Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Go Read It

Scott Dunbier, who used to be in charge of Wildstorm Comics, tells a funny story about working with comics legend Gil Kane. Everyone in the world who edits or publishes comics has had this kind of thing happen to them and it's not funny at the time but it's part of the process.

• Posted at 10:45 AM · LINK

On the Radio

Animation expert Jerry Beck will be a guest this afternoon on Stu's Show, the oft-plugged (on this site) signature program of Shokus Internet Radio. I'll be tuning in at 4 PM Pacific Time and you can figure out where to tune in where you are. It's live, he'll be taking questions and I'm going to call in and try to ask one that I know he can't answer. Just to be mean.

And tomorrow, the Time Travel radio show will be having as its guest, The Great Sidekick, himself. That's right...hosts Dan Hollis and Jeff O'Boyle will be interviewing Ed McMahon, commencing at 3 PM Eastern Time — and since I've been Grooing much of the night, I'm way too stupid to figure out when that is where I am. Listen live or download the show later from their website which, I must caution you, plays loud music when you go anywhere near it.

• Posted at 10:32 AM · LINK

Today's Political Comment

Everyone is saying that our new Attorney General designate, Michael Mukasey, will have to prove his independence and integrity once he is confirmed. Which is as it should be.

And hey, I can even think of a great way he could do this. He could prosecute the guy he's replacing!

• Posted at 9:30 AM · LINK

Things I Won't Be Buying

The Oscar given to Orson Welles for Citizen Kane. Expected auction selling price: A million bucks, give or take $200,000. Too bad William Randolph Hearst isn't around to bid.

• Posted at 9:17 AM · LINK

Briefly Noted...

An article about the 25th anniversary of the comic book series I've been up most of the night writing.

• Posted at 9:07 AM · LINK

Grand Canyon

In 1958, actor Dean Fredericks had the title role in an NBC TV series, Steve Canyon, based on the comic strip by Milton Caniff. It was, like the syndicated feature on which it was based, a fun and fast-moving effort with some fine guest appearances by character actors of the day who later became famous. (Jerry Paris, later of The Dick Van Dyke Show, had a recurring role. And for that matter, Mary Tyler Moore turned up in an episode playing, of all things, a Hispanic lady.)

For years, it was a "lost" series that went largely unsyndicated. It's still not airing anywhere on TV but the Milton Caniff Estate, which seems to own the series, is trying to change that. The problem is that they don't have a full set of airable prints and the shows need to be undergo costly restoration work. You can help finance this and sample the programs. They're restored the first four and are selling a DVD of them, and whatever they make off that will go into resurrecting the other thirty episodes. (You can also help financially by purchasing a neat-looking Steve Canyon cap they're selling and/or by just making a donation.)

All the info is over here, along with facts and a clip or two from the show. We wish them well.

• Posted at 9:04 AM · LINK

Today's Video Link

From a 1962 Bell Telephone Hour broadcast comes this salute to that year's Broadway season. Robert Goulet and Barbara Cook star...and boy, do they have some good songs to sing. But where did those alternate lyrics for "I'm Lovely" (from A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum come from?) It's nine minutes but well worth your time even though it goes in and out of sync.

• Posted at 2:06 AM · LINK