July 2009
57 posts
"A delicate balance of sincerity and irony,... →
Yes, few realize that behind Seth Rogen’s rise from supporting player on Freaks and Geeks to toplining, multi-million-dollar–movie star is a collection of expertly-curated T-shirts, each one of which — through a delicate balance of sincerity and irony, washedness and unwashedness — has driven his performances to heights he might never have reached on his own. From bands Seth Rogen’s...
“He is alone, afraid of the four walls of his room, mocked by the dream of a...”
– Jack Benny, of all people, in the 1930 short film The Rounder. Nate saw it the other day, and immediately started throwing this quote around indiscriminately, in the middle of regular conversations. It adds a surprising poignance to routine phone calls (“What are you up to tonight?”...
A $48 million deluge of tears. →
Hey, remember when you told me the other day on Google Chat that you wished someone would write a rambling short essay about the 1970 film Love Story? Well, you’re in luck, because that’s just what I did!
It is my first contribution to the wonderful new Filmosophy blog, which is packed full of very good writers that have so far tackled subjects as diverse as Maya Deren and Clark...
I have a Google Alert in my RSS feed for "South...
And all it ever comes up with is newspaper crime reports, apartment rentals, and the occasional irritating reference to Uptown as ”a south Minneapolis neighborhood.”
Come on, Internet! Where is the southside pride?
“Dear Doctor,” the Rolling Stones.
...
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Airport shoeshine: point-counterpoint.
Andy:
Last month I was walking through the terminal at MSP on my way to catch a flight. It was fairly late in the evening on a Sunday, so the concourse was very uncrowded. On the way to the gate, I passed a shoeshine stand. There was a man working there who looked as if he hadn’t a customer for hours.
“Hey!” he said as I walked by. “Get your shoes shined.”
I was...
A mid-'90s interlude.
Right after lunch and right before fourth-period English class, 1994. My freshman year of high school. Some soccer players, seated in desks, are discussing German supermodel Claudia Schiffer. “She’s not so attractive,” they decide, in so many words.
The conversation is overheard by a girl named Allison, who is sitting in a desk nearby. Her face turns ashen. She turns in her...
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Alternate reality post-1977 Elvis Presley...
Elvis Remembers: A Farewell Tribute to the Colonel (RCA, 1977)
Journey to Ixtlan: The Teachings of Don Juan — A Song Cycle by Don Elvis Brujo Presley Based on the Works of Carlos Castaneda (RCA, 1978)
Mat’chilah Mehat’chalah (RCA, 1980)
Hayamim Shelanu (RCA, 1981)
Hayom Harat Olam: Live Via Satellite from the Wailing Wall (RCA, 1981)
Elvis Sings the Wonderful World of Rosh...
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The parisette.
You walk into a neighborhood bar. It’s early in the evening. People are chattering quietly at their tables, and a band is setting up on the corner stage. You’re dressed well and smell terrific.
You have a seat at the bar. Attractive individuals of the opposite gender are sitting on either side. You notice one of them is a writer for a glossy local magazine. She glances over at you and...
Well, gee, it looks like Ben’s weekend is...
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“I Met Her at Church,” the Box Tops,...
Reader, it has been a stressful day. Maria Callas...
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“Frank Mankiewicz, my political director, said with a wry smile: “Walter Cronkite...”
– George McGovern on almost choosing Walter Cronkite as his running mate in 1972. (via.)
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Bands your college ex-boyfriend liked.
Jesus Lizard
Braid
Can
Archers of Loaf
Superchunk
The Dismemberment Plan
Built to Spill
The Promise Ring
Pere Ubu
Silver Jews
Jawbreaker
Swell Maps
The Sea and Cake
The Boredoms
Unrest
Wu-Tang Clan
Sebadoh
See also.
Special thanks to Deborah.
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Bands your college ex-girlfriend liked.
Bauhaus
Bis
Len
Galaxie 500
Black Tambourine
Beulah
Heavenly
The Stills
Small Factory
Felt
Luna
Idlewild
The Cardigans
Kelis
Broadcast
The Future Bible Heroes
Damon and Naomi
Saint Etienne
The Cure
“I just realized it’s one of the...
"Even though it is believed to be a regular event,... →
What? Are you kidding? I have thought for years that sea captains had the legal right to marry anyone they wanted, as long as everyone involved was on his ship. Or, you know, you met a sea captain on the train (you could tell because he would be wearing his uniform) and you and your betrothed were just like, “So, you’re a sea captain — you want to just do this?” and the sea...
The Adverts, “One Chord Wonders.”
One...
The little church of Perry Mason.
…he was basically a “good guy” who wore neat suits, drove cool cars and trusted people. He had this uncanny abuility to intuit native innocence. He could listen to the wildly improbable stories of the unjustly accused and just know the truth. Thus, for any kid growing up in the fifties — unjustly accused of being pampered, delinquent, and vaguely responsible for not...
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Netflix recommendation of the day.
“Because you enjoyed The Muppet Show: Season 1, The Muppet Movie and Jonestown: The Life and Death of the People’s Temple, we think you’ll enjoy The Muppet Show: Season 2.”
Phrygian caps on eBay. →
Oh boy, just in time for Bastille Day! Two are listed at the moment; one for each of us, reader. Which sales pitch do you prefer?
Not only will it keep your head warm in cold weather, but it is also a symbol of liberty and human freedom. Proclaim your liberty and be free from the cold!
Or…
Are you attending a Tea Party? You might enjoy wearing this to show your heartfelt support for...
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Dora Alexander, “Russia, Leave God’s Moon...
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Shitty wine, 1945-1957.
According to Frank Schoonmaker, writing in a 1957 edition of The Standard Bartender’s Guide, purchased last weekend at a garage sale.
1954 Red Bordeaux: “Barely passable, thin little wines. Will not last.”
1951 Red Bordeaux: “A year to forget.”
1956 White Bordeaux: “Mediocre. Many wines hard and rather green; several of the great vineyards refused to...
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Programming note. →
In order for you to more accurately follow S. 12th’s ongoing coverage of the 1970s, I have taken my own bad advice and created a new tag for just that subject. I am shocked and a little chagrined at the sheer amount of postings I have created in the last nine months devoted to the 1970s. This is only a few, too; I haven’t really dug into the archives yet.
Incidentally, this tag also...
Back home in America, however, the bubble was...
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At the city desk.
From a recent email from our pal Kurt:
Lumberyards, small manufacturers, and electrical and plumbing supply houses sometimes have a city desk. Sometimes there’s a Will Call. That’s where you pick up your stuff. Or maybe where you order it. Or both, I don’t know. I’m not really a plumber.
A “city desk,” of course, is defined by the American Heritage...
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A phone call from your correspondent. Are you...
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Guys like Pete King, they had it made -- those...
You probably read something about this already — Rep. Pete King, a New York Republican who represents some of the more conservative parts of Long Island in Congress, had this to say about the hoopla around Michael Jackson’s death:
This low-life Michael Jackson … Let’s knock out the psychobabble. He was a pervert; he was a child molester; he was a pedophile, and to be...
Dave “Baby” Cortez, “The Happy...
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