Years ago, one of my favorite columnists, Jack Germond, was on a TV show and he said something to the effect of, "The problem with the press today is that we aren't paid to say, 'I don't know,' so we have to say something, even when we don't know." I keep thinking of that as […]
In our previous News page, I gave some tips for enjoying the impending Comic-Con International. Jim Guida writes to remind me to remind you that there's a very large, well-stocked Ralph's Market just a couple of blocks from the convention center…good place to grab a bottle of water or something to eat. Also, if you're […]
You know who the guy in that picture is? That's Vance "Pinto" Colvig, a clown and cartoonist who became famous — or, at least, his sound did — when he supplied the original voice of both Bozo the Clown and Walt Disney's Goofy. Matter of fact, he not only spoke for Bozo when the clown […]
The pictures above come from eBay, where someone occasionally sells a Fizz Nik — a wonderful device I had as a kid. Basically, you put a scoop of ice cream inside the Fizz Nik, stuck it in the mouth of a bottle of soda pop and drank the soda through the Fizz Nik. This was […]
This last section is for those of you who'll be attending the Comic-Con International in San Diego week after next. Here are some tips that may make your convention a merrier experience… Dress sensibly and wear comfy shoes, as there's a lot of walking to be done. The AccuWeather people are predicting a high of […]
25,000 hits since we put this sucker on-line just before Christmas last year! Would that the things I do for profit could attract an audience like that… I recently stumbled across a terrific website devoted to products and advertising items of the fifties and sixties, particularly those featuring cartoon characters. Wanna see a sample of […]
Keeping in mind that there could still be changes, it's time to unveil the list of panels and events I'll be moderating at the forthcoming Comic-Con International in San Diego. These are always terrific, not because of me but because I get to host the best events. I'll be posting updates and amendments here as […]
The current issue of Washington Monthly has a killer of an article on President Bush's messy business dealings and, in particular, about how his administration has pretty much ignored the kind of ethical lapses that led to resignations in previous regimes. Here's the link to the piece. The thing that leads me to believe this […]
Tomorrow night (actually, Tuesday morning), ABC debuts Up Close, the placeholder interview show that's taking the place of Politically Incorrect. Ted Koppel will be spending a half-hour chatting with David Letterman on the first installment. For an interesting and probably accurate take on the situation, check out Adam Buckman's column in the New York Post. […]
Next Tuesday, The Movie Channel — which you may or may not get on your local cable provider — is running The Night They Raided Minsky's. This film, which I find fascinating, has never been out on Laserdisc or DVD, the VHS tape is quite hard to find, and if it's ever been on TV […]
It's comforting to know that, in the United States of America, you can't go to prison just because of what you're thinking…or can you? In Columbus, Ohio, a man who was once convicted of pandering child pornography was recently put back behind bars on another charge of pandering obscenity. Okay, we all agree that folks […]
Over there on Slate, Alan Dershowitz and Richard Posner are doing a week-long debate via e-mail over the Supreme Court decision on the Florida vote recount. It's kind of interesting if you want to see two smart men both avoiding candor and spinning the statutes according to their personal politics. I've never had much use […]
You know who that man is? Probably not…not by his face, anyway. But you might know his voice and hands. That's the late, great Clyde Adler, a very funny gent whose main line of work at one point was chopping up old movies for TV at the ABC affiliate in Detroit. But Clyde had another […]
Carroll O'Connor will, of course, be forever etched in our memories as Archie Bunker. When I think of him, I think of two instances, more than twenty years apart, which both showed compassion uncommon to any human being, let alone a Big Star. The first was when I visited an All in the Family rehearsal […]
I never had the pleasure — and I'm sure it would have been one — of meeting Jack Lemmon but he was probably my favorite film actor. One thing that struck me as impressive about him was not that he was in a lot of good movies — some people have managed that via luck […]