of ADHD and the role of environment in these types of cases. Glutamates, the limbic system, and the frontal lobes - coming to understand the interaction between these lends an understanding to the process of re-conditioning your own behavioral signals. Easier to understand, of course, than to undertake. But the information I gathered is remarkable and fascinating.

It's tough meeting people who can empathize with the nature of this type of problem. I'm actually not so sure even Harlan understands people with this type of problem, as it is deeply internalized, subjective, and subtle in its complexity! That makes someone in my position feel quite alone a lot of the time. (My efforts to talk to people about it, btw, is not a yearning for sympathy - I hate the artificiality of sympathy - compassion I equate with honest empathy, the former, no - but simply for the ability to be understood)

--------------------------------------------------------------

Roger Ebert wrote what might be the funniest review I've read by him - his review of THE AVENGERS:

'"Comic-Con nerds will have multiple orgasms," predicts critic David Edelstein in New York magazine, confirming something I had vaguely suspected about them. If he is correct, it's time for desperately needed movies to re-educate nerds in the joys of sex. "The Avengers" is done well by Joss Whedon, with style and energy. It provides its fans with exactly what they desire. Whether it is exactly what they deserve is arguable."

Yeah, that one broke me up. After THAT insult, well, I'll continue liking comics and graphic novels, but I won't allow ANYONE to call me a FAN!

RIP Sendak

shagin — Tue, 08 May 12 10:13:12 -0400

Upon hearing of Maurice Sendak's death, YJ collected his Wild Things figures from his room, arranged them on the buffet, and lit a candle.

ME: "What are you doing?"

YJ: "Keeping the Wild Things company, if only for a little while."

Thank you for showing us where the Wild Things are, Mr. Sendak.

shagin

Thank you all

Steve Barber — Tue, 08 May 12 09:20:09 -0400

Wow. Thank you all. Phil, Chuck, diane, Rob, Frank, Ezra, Mark B, and, of course, Harlan. The calls and notes below were wonderful, even though there isn't much anybody can say beyond "I'm here and I understand."

Had dinner with Mom and Dad last night. The four of us found a local taco joint and just hung out for an hour or so (after a round of drinks at their hotels first).

Dad and I had martinis and Dad explained the best way to make a dry martini. It seems that back in World War Two they were on the verge of the first nuclear test at the Bikini Atoll in the South Pacific. An admiral who was there as an observer securely strapped a bottle of vermouth to the side of the device.

A day later, when it exploded over the South Pacific, it atomized the vermouth and dispersed it across the globe is a thin haze of sub-atomic particles.

So, to make a properly dry martini, you pour the gin or vodka into the shaker, add ice, shake well. Hold the glass in the air for a moment to allow sufficient vermouth particles to settle, then pour the vodka or gin into the glass and add olives to taste.

The perfect martini.
---------------------------------------------------
My websites have all once again roared to life, including one which I have had in "test mode" for a few years. Would love some private feedback at either of the two above email addresses.

Thumbnailtraveler.blogspot.com
Thumbnailtraveler.com*
Barbergallery.net

Much appreciated.

* Still under construction.
------------------------------------------
Very sad news regarding Maurice Sendak.

Other than The Phantom Tollbooth and Tom Sawyer, his Where The Wild Things Are had the most profound impact on my love of books -- and probably my love of the visual arts.
------------------------------------------

If anyone wants to catch our own David Loftus' national debut as a distinctly bad man, I'm told it's available on Video on Demand if you have that service on your cable system.

Thanks again, folks. the very thoughtful responses are precisely why I brought it up here.

No title.

PH — Tue, 08 May 12 08:23:09 -0400

"things", of course.

No title.

Paul Hull — Tue, 08 May 12 08:21:40 -0400

Maurice Sendak has gone to where the wild thing are and I am so very glad he was here.

Down to New Orleans, again...

the Shadow — Tue, 08 May 12 04:38:36 -0400

REGARDING NEW ORLEANS as a setting: Ditto for "Jane Doe #112".

Also for Jimmy

Chuck Messer — Tue, 08 May 12 02:10:43 -0400

Spider Kiss ends in New Orleans. I don't know if that counts.

Chuck

Help for Jimmy

Rod Searcey — Tue, 08 May 12 00:42:01 -0400

"On the Downhill Side" (which you can find in Deathbird Stories) is set in New Orleans.

the cutting room floor

jimmy — Mon, 07 May 12 23:19:22 -0400

REPLY TO ROB

I believe in the cutting room floor. I believe in the cutting room. In my opionon, that is where the movie is made. That is where the performances are crafted and the final rewrite of the script takes place.

I don't care if you're Steven Spielberg, woe be to you if you don't shoot some coverage.

There are many extremely talented individuals who come together and make a film. I believe that the movie magic is in that the sum is greater than the parts. No matter what you do, the movies need someone like you to do it. And they wouldn't be the same without you.

I think the most important talent you need to be a great director is an unwavering ability towards exercising good taste. Confidence in your decisions. Inspiration in your colaborators.

But I'm not sure it would get you on Mr Harlan's list. That is why there are only six. Or seven in six. Or five of them are Kurosawa.
---------------------------------------------------------
Change of subject.

I am currently in New Orleans. Does anyone know if Harlan Ellison ever set any of his stories here?

I know that he has been here. Worked here. Enjoyed here. But I can't recall if he has written of here.

Many thanks.

jimmy

Steve B...

Mark Barsotti — Mon, 07 May 12 21:11:33 -0400

....hang in there my friend. My died died in Feb. Off to see my Mom for Mother's day this weekend. She's 82, with increasing memory issues. Twice a couple weeks ago, she called my brother (who fortunately lives 15 minutes from her), looking for my Dad. I talk to her about every day, and tonight it was, "When are you coming to visit?" "Friday, Mom, check your calendar."

So it's tough. But you're not alone.

Mark

Hanezu/Hannes Bok/The Last Obligation

Ezra — Mon, 07 May 12 20:55:34 -0400

Brad Stevens, If I think I'm joking, that's a meta-joke, right? Since you seem to be up on your Japanese cinema I'll tell you about seeing Naomi Kawase's film HANEZU at FilmfestDC a few weeks ago.

I had the exact same response as one of the reviewers I read after I saw the movie. Ten minutes in I'm wondering if I will make it through. Twenty minutes in I'm mesmerized. A simple story - a love triangle between a woman and her dutiful husband and a ne'er-do-well sculptor. A truly Japanese sensibility though, full of silences and pauses, a movie that never shouts (except in one key scene) but whispers.

There are two scenes where each man serves a meal to the woman. Without a word, just by the way they prepare the food and serve the meal the character and essential nature of each man is revealed.

Frankly it's the kind of movie that either speaks to you or not. Inevitably perhaps on the way out of the theater I passed three groups of people where one of the group was trying to explain the movie to the others. I have no idea what kind of distribution the movie will get. It premiered at Cannes so I expect it will get some sort of DVD release. I do look forward to seeing it again.

----------------------------------

Centipede Press is taking pre-orders for a new HANNES BOK collection with an essay by Ray Bradbury among others. It's pricey but looks absolutely beautiful. I'm a long-time fan and in drool mode.

http://centipedepress.com/art/hannesbok.html

-----------------------------------

Steve Barber, when you write about your Dad I can't help but think of my Mom. She was a bright vivacious woman, still reading three or four books a week well into her 80s. It was a terrible thing to watch her decline. The universe was merciful to her and she passed without too much suffering.

It's our last obligation to the ones who brought us into this world and protected us when we were defenseless. To see them out of this world with a some measure of dignity and respect. A hard hard thing.

Brain Books

Lori Koonceof — Mon, 07 May 12 20:29:31 -0400

Rob

I have a suggestion for you as far as popular Neuroscience books go.

Steven Pinker has an amazing way of taking very complex concepts an putting them into easily understood lay terms. My favorite is How The Mind Works, which is along the lines of what you've been reading all ready. But, anything he's written is good, and he seminal books are in paperback and available on Amazon if you don't want to have to go to a book store.

No title.

Rob — Mon, 07 May 12 15:05:27 -0400

Steve Barber ~ I'm damn sorry about your news. Over recent months, compelled by my own history of adhd, I've been grabbing articles all over the place about genetics, the brain centers, neurobiology, and the forces of nature versus nurture. I understand it's the shortage of the neurotransmitter dopamine that causes the symptoms of Parkinson's. I hope research soon leads to more certain treatment following the phase of genetic testing.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Per the recent discussion of Bunuel, directors, and monkeys, Roger Ebert wrote a line that encapsulates my own sentiments - my own point-of-view about what defines an artist in this medium - with utter preciseness:

"There is little stylistically to link Ozu, Hitchcock, Herzog, Bergman, Fassbinder or Bunuel, except for this common thread: Some deep wound or hunger was imprinted on them early in life, and they worked all of their careers to heal or cherish it."

Exactly. EXACTLY!

---------------------------------------------------------------

I still dream about shooting films. Because of so many personal hurtles I've had to surmount all my life, lending to my lacking money, it's a dream resting on the back burner. One day, however, most likely using computer technology and motion graphics, I WILL script, shoot, and edit narratives as my instincts render them. I am steadily building to that. Even if the efforts are non-commercial ventures to please myself. It's a visual talent I possess - the structure, camera work, pov, and visual design are all in my head. (As with Hitchcock, there would be little left on the editing room floor).

I have to get my act together on the practical and emotional levels first, then I can move to new levels in technical and artistic training. That's where I am in life.

No title.

Chuck Messer — Mon, 07 May 12 13:11:15 -0400

Steve,

You're not alone. Many of us have been there, and it's not a nice place. We're all with you.

Chuck

REPLY TO STEVE BARBER

Phil Nichols — Mon, 07 May 12 09:33:45 -0400

Steve,

sorry to hear about your dad. My dad also had Parkinson's, and it finally took him from us at the end of last year. It's going to be tough for you all, but if you can keep your patience (while all about you are losing theirs, to paraphrase somebody or other), you will cope.

My dad was diagnosed when he was in his 60s, and lived for about 11 years with the condition, mostly in slow decline. He suffered a stepwise change for the worse about four years ago, and another about nine months ago which rapidly led him to a point where all medications were useless. Of course, everyone's progression with the condition varies.

Our family has become quite expert in all things Parkinson. If you need any information at any time, feel free to give me a shout. Good luck to everyone.

- Phil

Susan

Charlie — Mon, 07 May 12 09:20:46 -0400

Hi Susan, the books arrived soundly this morning in perfect packaging. Much quicker than mine to you. Thanks to you both. My best, Charlie

Monkey directors...

Marci Kiser — Mon, 07 May 12 08:04:32 -0400

Josh,

I'm afraid you were beaten to the punch years ago. The inimitable Karl Pilkington has already reported his discovery of a monkey director... of monkey porn.

As Karl tells it, a chimp named Pascal (technically an ape, but we'll let that pass) was given a camera by his keepers and was a dab hand at it, utilizing lighting and framing very well. They got his best work out of him, however, when he filmed other chimps having sex.

Apparently, this chimp porn increased the sexual drives of the other chimps, so they're now looking into sending Pascal to China in order to film panda porn that they can then show the pandas to increase *their* carnal appetites.

More here: http://www.pilkipedia.co.uk/wiki/index.php?title=Download:Audio

No title.

fc — Mon, 07 May 12 07:29:08 -0400

A monkey already directed: Michael Bay!

No title.

Frank Church — Mon, 07 May 12 07:27:50 -0400

Don't forget Bergman. Wild Strawberries, Hour Of The Wolf, woo.

To a lesser extent, Davie Lynch.

-----------

Let's give Nino Rota some dap as well. Films need music. Takes the rust away from the plumbings in the soul.

No title.

Steve Barber — Mon, 07 May 12 06:08:38 -0400

"I'm gonna get off my ass and train a monkey to direct."

I would pay good money to visit the LA zoo and see the chimpanzees in their cage wearing bright red t-shirts emblazoned with "But what I really want to do is direct!"

Good money.
______________________________________________

New blog entry. Two weeks ago Cris and I swam with Manta Rays (among some other really fun things).

thumbnailtraveler.blogspot.con

Phlog the blog.
______________________________________________

My parents are in town. They come out once a year or so to visit family. Seeing my father only a couple times per year (we go in the reverse direction) allows me to see his physical changes much more readily than others in my family. Once a very strong, agile and capable sailor he now walks quite slowly with what will certainly become a shuffling gait over the next few years. Seven months ago he was diagnosed with Parkinson's and already the tell-tale tremors have become pronounced in his left hand.

His mind, once a rival for Harlan's and capable of matching wits with some quite notable intellectuals in very public forae, has begun obsessing over very small tasks which do not go away until he instructs someone else to do them or asks for help in getting them done. I fear the many years of having assistants, yeomen, and assorted underlings to do these things for him has left him relatively unprepared for complete self-sufficiency.

Yesterday he could not find the reservation code on his outbound flight back to DC, and kept reminding me I needed it to print out their boarding passes. This was mentioned several times at lunch, despite the fact they do not need the passes until Thursday and I repeatedly assured him I knew where to find the code. And yes, five seconds after getting to their hotel room he had produced the travel folder and asked me to get the code...which I found within another five seconds at the top of the page clearly marked as "Reservation Code".

I know this happens. I know everyone goes through it -- both his experience and my own seeing it progress in six month windows -- but damn it isn't easy. For either of us.

Thanks for listening.

No title.

Brad Stevens — Mon, 07 May 12 05:15:10 -0400

Ezra - You think you're joking, but Honda actually started out as an assistant to Kurosawa, and ended up directing several sequences in Kurosawa's later films, notably KAGEMUSHA, RAN and DREAMS (the sequence in the latter with the soldiers emerging from the tunnel seems to have been entirely his work).

STEVE PERRY,

Ben Winfield — Mon, 07 May 12 04:08:57 -0400

I've heard almost every conceivable kind of horror story come out of Hollywood, but I still refuse to believe the sheer scale of the jaw-dropping stupidity on display over there is accidental. Maybe there's a bizarre clandestine protocol everyone in Tinsel Town must follow when dealing with naive rookies; staged exhibits of fatuous cretinism to frighten away anyone who might try to shake up the system. Either that, or there's some manner of inbreeding going on that's unique to the state of California.

Time and again I look up towards the sky and ask, "why? WHY are these people the ones in charge?" If their decisions made sense from a business perspective, MAYBE I could hope to understand, but there are occasions when they spectacularly fail even on that level.

Bunuel

Mike Miller — Sun, 06 May 12 20:17:15 -0400

If you have start fresh with Bunuel, might I suggest LOS OLVIDADOS as a start? It was my first Bunuel film, and won my heart, mind and soul over to all his films I would watch thereafter.

M

I Got Your Director Right Here ...

Steve Perry — Sun, 06 May 12 15:19:52 -0400

Once upon a time when I was trying to write movies, I had a meeting on a major lot with a producer whose name I won't mention, but, Josh and Harlan, you know who he is. During the meeting, he took a call, and his smiling face went purple, he threatened to tear somebody's head off and piss into the hole, slammed the phone down, then looked up and smiled as if we hadn't heard that. Now, where were we ... ?

My collaborator and I had done a comic book adaptation, one of his titles for Dark Horse. It was, as they say, almost a done deal.

Ho, ho, ho.

We had a script. We had a director, lead actor, budget, location, producers, and we were there to take notes in the summer for a fall shoot.

The director -- a Brit, and I bet 90% of the folks here have seen at least one of his movies -- pipes up in the middle of it and says, "Can we put some baboons in it?" (Imagine this in a posh British accent, if you can.)

My co-writer and I looked at each other. Baboons? Baboons!?

"I rather like baboons."

Understand there was no place into which we could justify such critters whatsoever.

Maybe, I thought, he wanted work for his relatives ...

The producer went off on a tear about how expensive that would be, even with CGI baboons, and I was looking around and realizing I had fallen down the rabbit hole ...

It gets funnier, we wound up doing everything but meeting the Mad Hatter and being chased by a jabberwocky. And, of course, it went onto a shelf because somebody forgot to see if the lead actor was free when we were supposed to start shooting, and oh, my, he wasn't free, but he and director were pay, play or not.

Adios, my movie ...

If ever I write an autobiography, that will the title: "Can We Put Some Baboons in It?"

Perry

What we really watch

Ezra — Sun, 06 May 12 09:42:56 -0400

I thought everyone knew that the most important Japanese director was Ishirô Honda. His masterpiece? The so-called Space Opera trilogy, THE MYSTERIANS, BATTLE IN OUTER SPACE & the little seen GORATH.

Using the conventions of pulp science fiction, Honda interrogates the meta-dynamic of ennui and malaise deriving from the inherent dichotomy between post-war memories of an Imperial hermeneutic and the latent exegesis offered in the text qua text.

Many have seen the image of Moguera, the giant Robo-Penguin in THE MYSTERIANS, as a potent image of the repudiation of the Imperial project. This view remains controversial however.

Several critics have noted the clear debt Kurosawa's late work RAN owes to Honda's technical approach in KING GHIDORAH.

No title.

JOE WEHRLE, JR. — Sun, 06 May 12 09:24:37 -0400

Harlan: I will take no offense- I know of your good heart- The simple truth is that I have NEVER been anyplace where a theater was screening one of these films, and I have NEVER had access to any movie channel airing them, so I just didn't go out of my way to seek them out. Obviously I have been missing out on an experience, so since DVDs and streaming video now exist, I must go exploring! When I was in college, there was a Film Arts program Monday nights at a theater in town, although very few of my fellow students were willing to show up. I got to see RASHOMON, THE SEVENTH SEAL and some good British comedies, but no Bunuel. So I'm makin' a list, checkin' it twice...

No title.

Ben Winfield — Sun, 06 May 12 09:03:48 -0400

Wait...McG isn't a monkey?

No title.

Josh Olson — Sun, 06 May 12 08:08:23 -0400

One of these days, I'm gonna get off my ass and train a monkey to direct. Everyone who's ever been on a set knows it can be done, and done well, but no one's actually bothered to take the time to prove it.

No title.

Brad Stevens — Sun, 06 May 12 03:47:27 -0400

As far as I'm aware, Harlan first expressed the idea that there were only six real directors in the world in his 'An Edge in My Voice' column for FUTURE LIFE in September 1980 (reprinted in EDGEWORKS 1). The six directors were: Kurosawa, Altman, Coppola, Resnais, Buñuel, Kubrick and Fellini - which, as Harlan pointed out, was actually seven, not six! I assumed this was intended as a list of living directors (Jean Renoir had passed away the year before, and was thus no longer 'in the world'), inevitably biased towards work that was then widely available. It's difficult to imagine anyone who was actually familiar with Ozu, Mizoguchi or Naruse believing Kurosawa to be the most important Japanese filmmaker, but films by the three former directors probably weren't frequently screened in North America at that time. But the list seems more than somewhat problematic when seen as a list of the greatest directors ever. Does anyone really think that Resnais was more important than Jean Renoir? Or that Coppola was more important than Max Ophuls? The suggestion that Coppola was more important than even Luchino Visconti (from whom pretty much everything in THE GODFATHER derives) strikes me as almost farcical. It would be interesting to know if Harlan still stands by this list.

No title.

Jan — Sun, 06 May 12 00:51:05 -0400

Oh, yeah! AND Picasso is not a director.

No title.

Jan — Sun, 06 May 12 00:49:32 -0400

Harlan, if there are only six directors, how exactly do you account for all the films and tv shows out there? It seems to me you last counted in the 50's and were interrupted.

Gaiman on current reading
www.nytimes.com/2012/05/06/books/review/neil-gaiman-shares-his-reading-habits.html

No title.

Rob — Sun, 06 May 12 00:46:20 -0400

Oh, yeah! AND Jean Renoir!!

No title.

Rob — Sun, 06 May 12 00:40:03 -0400

Harlan was off just a TAD. It has been scientifically proven - at the expense of many a lab chimp, I should add - that the minute handful of enshrined filmic artists grouped in his designation are actually HITCHCOCK, Bunuel, Kubrick, Kurosawa, Fellini, Bergman, AND Billy Wilder! (Coppola belongs in there, too, considering he did 3 of my favorite works ever but, ultimately, he never had the creative breadth of Billy Wilder).

(Well, actually, it isn't fair to leave Truffaut off the list, either!)

-----------------------------------------------
But, Harlan, I'll give you this: I came to see why your own "infamous" list has never changed, in the face of, you know, the "what about DAT guy?" I say this - after having given you a hard time about it, a MERE 10 years ago!(which led to a phone call from you!!!) - because, indeed, my OWN list of preferences hasn't changed either, despite discovering many new titillating talents (recall my rather recent "orgasm" over Wellman's stuff!).

Bear in mind, you DID once give me a rather goofy argument - something to the effect that CHANGE, while a "universal law" in most ontological instances, is an exception to the rule when it comes to ART! Do you remember that discussion?

Hell, I can't think of anything that USES change, that REQUIRES the POWER of change MORE than art! How else did we get from the 19th century Pre-Raphaelites to today's setting of Postmodernism? Same thing happens in all forms - literature, film, etc.

You know that FAR better than I do, so NO condescension intended.

Having said THAT, well...I now SEE what you mean! While I am readily seduced by the nouvelles formes, those individuals whose works supply the MOST enduring personal impact for me alone never get supplanted! NEVER!

So...after putting you through Hell 10 years ago on the subject, I retract my argument! Let's just call it a niche in my growing maturity, however slow that development has been! (It's what happens when you'd grown up with ADHD! You have to discover things, like coping mechanisms, in your own way).

--------------------------------------------------

Speaking of transitions, a word about the stories of Harlan Ellison:

I'm not about to say it's your "BEST" story - I mean one CAN'T, because you delivered a shitload of outstanding parables - but I just came to realize - I THINK - that PHOENIX WITHOUT ASHES captivates me MOST! There is something transfixing about the premise; spellbinding, as it reaches into something deeper, perhaps even primal.

PWA is about humanity's departure from its birthplace. About reawakening from 500 years of blindness. About knowledge we must have about ourselves, as YOU wrote, "if we are to SURVIVE"!

This is a TIMELESS theme! One that holds a mirror to our behavior today, one that has something to say to generations in our distant future! PWA is the type of story that endures as LORE!

I kept re-reading the graphic novel this last week (I still want to get the version with your adjoining essay, when I have the money handy!), just kind of losing myself in its sections and its passages. And I think, maybe, for all its crudity and mis-targeting, even THE STARLOST touched something inside me, when I viewed it in a time when every schmoe was copping the STAR WARS act! I was drawn to it not for what it was but for what it COULD have been!

PWA is a great fucking piece, Harlan! And one day, STARLOST should get a retooling!

----------------------------------------------------------

Re: BUNUEL. In closing - and I guess I already said this - but that version of ROBINSON CRUSOE was the first time ever I felt let down in my expectations from BUNUEL.

Far better to stick to the hilarious EL, THE EXTERMINATING ANGEL, THAT OBSCURE OBJECT OF DESIRE, DISCREET CHARM OF THE BOURGEOISIE, THE PHANTOM OF LIBERTY, and BELLE DE JOUR!

Incidentally, to ME, if a filmmaker gets the accolades from Hitchcock it's a helluva an honor: Hitchcock extolled Bunuel, Billy Wilder, AND Coppola! Just a factoid I wanted to mention.

Luis Buñuel

irrelevant — Sat, 05 May 12 22:51:11 -0400

Buñuel's "Un Chien Andalou", and other related material is available on the internet archive

http://archive.org/search.php?query=luis%20bunuel

TO JOE WEHRLE, JR.

HARLAN ELLISON — Sat, 05 May 12 19:35:11 -0400

PLEASE take this as intended. Ignore potential internet snark and misunderstandings. I mean no smartass here. We are old comrades.

But...

Of ALL the stuff you know very well in the world--and we both know my respect for your intellect--how can you NOT know of the films of Luis Bunuel?

There have only been about six or so directors in the world, and Bunuel is one of them! Flaubert, Gauguin, Colette, Hemingway, Kafka, Van Gogh, Monet, Picasso...

Kurosawa, Fellini, Resnais, Bunuel. You MUST...

You simply MUST...see every film he did.

All of them. He was Everest, The Greater Magellanic Cloud. Eleanor Roosevelt. Lou Gehrig. Glenn Miller. LUIS BUNUEL!!!

Entered with a good heart and deep concern for your posterity:

Yr. Pal, Harlan

No title.

JOE WEHRLE, JR. — Sat, 05 May 12 18:13:44 -0400

Someone here (Rob?) just recently mentioned Luis Bunuel, about whom I know very little, but he or others may be interested in knowing that the May 14 issue of The Nation carries a very long (3+ pages) article/review of a new book about Bunuel by Romain Gubern and Paul Hammond. The article is by J. Hoberman, Who wrote An Army of Phantoms: American Movies and he Making of the Cold War. Just trying to be informative!

Only One Month Until On The Road With Ellison Volume Six 

Deep Shag Records — Sat, 05 May 12 16:22:28 -0400

On The Road With Ellison Volume Six is the latest report from Harlan Ellison and a life lived on the road. This 2CD set features an exclusive new essay and Harlans historic 2005 Grand Master Award acceptance speech. Volume Six finds the author impersonating a rabbi, getting kicked out of Brazil, offering his thoughts on Star Wars and saying goodbye to his dear friend Octavia Butler. Follow Harlan on the road and get inside the head of America's most outspoken wordsmith. This is Ellison live on stage and anything goes.  

Available for pre-order now - released June 5  

www.deepshag.com

No title.

Frank Church — Sat, 05 May 12 12:07:09 -0400

An artist to look for: Martin Johnson Heade. An American artist who did wonderful paintings of flowers, birds, the land, America in all its unspoiled glory. No Starbucks or Jack-off In tha Box to be seen.

Why people still eat at Jack-off in the box is an amazing thing.

Art, it's our inner world to God's kingdom.

Re: Previous discussion of fiction written from the killer's POV

driftglass — Wed, 31 Dec 69 19:00:00 -0500

Sat bolt upright this AM and wondered how in the world I could possibly have forgotten "The Tell-Tale Heart" and "The Cask of Amontillado"?

Seems like the weirdest stuff bolt-uprights me these days.

Army Terms of Service

infomite — Sat, 05 May 12 07:27:35 -0400

Mr. Isabella,

The short answer to your question is eight years.

Generally, the expectation is that you will serve two of those years in active duty and the rest in the inactive ready reserves. But that is not guaranteed--and it is perfectly within the military's rights to keep you active for longer (stop-loss), or call you out of the reserves at any time up until that eight years is over.

There are more esoteric variables that sometimes come into play, but for the vast majority of people who sign on the dotted line, Uncle Sam owns a piece of them for eight years.

informationally yours,
the mite

Old photograph : Metz 1977

Laurent Queyssi — Fri, 04 May 12 14:26:17 -0400

An old picture from Metz in 1977 thanks to Dominique Douay.
http://www.dickien.fr/files/472-philip-dick-Metz.php

Hope it brings back some good memories.

To: Susan, re: MIND FIELDS

Le — Fri, 04 May 12 13:40:14 -0400

Thank you for your reply. Since you only have 3 left, would you please hold a copy for me? I will send out the check with the order form tomorrow.

Thank you again.

Le

No title.

SUSAN ELLISON — Fri, 04 May 12 13:02:30 -0400

To Le:

Yes, we have HC MIND FIELDSS available (only 3 left).

$30.00 plus $5.00 shipping. CA tax if needed.

THE KILIMANJARO CORPORATION
Post Office Box 55548
Sherman Oaks, CA 91413

Happy Weekend. Susan

No title.

Frank Church — Fri, 04 May 12 11:03:56 -0400

Wikipedia is getting better. Jimmy Wales has done better vetting work, or so I've heard.

--------

Tony Isabella, you have something to say?

MadCon 2010 and UNREPENTANT

Jon C. Manzo — Fri, 04 May 12 10:40:32 -0400

Hey Everybody,

For what I hope will be the second-to-last time I'm posting here about MadCon 2010 and the book we published for it, UNREPENTANT. I am just about ready to wrap up the last bits of business involving that event now almost 20 months' past.

At present, MadCon 2010 is still slightly in the red. This is due to the fact that one of our sponsors had to withdraw due to a personal financial crunch. Let me emphasize that the fellow who put up the funds to finance MadCon 2010 is in no way concerned about the con being in the red, but as this will be the last con I ever run, I am determined that the amount in the account when I close the books on the con will be the same amount that was there when we started. The post-con sales of the remaining copies of UNREPENTANT have covered most of the ground, and about 10 copies remain in hand.

So I asked a few favors, sent out a few emails, and spent a bit more of the con's money to ship these books on a mini-grand tour. The result of which is that the remaining copies have now been signed by ALL of the contributing writers: Harlan, Neil Gaiman, Leo & Diane Dillon, Bob Garcia, Frank Garcia, Tim Richmond, Michael Reed, Michael Richardson, and me. They were kind enough to do this so that MadCon 2010 can FINALLY break even, and I thank all of them profusely.

One of these copies is being sent to Harlan for his archive, one is going to a charity auction (CBLDF), and a few copies are spoken for. So, I've got 5 copies of UNREPENTANT available to sell; 2 copies are of the limited edition (no.s 93 & 97 of the 100) and 3 copies of the regular edition, available on a first-come, first-served basis.

The limited edition copies are $300 per, and the regular edition copies are $250 per, plus shipping. Anything going outside the USA will need to go by UPS or FEDEX so that I can track and insure the delivery. And I will even add in a very cool bonus; Neil Gaiman signed some copies of SPAWN issue no. 9 (and if you've heard anything about the massive legal battle between Neil and Todd McFarlane, this was the issue at the focus of a good deal of the ruckus); he did a special "copyright" signature, and told me to sell the copies to get MadCon into the black. I donated one of those to the NADWCON charity auction, where it fetched $140.

If any of you are interested or have any questions, please email me at Voiceodoom@aol.com . If I have any copies left after the next week or so, I'll post the info on the facebook page for MadCon 2010 and elsehwere.

The next (and LAST) time I post about MadCon 2010 will be to announce that the con has indeed made it into the black.

Have a great weekend!

Jon Manzo

No title.

Rob — Fri, 04 May 12 10:00:13 -0400

Phil,

It certainly would have, but I could only afford the thin paperback graphic novel at this time, which leaves out the essay features. I'm broke, man. Pitifully.

Ellisonian reference en español

Alejandro Riera — Fri, 04 May 12 09:44:42 -0400

My good friend, the writer and journalist Gerardo Cárdenas, just published in his blog a review of Mexican writer Edgar Omar Avilés latest short story collection "Cabalgata en duermevela" where he compares one of the stories ("Usted no sabe decir adiós"/"You don't know how to say goodbye") to our host's works. Word of caution: the blog is in Spanish:

http://networkedblogs.com/xeEri

With apologies for the second post...

Tony Isabella — Fri, 04 May 12 07:55:06 -0400

One more thing.

There's a statistic that's been quoted here and there about the small percentage of people (military and their families) who actually make sacrifices for the service of the soldiers...as opposed to the rest of us who aren't personally involved in our various wars and such. I'd love a good source for that information.

Any help is appreciated. After nearly four months of no paying gigs save for Comics Buyer's Guide, I'm actually juggling work. The deadlines are tight and I'll likely be underemployed again by the middle of next week, but, for now, I'm crazy busy.

No title.

FinderDoug — Fri, 04 May 12 05:08:58 -0400

Tony - I think this will help you put a stake in the ground on the first one (covers both US and international units deployed, with their assigned mission, but currentness and accuracy are as guaranteed as anything from the wikiverse):

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

Military help with a story

Tony Isabella — Fri, 04 May 12 05:00:25 -0400

Need some information for something I'm working on. One...what U.S. Army forces are deployed in Afghanistan and what are their missions. Two...when someone joins the Army, how long is their initial term of service and can they be recalled to service when that term is completed? Sadly, my online kung fu seems to be lacking today and I haven't been able to find this info myself.

ATTN: Susan Ellison

Le — Fri, 04 May 12 02:14:26 -0400

Dear Susan-

Would you by any chance have anymore *hardcover* copies of MIND FIELDS I can purchase? If so, please let me know the price of the book and shipping rate. Thank you.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Read the lovely Pyramid edition of THE DEADLY STREETS in one sitting the other night. Incedible! I had read the adapted version of "Rat Hater" in my limited hardcover of HARLAN ELLISON'S DREAM CORRIDOR, but I definitely like the version collected in THE DEADLY STREETS. It is now one of my favorite Ellison collections.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

shagin (and MR ELLISON)-

Glad you liked Rush's song, "Losing It" and that beautiful ballet video. And thank you for the Columbia Space Shuttle tribute video with "Mission." Interestingly, in their *official music video* of "Countdown," Rush did put in at the end footage of Columbia's maiden flight.

In general, I like Rush's earlier stuff--albums like 2112, Farewell to Kings, Hemispheres, Permanent Waves, Moving Pictures (and to a certain extent, Signals). Classic Rush.

Anyway, while looking up more info on the forthcoming Clockwork Angels album, I found this interesting bit of info (and MR ELLISON, I think you definitely will be interested). It's sf-writer Kevin J. Anderson's announcement to collaborate with Rush lyricist/drummer Neil Peart and write a novelization based on the Clockwork Angels album:

"In a young man's quest to follow his dreams, he is caught between the grandiose forces of order and chaos. He travels across a lavish and colorful world of steampunk and alchemy, with lost cities, pirates, anarchists, exotic carnivals,

and a rigid Watchmaker who imposes precision on every aspect of daily life."
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

http://www.rushisaband.com/blog/2012/02/09/2990/Author-Kevin-J.-Anderson-to-write-novelization-of-Rushs-upcoming-Clockwork-Angels-album

Hmmm...I don't know if this "Watchmaker" figures in any of the songs on Clockwork Angels or is just an ad hoc element by writer Kevin Anderson, but...

I know Neil Peart reads sf, sf themes are found in many of Rush's songs. "Red Barchetta"(the first Rush song I ever taught myself to play on electric guitar back in the 10th grade, shortly after its release on the Moving Pictures album) is inspired by a short story called "A Nice Morning Drive" by Richard S. Foster (whom Neil Peart later befriended and rode motorbikes with).

"Red Barchetta" (song):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djVGhqvl_8A

"A Nice Morning Drive" (short story):

http://www.mgexperience.net/article/nice-drive.html

Phoenix with or without Ashes

Phil Nichols — Fri, 04 May 12 00:14:05 -0400

Rob,

I thought the PHOENIX graphic novel included Harlan's essay about THE STARLOST. Surely that answers your questions?

I don't have my copy of said volume yet, but I know the essay, comic, teleplay and prose novel from their previous publications.

- Phil

No title.

Rob — Thu, 03 May 12 20:29:11 -0400

Merian C. Cooper's 1935 movie of SHE is the only version I ever liked. Saw the Hammer version once, my lust for Ursula Andress the only thing working for it!

-------------------------------------------------------

I'm a Bunuel fanatic. He is near the top of my favorites. But his ROBINSON CRUSOE was a let-down, a paint-by-numbers set without a single surprise. The only real "Bunuel" moment is when Crusoe "talks" to his father, when a hint of the surrealist's trademark humor finally shows itself.

First time I was disappointed with a Bunuel outing.
-----------------------------------------------------------------

Bought and pored through the new PHOENIX W/O ASHES gr. Still astonished this material did not find a proper retooling on something like HBO!

The book is fresh in my mind, the Canadian series I saw way too long ago. When changes were made in the old STARLOST pilot, I'd love to know which ones crossed the line. What did the producer insist on that finally invoked the "Bird"?

No title.

Michael Rapoport — Thu, 03 May 12 19:11:45 -0400

Neil Gaiman mentions Harlan as one of the writers who made him want to be a writer, in this New York Times Q&A:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/06/books/review/neil-gaiman-shares-his-reading-habits.html?_r=1&ref=books&pagewanted=all

No title.

John Williams — Thu, 03 May 12 18:55:35 -0400

JOE WEHRLE, JR.: Great stuff, thanks! I'm not necessarily opposed to colorization, as long as there is a good reason for it (and it has to be a VERY good reason), but in this case the colorized SHE simply didn't do much for me. I love these kind of conversations, thanks for the info and the insight.

REICH: Enjoy! I expected a quaint period piece and instead had my mind boggled quite nicely. You're in for a treat.

EVERYONE: I could use some help. Kim Deitch, the extraordinary underground comix master (Boulevard of Broken Dreams, The Mishkin Files) is collecting issues of the old pulp magazine ARGOSY and is searching for a copy of the May 14, 1921 issue. More specifically, he is looking for the novel WHITE HEATHER WEATHER by John Frederick, a.k.a. Max Brand, a.k.a. Frederick Schiller Faust. Kim says it was serialized in ARGOSY and he needs the next installment, which he believes is in that particular issue. I saw his call for assistance on Facebook and I have his blessing to search for the story in either paper or electronic form, so if anyone here can offer a direction or information, please let me know. Mr. Deitch will greatly appreciate it!

SHE

Reich — Thu, 03 May 12 18:25:13 -0400

Just ordered She from Amazon. Six Bucks. Never seen it so why not?
Also you know what else i'm going to see tomorrow? THE AVENGERS! Boo-ya!

THE GREAT BUCK HOWARD

Martens — Thu, 03 May 12 18:02:59 -0400

Mucho thanks to whomever (?) it was that mentioned this film somewhat recently in The Pav. The film's a sweet one.

"Who is this Barry Tingler?"

TWILIGHT ZONE

ERIC KNIGHT — Thu, 03 May 12 15:13:24 -0400

Thank you for the TZ links...we all know how good these shows were , but have you watched any lately...a tsumani of words, performances and ideas, all sautéed
by our host...good stuff !

No title.

Frank Church — Thu, 03 May 12 13:25:33 -0400

Clifford, it was nothing much. I was caught in bed with a reindeer and some of our brood were offended. When I informed them that love has more rounded edges than cutting ones they cooled down.

PETA's pissed, but what do they know.

----------

No title.

JOE WEHRLE, JR. — Thu, 03 May 12 10:04:08 -0400

John E Williams: It was indeed your enthusiasm for the 1935 SHE (along with Harlan's expressed interest in it) that convinced me to buy the DVD. I do understand your feelings toward colorization, and I don't disagree with you all that strongly. Depends on the subject. But I trust Ray Harryhausen's judgment. When I viewed his colorization of THINGS TO COME I noticed background details that weren't apparent when I saw the black-and-white. And as you probably know, a lot of early classics, like the silent BEN HUR, had tinted or even hand-colored scenes. Sometimes they used stencils cut from another print so that they could repeatedly color a face or object in a scene without the color bleeding onto the rest of the frame. I read that one studio (Pathe?) maintained a shop with about a hundred young women whose only job was to hand-color selected scenes. www.silentfilmhouse.com has, among others, George Melies' short feature, THE SPIDER AND THE BUTTERFLY, which is FULLY colored. It employs so many shades that it looks a lot like the computerized colorization of today! Anyway, like the other Harryhausen I have, SHE also comes along with a restored black-and-white version, so if I have guests in, put the colored one on, and someone yells, "What?? You're making us watch a colorization??" I can say, "Just a minute! Just a minute!" And switch it for the black-and-white. I don't think I would want a colorization of, say, THE THIRD MAN, but I'd kind of like to see the original 1936 Buster Crabbe FLASH GORDON serial in color!

Harlan mention

Dennis C — Thu, 03 May 12 07:49:41 -0400

This article says THE TWILIGHT ZONE is the most under-rated show of the 80's -- and mentions Harlan's contributions:

http://www.vulture.com/2012/05/whats-the-most-underrated-show-of-the-eighties.html

I think I agree.

United Kingdom

Steve Hatton — Thu, 03 May 12 01:27:42 -0400

Harlan, reading about your Gargoyles and only having seen a picture of them taken from a distance, are they actually functioning Gargoyles, ie act as water spouts. If not should they not be called Grotesques.

Yours pedantically

Steve

Harlan's Love Fest

Clifford Meth — Wed, 02 May 12 19:49:03 -0400

Seems like I missed everything. Good for me.

Sorry Tim Raven

cynic — Wed, 02 May 12 17:37:40 -0400

For the bad joke (tired, old joke as well; drunk dialing breathalyzer).
Been there myself, I should have shut up.

No title.

Kenny Noor — Wed, 02 May 12 17:33:58 -0400

Rather than gargoyles, how about flies. I am thinking of the classic movie The Fly (the original one), with the tiny human head on a fly body. You could have swarms of flies. Besides, flies hang around steaming piles of, ....well you know. And when you think of someone like Jack Abramoff , don't you just picture a steaming pile of....

TO TIM RAVEN

HARLAN ELLISON — Wed, 02 May 12 15:57:34 -0400

I'm distraught about all this. You"ve been there for me like a champ, several times. Let me try and reciprocate. Give me a call.

Maybe a chat, maybe a lunch, if I can muster.

Harlan

No title.

John E Williams — Wed, 02 May 12 15:55:14 -0400

We continue now with our coverage of great old fantasy movies.

JOE WEHRLE, JR.: If it was my suggestion that prompted you to procure a copy of SHE then I am delighted. I have to confess that I'm not at all crazy about colorization of old films, and judging by the YouTube clip I think the black-and-white version is a far more satisfying experience. To each they own, as they sez.

I had not expected the special effects in SHE to be as spectacular as they are, such as Ronald Coleman's creepy split-screen scene with his own corpse (well, sort of), and the vanishing of said corpse in a cloud of dust had to be ahead of its time. And certain aging effects in the climax must have been terrifying in 1935. They nearly gave me nightmares in 2012.

What I loved best was the clean narrative, the boisterous, adventuresome storytelling, and the performance by Nigel Bruce, whom I have never seen outside a Sherlock Holmes film.

SHE is available on Netflix, and I certainly wouldn't want to steer anyone wrong by pointing out that there is also a very sharp full-version B&W copy sitting on YouTube, so I won't.

Gargoyles that Michael Reaves DIDN'T write about

Brian Phillips — Wed, 02 May 12 13:37:04 -0400

Not to hammer on too familiar of a trope, but how about the person...

- That makes Fox News the highest rated news channel
- That cannot fathom why they should pay for health care for others, even though they already do
- That says, "Now this may not be the most politically correct thing to say..." just before showing themselves to just be jerks that don't want to take responsibility for what they have to say
- That doesn't vote, even though they are able and fit to do so
- That WOULD vote for David Dukes because he has "nice eyes"
- That doesn't (not can't but doesn't) read, but claims to be informed.

This is the worst kind of gargoyle. It isn't grotesque, it doesn't loudly proclaim itself and it doesn't ward off other evil spirits, because it is aesthetically "pleasing". It WELCOMES evil spirits, albeit inadvertently.

It is the Common Person, to paraphrase a couple of Harlan's TV commentaries.

We can list all of them from Idi Amin Dada to the Borgias to the guy that thought of the "Life's a Beach..." bumper sticker, but at least we could see them coming. Limbaugh has a show, Ailes runs a network, Coulter has books.

What does the Common Person gargoyle look like? You tell me.

Keep your lamps trimmed and burning.
Test every spirit.

Brian Phillips

No title.

Rob — Wed, 02 May 12 12:58:50 -0400

My intent was to mollify, not goad. I think Ezra handled himself well, and I wanted to offer some reassurance to that effect. Perhaps, if my posts to Ezra really came across otherwise, I will re-think it. I have the weight of my OWN personal problems to worry about!

When these imbroglios pop up, I'll just stay out of it from now on. It's definitely a job that belongs to you and Rick.

GARGOYLES

HARLAN ELLISON — Wed, 02 May 12 12:54:25 -0400

Oh, by the way. On the subject. The gargoyles were sculpted
to look like who they were supposed to be, so "changing them" is pretty much wishful p.c. and updating. I suppose, though, that the Lyndon Johnson looks enough like Limbaugh that I could start telling people that was who it was. In fact, the shrikelike harridan Phyllis Schlaffly is a dead ringer for Ann
Coulter (with mouth open), and I've been telling visitors it is she, for some time. Anticipated your desires, I suppose.

Does that satisfy your nasty little souls for the nonce?

Yr. Pal, always here to serve, Harlan

HARLAN ON THE RAVEN SITUATION

HARLAN ELLISON — Wed, 02 May 12 12:36:52 -0400

I suppose it's time I weighed in on this one. I'd hoped it would silently dissipate, and I could forego droit de signor (sp?), but it's clearly gotten people's backs up sufficiently that what Rick has done by way of Coventry for poor Tim Raven seems the only sanitary way of cleaning this up. Rick is the powersource here, and though we talk with some frequency, he's been otherwise more productively occupied of late, so I've tried to stay out of his sphere of attention. But what Tim wrote was, to put it gently, thoroughly reprehnsible, and unwarranted. He's been chivvied and warned many times, and I believed him when he said, every time, that he would tone himself down. Yet I think his problems are massive, and self-control gets beyond him. Yeah, I like him, the way you like a one-eyed pooch, but his gyrations have gotten so meshiganah that he's making this a toxic environment. (Cynic and Rob only goad him the more, shame on them.) Days of back&forthing & bile make this not a place even I choose to visit. Sorry, Tim.

So though I am grateful to Tim, who was a stand-up guy and even offered me help when I had a cartage problem a while back, and though I think at core he is a decent chap, my affection, mild as it may be, should not pollute the milieu for the rest of you; I would never go against a decision like Rick's, which I think is condign; and I must properly agree that Tim is no longer welcome here in his present state of semi-instability. This should be a warm haven for everyone. We have the occasional jerkwad, but for the most part everyone knows that sanely and salutory reign hereabouts. I'm sadened, but Tim has to shoulder the responsibility. Those who baited him, well...

Rick. Gimme a call. Whenever.

Yr. Pal, Harlan

No title.

JOE WEHRLE, JR. — Wed, 02 May 12 12:32:49 -0400

I, for one, wouldn't enjoy seeing these people's visages on Harlan's lovely Martian temple. But especially, I wouldn't want to be the artisan called on to perpetrate that travesty. When I did Lovecraft portraits for the spoken-word vinyls of Lava Mountain Records, they also decided to release a recording of Nixon's resignation speech, backed with the "Checkers" speech he gave while running with Ike. So I was asked to create a Finlay-style (dot-by-dot) portrait of himself, and it was grinding-hard to force myself to corrupt a clean piece of Strathmore board with that face! The back cover was sort of fun, though. They wanted a representation of Checkers' resting place, and they sent me a description of the actual plot in a dog cemetery. On surrounding tombstones, I indulged myself by inscribing the names of some of my closest friends. I was kind of shocked a couple of months ago when I came across my copy of the record jacket and realized that every one of those friends listed now has his name on an actual marker. I guess the moral of that is- remember to appreciate your people while they're still here. I do miss them all, but I don't miss Tricky Dick.

Gargs

Rick Wyatt — Wed, 02 May 12 10:28:47 -0400

If you want to talk about people who really belong with the rest of them, I feel like Roger Ailes needs to be included.

The other stuff was a minor annoyance and you guys handled it well, especially Ezra. Thanks for being cool. It's easier to stomp out an ember than a forest fire.

It occurs to me how lucky we are that this is the worst we currently experience on a no-password board, and one for Harlan Ellison no less. I'm going to be going to a new version of the Pavilion soon which will have logins (for convenience/editing mainly). I'm going to leave it to you guys how optional we make those logons. I'd like to preserve the ability for new people to have a say without going through much, if any, rigamarole.

Harlan, I'm also going to try to have it back up as you type so you never lose another word here.

No title.

Frank Church — Wed, 02 May 12 08:38:55 -0400

Tony Isabella, why are you mad at me? I didn't bomb any bridge--actually, I want to build them.

I walk over bridges all the time, what I worry about is them falling down because they are so old. We have rust and hope keeping up one.

We should start hug an anarchist day.

That Bridge

Tony Isabella — Wed, 02 May 12 07:45:18 -0400

You know that bridge those fuckwads wanted to blow up? My wife travels on it at least once a week.

So, Frank, in this instance, I don't give a flying crap what you think or how offended you are.

Boo fucking hoo!

Gargoyles

Michael Mayhew — Tue, 01 May 12 21:45:22 -0400

The Koch Brothers.
Antonin Scalia.

MM

New Gargoyles for Ellison Wonderland -- addendum

DTS — Tue, 01 May 12 21:04:54 -0400

CHUCK: Meant to include Limbaugh! I was in a rush to post, before hurrying off, and, as usual, I forgot something. Yes, Limbaugh (the dark demon who made polluting the radio waves with lies so commonplace) is included, for sure!

SHAGIN: You DO know about the gargoyles already in place, don't you? Gargoyles modeled on the visages of Nixon, Agnew, James Watts, Phyllis Schafly and...one other which escapes me. Imagine what that artist, or another, could do with Cheney, Dubya, Santorum, Murdoch, Ann Coulter and Limbaugh! (Perhaps Pat Robertson could be included too, so someone who represents the Rightwing/wingnut, Christian Coalition is included, too). Scary!

That's enough from me for a while. Off to self-imposed exile for a few days -- besides, there's work to do, food to cook, a dog to walk, and a floor to vacuum.

Cheers,
DTS

Gargoyles and Mutinies

Chuck Messer — Tue, 01 May 12 20:29:52 -0400

Besides, you left out the most horrifying one of them all: Rush Limbaugh.

On the other hand, one look and the animal spirits might mistake the Lost Temple for a smorgasbord.

"Look at the meat on that one! Mmmmmm!"

On Mutiny:
Keep in mind that many of the crew of a Royal Navy ship were kidnapped and held prisoner on the ship for a good chunk of their adult lives, combine that with bad food, brutal discipline and you have a ready-made recipe for mutiny. I'm actually surprised it didn't happen more often than it did.

Chuck

Something good...

Mark Barsotti — Tue, 01 May 12 20:27:22 -0400

....about the interwebs...

FACEBOOK launched an organ donor campaign today, wherein you can sign up in your state and tell all yer cyberfriends. Some states have reported, per ABC news, that today's new donors exceeded their normal monthly totals. It's projected, best case scenario of course, that this could eliminate waiting lists in 3-4 years. I'm sure most of the diners are already donors, but use the link below to spread the word.

The life you save could be your own...

http://www.facebook.com/help/?page=368924819806375&ref=ts

The Man

Tom Morgan — Tue, 01 May 12 20:10:33 -0400

Rick,
Once again thanks for all you do keeping this place going, especially when you are the one who has to come in and remove the turd in the punchbowl.
Good luck with school and work, and Go Cards. Let's see, the Angels' very rich new first baseman has no homers and 4 RBIs. I watched Carpenter get 5 RBIs in one game against the Cubs while the cable baseball pay channel was having a free preview. I know it's early but he is leading Pujolz in every hitting stat, including by over 160 points in slugging. It's not just homers.

A good day to all here.

No title.

DC5 — Tue, 01 May 12 20:09:31 -0400

Speaking of gargoyles, I once dreamed of a cement garden statue of Dubya that straddled the edge of a pool. Dubya wore a codpiece in the form of a gargoyle's face, and from the mouth of that gargoyle came a stream of water that landed right in the open mouth of another statue that was kneeling in the middle of the pool---a statue that looked a lot like Ms. Coulter.

Ah well, sometimes a dream is just a dream.

DTS GARGOYLES

shagin — Tue, 01 May 12 19:35:47 -0400

Just can't do it, man. Gargoyles were orginially representations of evil spirits/animal spirits placed on buildings with the understanding that when other evil spirits saw how fierce the guardians were for the area, they would leave.

Your list...*shiver*

No way any of those evil spirits could ever be seen as guardians.

shagin

No title.

Charlie — Tue, 01 May 12 18:10:03 -0400

Dear Susan, Thank you! Whew, I was worried about it after 11 days for priority mailing. My best, Charlie

No title.

Ezra — Tue, 01 May 12 17:48:03 -0400

Steve Perry, no offense taken. That you could assume that I could take offense at a posting here is the point I was trying and apparently failed to make in my post.

"Meaningless" is your word not mine. Trivial because I do not take Tim's bluster very seriously. It was so over the top that it was its own response, and its own parody I might add.

I tweaked him because he was telling us what a stud he was. His post just sort of asked for it. Frankly I expected no reply at all.

But to restate my point. It is not within anyone's power to piss me off by something you post here or anywhere on the internet. You don't know me well enough.

And that'll do it for me. There doesn't seem to be anything left to say on the subject.

No title.

SUSAN ELLISON — Tue, 01 May 12 17:45:25 -0400

Charlie (St. Pete) - 2nd package arrived today.

All best--Susan

Gargoyles

Christine — Tue, 01 May 12 17:18:08 -0400

Sorry, I can't vote for any of the new gargoyles...too scary!

No title.

Rob — Tue, 01 May 12 16:37:40 -0400

Is anyone here aware that Jules Verne wrote a short story about the Mutiny on the Bounty?

Titled 'The Mutineers of the Bounty', written in 1879, it focuses on the unbelievable 3600 mile journey made by Bligh in a 23-foot boat with 18 men, before they made it to port with just one casualty.

Verne drew his material from the accounts written by Gabriel Marcel in the 1840's.
-------------------------------------------

There is historical evidence that Captain Bligh was not the sadist as portrayed in the movies. That personality actually belonged to Captain Edward Edwards of the Pandora, the ship commissioned to hunt down Fletcher Christian. Edwards meted out the brutal punishments of Bligh's namesake, whereas the real-life William Bligh was rigid in discipline but saw to the health of his men. (In this account, the mutineers felt liberated by Tahiti and encouraged a weak Fletcher Christian to take the ship and return to Tahiti). Hard to say which account is accurate, since Bligh faced mutiny on 3 separate occasions.
------------------------------------------------------------

I'm fascinated by Picairn Island, the desolate landing site of the outcast Christian and his men, their direct descendants living there to this day. Only something like 80 people living there! Wow! (The actual island is used in the backdrop of Brando's movie version of MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY).

Nobody has mentioned this yet

Alejandro Riera — Tue, 01 May 12 16:36:43 -0400

so, I guess I will:

HAPPY 100TH BIRTHDAY A.E. VAN VOGT!

Change of subject: new gargoyles!

DTS — Tue, 01 May 12 14:55:59 -0400

CHANGE OF SUBJECT:

I think Harlan should have some NEW gargoyles installed on the Aztec Temple, his garage. (If we can convince him, perhaps Webderlanders can take up a collection to have them made).

My votes for the new Gargoyles:

1) Dick Cheney
2) Rupert Murdoch
3) George "Dubya" Bush
4) Rick Santorum
5) Ann Coulter

Cheers,
DTS

Commentary

Steve Perry — Tue, 01 May 12 14:33:54 -0400

Ezra --

I wasn't offering any insult to you regarding the recent conversation with the banned guy. Merely remarking upon a topic in the same way I might about somebody talking about World Peace throwing an elbow and concussing a basketball opponent, or ain't-it-awful what the movie guys did to that book we liked?

Offering my own point of view about certain behaviors. In this case, that of a man who once threatened to show up at a book signing to stomp my ass. Which is, I admit, less of a distasteful diatribe than the one you got, but still ...

I won't belabor the subject, but if it's so trivial and meaningless, why bother to bring it up the first place? If you expected the ants to boil out if you poked the hill, why did you poke it? Some reason, surely?

If all flesh is grass and we'll all be pushing up the daisies in the not-too-distant future, one could argue that saying anything about anything is meaningless in the long run. But yet, here we are, chatting away. Everybody has to be somewhere, and some of us have chosen to be here because we enjoy the company, at least mostly. When we don't enjoy it, why wouldn't that be as an acceptable a topic as any? A bit of hot pepper in the soup makes it pop, but too much can render it inedible. Is it not valid to offer that the spices go over the top when they do?

Perry

Looking for a story

David Roel — Tue, 01 May 12 14:00:31 -0400

Does anyone remember a Harlan story about a woman who comes home to find her apartment has been burgled, and later in the story the two share a psychic mind meld with progressively more horrible aspects of her psyche coming out. Does that sound familiar to anyone?

No title.

FinderDoug — Tue, 01 May 12 12:34:41 -0400

Would someone hand Frank a paper bag?

Frank, it's not as if someone at the FBI decided it was "arrest an anarchist" day. I get the sense sometimes that you think bureau agents in DC adjourn to the Old Ebbitt Grill at lunch for blue points on the half-shell and lively talk about how to destroy contrary opinions, and then send out directives to round up the usual suspects while waiting for the check.

This was a long-term law enforcement sting to stop five very bad anarchists who exhibited signs they were up for mayhem from blowing shit up. It's not going to be used by anyone to take away your right to express your opinion. If they didn't throw every militia member everywhere into Federal Prison under the pretext that Tim McVeigh's cowardly murder of 168 people, including children, demonstrated that militias were a clear and present danger, then they're not going to gag you because others claiming to adhere to principles of anarchy decided they wanted to blow up a bridge.

That's it. Breathe into the bag. In and out. Slowly. There you go. Atta boy.

When you're settled, Unca Harlan will give you a cookie and tell you a funny story about the Red Menace.

No title.

Frank Church — Tue, 01 May 12 11:44:27 -0400

I'm kinda scared, all. They could use this incident to really stifle dissent.

Let me make it clear, and be on the record, as an anarchist, I believe in truely non-violent, democratic, direct action--NON VIOLENTLY! These goombas in Ohio are not actual anarchists, because anarchism is about peaceful democracy. They make our side look bad and we fully disown them.

Now I know what its like to be a muslim.

TIM RAVEN

Rick Wyatt — Tue, 01 May 12 11:06:20 -0400

Just as an FYI, Tim Raven is banned from the Pavilion. I emailed him exactly one year ago today when then, as now, he made a nuisance of himself. Both times right at the end of the school semester and some work projects.

He was able to do this because I was asked to relax his ban and let his IP address onto the site if he promised to stay on the forums. He did not keep his promise. He continues to not keep it, and several other similar ones. Not a horrible betrayal, but I don't appreciate being lied to or having my day fucked up any more than you guys do. And I'd put forth I have very little reason to deserve it.

At that time, I made the ban absolutely clear to Tim, as well as the fact that there is no time limit on it. I begged him to stop posting, if out of common human decency if nothing else. I sent this on May 2nd of last year. He responded: "sorry for the agitation. It was not my intent. Notice I'm not posting on The Pavilion. I'm not being sarcastic or ironic, Chief."

He posted again on the Pavilion four days later.

Tim doesn't think the rules apply to him, and he obviously does not give a shit about me. But as long as he enjoys Harlan's favor there is little I can do other than apologize. I do this again, he'll just be invited back again. Enjoy him.

No title.

JOE WEHRLE, JR. — Tue, 01 May 12 10:04:18 -0400

On this recommendation I have just bought the Harryhausen colorized version of the 1935 film SHE. I have Harryhausen's colorized THINGS TO COME and enjoy it very much. You-Tube has a trailer of the colorized SHE. Very impressive.

The Check's in the Mail

Mary — Tue, 01 May 12 09:49:06 -0400

Susan:

I've sent out today one check for $15 for the membership. My apologies that it was so late.

I also hope Harlan has another evening planned sometime in the near future for those of us who missed the first two. The thought of conversing and hobnobbing with my favorite author is enough to take the gloom out of this day.

I shall be in LA to visit the Getty this Thursday (gods and good fortune willing) to see Herb Ritts' work over the years. Bringing my own camera to flex my shutter muscles...

Peace, folks...

Mary

She Who Must Be Obeyed

John E Williams — Tue, 01 May 12 07:15:56 -0400

Turning to other news: the 1935 adaptation of "She" is available on Netflix streaming. For most of my life I have known this film only as a Harlan Reference, and I'm seeing why it looms so large in his memory. Thanks Mr. E

No title.

Tony Isabella — Tue, 01 May 12 04:42:00 -0400

Sigh.

Having had my own message board for more years than I can recall, it's been my experience that giving unruly posters chance after chance to amend their behavior rarely succeeds. They might try to play nice for a while, but something inside them festers at the thought that someone told them to behave. Sooner or later, that festering boil bursts and they are back to their previous bad behavior or even worse bad behavior. You can't reason with them. You can only send them away forever.

I'm a great believer in redemption. Even I'm amazed at how many of my stories involve redemption of one kind or another. One can control and shape one's fictional creations. You can't do that with online nuisances.

No title.

Chuck Messer — Tue, 01 May 12 03:02:59 -0400

I don't think playing "Dog Pile On Tim" is going to get us anywhere we want to be. Let's let the mods sort this thing out after Tim's had a chance to explain himself.

Chuck

No title.

Chuck Messer — Tue, 01 May 12 02:22:13 -0400

I don't think playing "Dog Pile On Tim" is going to get us anywhere any of us wants to be. Let's see what he has to say about his posting and let Rick, Steve and Harlan decide what to do.

This is not only America, man, but Harlan's place as well.

Chuck

No title.

Rob — Mon, 30 Apr 12 22:51:45 -0400

Ezra, I think the word is "sufferance".

Otherwise, I think your last post was exactly right.

I always wondered how long it would take for one of us here to come out of the closet (and with such CLASSIC self-loathing, I mean Raven was right our of Edward Albee!)...but who ever thought YOU'D be the apple of his eye??? PRISON! BOOZE! BARROOM BRAWLS! You got the whole fuckin' ACT!!!

-------------------------------------------

I've never seen Bunuel's version of Robinson Crusoe, and at long last I'll have that chance on TCM this week.

No title.

Steve Barber — Mon, 30 Apr 12 22:28:03 -0400

HARLAN - This is for you. I took this shot while standing at the edge of an ethereal landscape during the recent trip.

I immediately labeled it MEDEA in honor of your world. Just thought you might get a smile out of it.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150726398662205&l=599727298d

(Everyone else can look, too, of course.)

Also, a new blog entry atop Mount Haleakala during sunrise.

Thumbnailtraveler.blogspot.com

No title.

Kenny Noor — Mon, 30 Apr 12 19:43:55 -0400

Actually, Blood's a Rover has been out since September 2009, that is Blood's a Rover (Underworld U.S.A.) by
James Ellroy.

And Angry Candy is, a band in Moncton, NB that has been around for about 5 years.

And, a story of soldiers who goes back in time? That was written by James Erwin. A modern day US Marine infantry battalion goes back in time to fight the Roman Empire. Soon to be a major motion picture (see Wired magazine, page 114, April 2012 for the full story on how this came about).

honi soit qui mal y pense

Ezra — Mon, 30 Apr 12 19:24:42 -0400

This is mainly a direct response to Steve Perry but is offered to anyone else who feels some need to concern themselves about my exchange with Tim.

"Sometimes a soft answer will turneth away wrath; and sometimes, it just marks you as somebody who will duck and cover and suffer it."

And sometimes it's a sign that you consider the entire conversation unutterably trivial. I don't understand why you take this so seriously. I don't understand why Mr Raven responded to my completely innocuous post by picking that moment to come out of the closet. (I've tried it of course but I adore women much too much for it to ever be more than an affectation.)

I don't understand why you or Frank or anyone else felt the need to even comment. But if you're suggesting that it would prove something for me to respond to Mr Raven in kind, I simply say, just because the world is full of crassness and stupidity it is much too high a price to pay for me to become crass and stupid.

"It's not my house, so I don't get to decide if he gets to keep coming to visit. But if somebody throws crap in my direction, I get to toss it right back."

Well if you and Tim have a fight in MY house I'm going to throw you BOTH out. But that was not a suggestion to the moderator. I hope no one gets thrown out. I post here because I enjoy it and will do so only as long as I enjoy it. We do so at the sufferage of our HOST who doubtless has much more important things to do than read this. Forgive me if I just don't have as much emotional energy invested in posting here as some of you obviously do.

No title.

Lurker Since 1996 — Mon, 30 Apr 12 18:43:58 -0400

Anybody who didn't think Raven was a ticking time bomb has simply not been paying close attention.

Anybody else remember that piece of filth that called herself Diana?

Civil Discourse

Steve Perry — Mon, 30 Apr 12 17:38:22 -0400

You knew I was gonna speak to this, didn't you Unk? Oh, Geez, there goes Raven again. Whaddya figure Perry is gonna say this time?

Diane and I took this discussion offline, and have agreed to disagree. Anybody else want to do that, my email is right there, speak your piece and we can have a discussion.

I do not presume to speak for anybody here save myself. Raven and I had a set-to before, he apologized, I accepted it, and we moved on. I'm big on redemption. The catch is that one has to want to change.

At the risk of Too Much Information, a quick bit of personal history. I grew up with a father who had a quick and terrible temper and fast hands to go with that. A man who was never, ever wrong, about anything. And when he got upset, my siblings and mother and I suffered for it. We walked on eggshells so as not to get Daddy riled. When we didn't manage it, on a good day he would simply bellow; and on a bad day he would backhand whoever was closest.

There came that time when I resolved not to put up with that kind of shit any more.

If I am at a social gathering and somebody comes in and kicks the dog or slings their beer at the assembly? I am pretty much of the mind I don't have to put up with that kind of shit, either.

If your two-year-old pitches a fit, you can be understanding; she's two.

If it's another adult? Not so much. Too much sake? Sorry, that only stretches so far.

Raven has problems, and I wish him all good speed in dealing with them, but they aren't my fault, nor are they the fault of anybody standing here looking askance at him as he frothes and foams.

Sometimes a soft answer will turneth away wrath; and sometimes, it just marks you as somebody who will duck and cover and suffer it.

I'm not that guy.

How is Raven supposed to learn that he's stepped over the line if somebody doesn't tell him? And since he doesn't seem to get it when they try to do so with any kind of restraint, how does one make the point without going to no uncertain terms?

Every time I've stepped on somebody's toes here, they were quick to let me know, and they should, I expect nothing less. I make plenty of mistakes, and if you think so, call it. I might not agree, but we can talk about it.

It's not my house, so I don't get to decide if he gets to keep coming to visit. But if somebody throws crap in my direction, I get to toss it right back.

Perry

a low moan...

cynic — Mon, 30 Apr 12 11:53:10 -0400

as you are near all cheek; how would we know you have turned it?
pardon the double post.

No title.

Frank Church — Mon, 30 Apr 12 06:36:53 -0400

You cannot subcontract bile. Bile has its own area-code.

Wyatt, I wouldn't ban Raven, but it would be nice to know what he was thinking?

I get viciously attacked as well, but I usually turn the other cheek. Who's laughing?

No title.

Charlie — Mon, 30 Apr 12 06:08:24 -0400

Hi Susan, Thanks for the reply. The second order (the 3 Pyramid books+one extra item I added to the mailer) has me a bit concerned since I mailed it on the 19th in one of the large USPS's priority mail cardboard envelopes, which should have hit CA within a couple days. So, with my fingers crossed, I'm hoping it'll arrive today. My best, Charlie

Note to Diane Bartel

DTS — Sun, 29 Apr 12 20:38:50 -0400

DIANE: I've seen you, and quite a few other people post messages when they were "down" -- depressed, down and out, any sort of state of being one wants to apply to that word. But even when angry -- or trying to be clever -- I don't believe I've ever seen you or anyone else post anything as childish and as downright embarrassing (for anyone who likes to frequent this board) as Tim Raven's latest spleen venting. Seriously.

And to make matters even less tolerable, his posting came shortly _after_ I pointed out that Tim Raven might want to reconsider his behavior, and penchant for saying/writing anything, not only in the forum, but outside in the real world (in bars and such). It also came waaaaay after he was banned for this sort of behavior. So, personally, I don't think anyone out to be "called out" on their reaction to Raven's absolutely pointless, funny as a brick-through-a-window, rant.

When I was younger, I used to forgive women anything. And, like most men, I especially gave pretty women second and third chances. I've never met Tim, but according to him, he's a babe magnet. So maybe he's a handsome individual. But good looks don't make him John Keats or John Stewart.

When someone around here steps in it -- especially when they continously step in it -- they SHOULD be called on it. Otherwise, the walls around here are gonna look like the NYC subway.

All best,
DTS

No title.

Rob — Sun, 29 Apr 12 19:08:11 -0400

Ezra,

You know, I've been accused once or twice of fucking barn animals and, truthfully, I find even THAT more of turn-on than Raven's proposition placed to you!

No title.

Diane Bartels — Sun, 29 Apr 12 17:50:14 -0400

I have always despised the human tendency to kick another human when he or she is already down. List of people who have the right to dictate how, when, where and why someone posts here: Harlan, Susan, Rick, Steve(who handled it admirably as always) and Jan probably. If you name aint on that list, you are going out of your way to hurt someone who probably already hurts badly. Not behavior I have come to expect from my friends here. (I know, Steve and Rick, not my beeswax. I'll go away for a bit)

Breathalyzer Keyboard Lock Inc.

cynic — Sun, 29 Apr 12 16:23:29 -0400

No?

A Premise

Steve Perry — Sun, 29 Apr 12 14:03:02 -0400

I think it's a fine notion to sit down and crank up one's keyboard to engage in spirited repartee with online companions.

I'm also good with the idea that there's nothing wrong with having a few drinks in the safety and security of one's own abode, even to the point of getting plastered.

It's almost never a good idea to work the keyboard and drink at the same time.

Sure, if you hit the grog hard and wind up sailing three sheets to the wind and you make that phone call to your ex-girlfriend, you will undoubtedly say stupid things, but (usually) that's a private conversation, and she's already of the mind you are an asshole or she probably wouldn't be your ex-.

However, if you post drunken blatherings on a public forum where the old posts are tucked away but easily found by anybody who wants to look, your action will be there to haunt you forever.

And make no mistake, allowing the defense that you were drunk is neither excuse nor defense, but in this case, a backhanded kindness. You do see why, right?

Perry

The Snot Boogie Speech

Adam-Troy Castro — Sun, 29 Apr 12 13:07:12 -0400

From the very first episode of THE WIRE:

McNULTY: So your boy's name was what?

KID: Snot.

MCNULTY: Called the guy "Snot"?

KID: Snot Boogie.

McNULTY: God. Snot Boogie. He like the name?

KID: What?

McNULTY: Snot Boogie? ...This kid, whose mama went to the trouble to christen him Omar Isaiah Betts... You know, he forgets his jacket, his nose starts running and some asshole, instead of giving him a Kleenex, he calls him "Snot". So he's Snot forever. Doesn't seem fair.

KID: Life just be that way, I guess.

McNULTY So, who shot Snot?

KID: I ain't goin' to no court... Mothafucka didn't have to put no cap in him though.

McNULTY: Definitely not.

KID: He coulda just whooped his ass like we always whoop his ass.

MCNULTY: I agree with you.

KID: He killed Snot. Snot been doing the same shit since I don't know how long. You don't kill a man over some bullshit. I'm sayin', every Friday night in an alley behind the Cut Rate, we rollin' bones, you know? I mean all them boys, we roll till late.

MCNULTY: Alley crap game, right?

KID: Like every time, Snot, he'd fade a few shooters, play it out till the pot's deep. Snatch and run.

McNULTY: What, every time?

KID: Couldn't help hisself.

MCNULTY: Let me understand. Every Friday night, you and your boys are shootin? crap, right? And every Friday night, your pal Snot Boogie... he'd wait till there's cash on the ground and he'd grab it and run away? You let him do that?

KID: We'd catch him and beat his ass but ain't nobody ever go past that.

McNULTY: I've gotta ask you: if every time Snot Boogie would grab the money and run away... why'd you even let him in the game?

KID: Got to. It's America, man.

(Commentary in full on recent events here.)

No title.

SUSAN ELLISON — Sun, 29 Apr 12 12:15:51 -0400

Dear Charlie:

Your first order did arrive. I expect the second to arrive Monday. Will advise.

With kindness--Susan

No title.

Christine — Sun, 29 Apr 12 10:51:05 -0400

Ezra -- Thank you for the reminder that some people can actually respond to stupidity with grace. Nicely done.

No other Troy

Ezra — Sun, 29 Apr 12 09:19:58 -0400

Sorry folks that was at least in part my fault. When you poke an anthill with a stick you can't very well be surprised by what happens. So I ask for mercy for Tim.

Being who he is there is no other Troy for him to burn...

No title.

Steve Barber — Sun, 29 Apr 12 07:43:14 -0400

We're back from our most recent sojourn. Some utterly wonderful events which I will detail elsewhere, but if life, like a novel, is a series of experiences we added a full chapter.
_________________________________________

Mr Raven

Jan indicates Rick has been notified, but before he arrives in any official capacity, allow me to ask you...tell you...to please stop. Just stop. Multiple posts and your unpleasantness below are unacceptable, in any form or format.

So, please. Stop.
_________________________________________

Didn't catch Mr Loftus' national debut but have heard good things. Provided the DVR didn't mess up we should be adding to the accolades soon. Congrats, David.

No title.

Jan — Sun, 29 Apr 12 01:51:30 -0400

Webmaster is on the way. Nothing to see.

Visitations

the Shadow — Sat, 28 Apr 12 22:19:56 -0400

Dear Mr. Raven:

I'm afraid there has been a change in my itinerary and will not be stopping Los Angeles next week. Therefore, your plan to treat me to lunch will not be possible.

Sadly,
L.Cranston, Jr.

No title.

tim raven — Sat, 28 Apr 12 20:35:24 -0400

Post deleted: banned user.Tim Raven

Book Order

Charlie — Sat, 28 Apr 12 19:30:50 -0400

Hi Susan, Did you receive my two book orders in two separate envelopes (+ HERC renewal)? Thanks.

Note to Loftus -- and to Harlan

DTS — Sat, 28 Apr 12 18:30:52 -0400

LOFTUS: Peter Sellers was there WAY before you. Um, you know. In speaking German-tinged French. Remember?
"It's in the pew-ell
"The pew-ell?"
"That's what I said, you swine, the pew-ell"

HARLAN: YES!! Blood, Vic (and Spike?) coming soon to a bookstore -- online or otherwise -- near us!

BLOOD'S A ROVER in 2012! Tres kewl.
You...are...the _man_!

(Cue annoying rap "music" beat)
"Whose house?
I said, HARLAN'S HOUSE!"
(To hell with Run DMC - Harlan _owns_ it!)
(Frank, that one brief, foray -- nay, downslide -- into rap was just for you).

Cheers,
DTS

Long time coming...

Semi-Writer — Sat, 28 Apr 12 18:29:03 -0400

Finally got around to finishing a book that I started writing in 2007. How sad is that? http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007YFRI6I I don't know or care if it has any merit, either--just glad to have it off my plate.

oh, by the way. . . .

David Loftus — Sat, 28 Apr 12 17:37:45 -0400

I think the producers may have muffled the audio a little so the average Merkin viewer wouldn't be distracted while trying to read the subtitles, but I was speaking French.

Yes, the script called for French AND the label of Mannheim, Germany for the bar. Don't ask me to explain it; in this context, I was just a puppet, not a writer.

What the HELL is that Loftus dude up to now?

David Loftus — Sat, 28 Apr 12 17:34:35 -0400

Thanks, Harlan! It was exhilarating to shoot and surreal to watch. One of my Interwebs friends -- a political cartoonist out in the Midwest who I don't believe is a Webderlander, commented: "... If you do return, wouldn't it be cool if that episode is penned by Harlan Ellison?"

Idle thought, but a lovely one.

If any of the rest of you had any doubts about whether a recovering nerd and wordsmith like your fellow longtime member of this august discussion group could actually, even faintly, resemble a badass, and you missed last night's show, it's up on Hulu:

http://www.hulu.com/watch/355176/grimm-leave-it-to-beavers#s-p1-so-i0

A SHOUT-OUT TO DAVID LOFTUS and....

HARLAN ELLISON — Sat, 28 Apr 12 16:34:09 -0400

Only because of the timeliness and wonderfulness of this Pavilion, David, both Susan and I caught your brief stint on "Grimm" last night. I never knew you were so fluent in German.

Seems to me as the Assassin Liaison for the Reapers, there is room for a reappearance. On behalf of your thespic exchequer,
we hope such will be the case. You loooooooked Mahhh-velous!

Yr. Pal, Harlan
----------------------------------------------------------------
The release of BLOOD's A ROVER is imminent. Within six months, I'd guesstimate.

No title.

Ezra — Sat, 28 Apr 12 16:13:27 -0400

Tim Raven I suppose we all stand in awe of your mastery of the manly arts. Haven't quite grasped that concept of "one post per day" yet though huh?

Ellison reminders

Phil Nichols — Sat, 28 Apr 12 15:18:03 -0400

Occasionally you see something which has nothing to do with Harlan, but which some how reminds you of him or his work. Recent, random example:

THE MUPPETS (2011)... contains a brief scene, probably less than 20 seconds in total, featuring Pink's Hot Dogs.

"A Boy and His Dog"

Matthew L. Schaffer — Sat, 28 Apr 12 13:20:54 -0400

Harlan,

I had a great time listening to your interview at the Egyptian last week. It was great hearing that you planned to release "Blood's A Rover"next year. But, as I was flipping through the twenty-three year old copy of "Vic and Blood" I purchased at the Egyptian, you mentioned in the afterward that you were going to release "Blood's A Rover" in the coming year, which at the time, would have been 1990. Given this two decades long delay, how realistic is it to expect the release of "Bloods A Rover" next year?

Best regards,

Matt

No title.

Frank Church — Sat, 28 Apr 12 10:08:26 -0400

Politics is life, politics is beautiful. It is irrational, as is life. Breathe it, smoke it, sniff it, lick it. Politics is safer than crack.

---------

Tis the anniversary of the LA Riots, a black mark (no pun intended--really) on our country. Question to all and sundry, specially our Angelinos: where were you, were you scared, under danger, did you leave the county till the fires died down, did it make you think differently about race??

It was sad.

There was the Frank Zappa interview, where he mentioned how he watched the riots on several tvs, to see how the media was covering it. He did notice on one channel that law enforcement types were wearing germ warfare gear. Were they thinking about dropping germs into the stew? Points to ponder.

Norman Lloyd

Dennis C — Sat, 28 Apr 12 00:19:05 -0400

Just back from the American Cinematheque where they had an evening with Norman Lloyd during their film noir festival (they showed 1949's SCENE OF THE CRIME and REIGN OF TERROR, both of which feature Mr. Lloyd).
He's 97-years-old and sharp as a tack. Told stories of Welles and Hitchcock and Chaplin and Jean Renoir -- no meandering, no forgetfulness. In full possession of his faculties. I'm in awe. He's, as the kids say, awesome.