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Saturday, February 14, 2009

Letterman Again!

From Time magazine website there is a list of the top 10 Disastrous interviews with David Letterman. Go check it out here.

The Chronicles of Sarah Conner

Image by visiticeland@hotmail.com via Flickr

I'll make a confession upfront. I've never seen the Terminator movies. I don't care for Arnold Schwarzenegger as an actor and rarely watch anything he's in. So I was not prepared to like the new television series Terminator: The Chronicles of Sarah Conner. I've read some good reviews of it and some people whose taste I trust have praised it, so when Target offered the first season for fifteen dollars I picked it up.

Watching the first couple episodes I was not too upset that I had not caught this show while it was first aired. They were ok, but nothing special. But somewhere along the way something changed and I found myself on the edge of my seat as I watched. I couldn't wait to get back to the series and watch the next episode. By the end of the first season I was hooked. I was enjoying this show a lot.

The shows stars Lena Headley as Sarah Conner and she is terrific. She plays Sarah as the tall, quiet type that is generally reserved for male action heroes. She doesn't say a lot but the is all action when it comes to it. Thomas Dekker plays the teen age John Connor. Summer Glau, who played the character River on Firefly, plays Cameron. Cameron is a terminator sent back from the future by future John Conner to help protect his mother and younger self. Of course the name is a homage to the director of the first Terminator movie. Another interesting homage is the name of the FBI agent chasing down Sarah and her son. His name is James Ellison. In the first movie, at the end of the credits is a small statement that says the Terminator movie owes a debt to ideas from Harlan Ellison. Ellison is a writer that after seeing the first Terminator movie sued because he felt that a lot of the movie owed to stories he wrote and afterwards they put the disclaimer in. I find it kind of amusing that they created a character with his name, and as the man pursing Sarah. Brain Austin Greene from the old 90210 show is cast as John's future uncle who travels back in time to help.

I haven't seen any of the new shows from the second season yet, until last night. It comes on right before Dollhouse so I watched the newest episode. While there's a lot going on that I'm in the dark about I enjoyed it.

Unfortunately I've read that the numbers aren't in and that this show is only on because of the new Terminator movie coming. So it may have a limited future. Friday night is usually the night where the networks send shows to die.

I hope not. This is a really good show.

Dollhouse Review

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Last night was the much anticipated debut of Joss Whedon's return to network television. His new series Dollhouse starring Eliza Dushku made its network birth. So before we get into anything lets talk about the show.

Being that it's from Joss, one of the most creative minds working in television it was very inventive. The premise is pretty cool, but the very idea of the storyline is also its own weakest link. The Dollhouse is a top secret organization that employs a stable of men and women who they imprint new memories and ablities over their minds and hire out to the highest bidder for whatever work needed. When these people aren't having their mind impinted they basically have no personality, no mind of their own.

And that's the problem. Eliza plays one of these "blanks," a woman named Echo. How are we to care about Echo when we really don't know her? And we'll never get to know her, because every week she's a different person. She's a blank person, except for when she is imprinted with a new identity and becomes someone else. And than that person is gone. They're trying to do it with flashbacks and old movies of the woman Echo was before she joined the Dollhouse, but I'm not sure it'll work. Or work quick enough for viewers to make a connection with Echo.

The story was nicely told and full of twists and turns and plenty of action. Imprinting Echo with part of the personality of someone else also gave her that person's faults and fears, which lead to trouble for all.

The reviews have been mixed from what I've seen and I have to give a mixed review myself. The show didn't reach out and grab me like Buffy or Angel or Firefly did. Within minutes of watching the premiere of these shows you knew you were in the presence of great tv. But because it's Joss and Eliza I'm willing to give them the beneift of the doubt and stick with it.

Already the internet has been abuzz of the problems Joss has had with Fox over the show. He went back and reshot the first two episodes, shutting down production for awhile at one point. In a recent Rolling Stone interview Joss didn't sound like a man hopeful to be continuing to work in network television for much longer. He's talking of moving online and creating work there. Which is a shame, Joss has created some of the greatest television in the past and I'm sure he can do it again. I'm just not sure if Dollhouse will be around long enough for us to find out if this will be one of them.

Friday, February 13, 2009

Old School Fridays: It's The Blues Baby

A great theme this week! I love the blues. I would have posted some Robert Johnson but there is definitely no video of him. So I went with one of the greatest blues singer of all time Muddy Waters with Sonny Boy from 1963. They are doing "Got My Mojo Working" and it's a more laidback version than you'd expect from Muddy.

This meme was developed by Marvalus View and Ms. Grapevine. The rules are simple:

1. Anyone can participate; any music genre
2. Old School is defined as music created before 1999
3. No offensive words allowed, please use edited radio version
4. Post a video of your favorite Old School song to take us back down memory lane
5. Add your name to the meme list so that others can check you out
6. Have fun & don't forget to leave comments for other participants

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Happy Aniversary to Me!

On this date four years ago I first put fingers to the keyboard and started this blog. I had no idea what I was getting myself into. My main purpose was to try and kickstart my writing and to promote any writing I did do. Well I really haven't put the nose to the grindstone too well in that regards so there hasn't been that much of it to promote either.

You can tell by my first post I really didn't know what I was doing. I was pretty much lost about this whole blogging thing back then. But it didn't take me long to start blogging about some subjects that would become familiar around here. My third post featured the Wonder Dog Buffy herself. By the middle of the next month I was blogging about music. My first music post was about a concert by the Kings of Leon at the House of Blues. I predicted that they were poised for breakout stardom soon, well it's only four years later and they're selling out Madison Square Garden now, so better late than not. A couple posts after that was a review of the Wallflowers show I caught at the HOB. By April I was talking politics in a post. And before the end of April I was blogging about Jazz Fest in the first of countless posts over the years. That was the year I saw Wilco downtown at the State Palace and than a few days later got to see them again at Jazz Fest. Before the end of May I started my semi whenever posts trying to list all the musical acts I've seen.

The first year I ended up with a total of 368 posts. The next year I didn't quite make that same mark and ended the year with just 328 posts. But the following year was the year of the posts. I compiled 1751 posts for the year of 2007. Now this was the year when I was doing three daily posts of Word-A-Day, Rock n Roll Memories, and Book Fun. So that added up to an awful lot of posts right there.

2007 was also the year that my Dad died. If there are any posts that I'm most proud of writing, or perhaps care the most about, it's the posts I've written about my Dad, before and after his death. Ones like this one on his birthday, or this one on Veterans Day or this post about the one thing of my Dads I wanted after he passed or this post with one of my favorite pictures of me with my Dad.

2008 brought the amount of post back to normal, with 367. I just missed passing the first year's amount by two posts. For 2009 I'm up to 68 posts, not counting this one. So far this year I've been in a posting mood. Sometimes a month will come and I'll dry up with posting.

I'm not sure when I put the stat counter on my site, but I know it wasn't too long after I started. So far it shows 77, 361 hits. I know there are some blogs that is maybe a months worth, but I feel pretty good that I've had people want to visit my site and read my words that many times. Though I wish more would leave comments....but that's probably also because I'm terrible at answering any comments, which I hope to get better at this year. I'm trying to leave replies back to everyone as they leave a comment to any post this year. I haven't been perfect, but I'm getting better.

One of the side benefits of blogging is the friends that I've made over the years. You come to know people better than you expect in some instances on these blogs. I think some of us bloggers find it easier to confess our thoughts and worries on the computer screen than we do in person to real people. I've been amiss in keeping up with some of these electronic friends also. For some reason I've negelteced some and now find myself wishing I was still in touch.

I'm actually kind of surprised that I'm still blogging going on for over four years. And still enjoying it. In fact so much that I've created two other blogs that I don't spend enough time at, Voices to hear and Life in 4 colors.

Well, I hope in all these years that a few people have taken a little joy from these pages. I have found it very satsifying and hope to be back here in four more years with another anniversary post.

More From Phoenix on Letterman

Seems like we're just running a bunch of Letterman posts, but here's one that follows up on the one about Joaquin Phoenix's recent appearance. Read about it here.

Now watch it here:

U2 On Letterman

Image via Wikipedia

For the first week of March U2 will appear every night on the David Letterman show. That week will also see the release of their new album No Line On The Horizon.

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Is He Serious?

Joaquin Phoenix says he is quitting acting for hip hop music. Read more here. I just can't get over that there's a punch line here that I'm missing. Maybe I'm just missing it. He's on Letterman right now and from what I can hear he's pretty much bombing. Not playing his music, just trying to do an interview.

Ryan Adams and Mandy Moore Engaged

No, I'm not going People magazine here, but Ryan Adams is one of my favorite singers so I thought I'd post this. He's engaged to Mandy Moore. Couldn't find any pictures of them together. Good luck to them both.

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Across The Universe

I finally saw the movie Across The Universe. I was prepared not to like this movie. For one it was using songs that to me are just about scared. Don't screw with the Beatles' music. But I found myself really liking this movie. And the songs worked so well with the stories. I really liked this movie.

Another version that I liked was "I Want To Hold Your Hand." I liked the way they slowed it down and made it almost more of a bluesy type song. I think some American Idol hopeful during Beatles week should do a version of this.

What Happened to Thursday Thirteen?

A question just popped up in my mind for some reason: Whatever happened to the home page for the meme Thursday Thirteen? I remember when the originator of the meme was retiring she sold the rights to the name to two other people, but now it seems to be gone. What's the deal? I know people still continue doing it on Thursday, I have when I remember, but there seems to be no official hub for it anymore.

Monday, February 09, 2009

Green Day Album Coming

The new Green Day album 21st Century Breakdown is coming in May. For more about it you can go here. Until than here's an really early video of Green Day performing the Who's "My Generation."

Sunday, February 08, 2009

Sick Again

Image by Jonathan D. Blundell via Flickr

I just got over a cold a few weeks back. I sure have known this would happen, everyone at work has been sick off and on for the past month. I woke up with my cold back and feeling terrible. Luckily today was my day off and all I've done is lay on the couch sleeping. I'm up now trying to get something/anything accomplished. Tonight is the Grammys, I may try to watch them, even though most of the time they go with the safe route for the winner.

Whitney Houston Making Comeback

After years where I imagined one day opening a paper or logging onto the computer and reading that Whitney Houston had died of a drug overdose it seems she's changed her path of self destruction and is on the mend. Read about her triumphant return at a pre-Grammy party here.
I remember hearing Whitney back before she became the huge star she was destined to be and telling my friends about her. I don't know if it was her voice or that fact that she was so beautiful and I think I was a little bit in love with her, but I've always been a fan of Whitney. This video is from the movie The Bodyguard which is one of my favorite movies. I know it's not a great movie, but I love this movie for the characters. This song was originally written by Dolly Parton but has pretty much become associated with Whitney now.

Dave Robicheaux Movie

One of my favorite writers James Lee Burkes' series starring New Iberia policeman Dave Robicheaux is coming to the big screen. The main character is going to be played by Tommy Lee Jones. Read more about it here.

Saturday, February 07, 2009

Happy Birthday Starlight

Starlight over at Here Comes A Storm In The Form of A Girl has a birthday on Sunday. It's strange how you can make friends on this thing. You never meet them but you consider them a friend. So Happy Birthday to you Starlight.

And for your birthday I could only think of one thing, seeing as how much you like U2. This is the video from their new single "Get On Your Boots."

The next is a video of Bono talking about writing:

Now what I've tried to do is find some U2 songs that you might not have heard. (Probably little chance of that since you're such a big fan, but these are songs that aren't found on any of their "official" albums.)

First up is "Stand By Me" which was originally done by Ben E. King and one of my favorite songs of all time.

Stand | Music Codes

Now we present "Redemption Song" originally by Bob Marley.

Redemption Song | Music Codes

And finally we have the Monkees' "Daydream Believer."

Daydream Believer | Music Codes

Happy Birthday Starlight!

Dewey Martin Dies

Dewey Martin died Sunday. He was 68 years old. Dewey was the drummer for Buffalo Springfield. He also did session work for the Monkees while he was with Springfield. After the group broke up he formed a new version of the group and performed over the years. In the eighties he teamed up with the former bassist of the group and they toured as Buffalo Springfield Revisited.

Friday, February 06, 2009

Bon Jovi Comes To Jazz Fest

Bon Jovi has just been added to the line up of this year's Jazz and Heritage Festival. I like Bon Jovi and welcome the chance to see him, but it brings up the problem I have with the way the Fest is going. The Festival is supposed to honor the musical heritage of New Orleans. You don't have to be a New Orleans act but you should at least has some sort of musical ties or musical kinship to the cities vast musical history. In the last half decade the Fest is becoming more concerned with landing big name acts that will draw the crowds. The Jazz Fest used to be unique among the many other big fests throughout the country, but it's becoming just one more a group.

This tears me in two directions. I like the big names, but I wish that the Fest could concretrate more on the smaller acts. I know it's not feasible but I can wish. It's a sort of Catch 22, they need the big names to get people through the gates. I just dont want them losing too much of the local flavor.

Old School Fridays: Songs by New Edition or New Editions Mermbers

I have a confession to make. I was never a fan of New Edition. I can't say that I disliked them. They were one of those groups that really never registered on my radar for some reason. I knew of them, but really can't say I was that familiar with their music. So I've done a little research and I present "Earth Angel" by New Edition. This was a remake of the classic doo-wop song by the Penguins. It was originally done for the sound track to the movie Karate Kid II. I'm a fan of the original of this song and I like the remake.

Thursday, February 05, 2009

Bonnaroo This Year

Image via Wikipedia

It's been a few years since I went to the Bonnaroo Music Festival held right outside Manchester, Tennessee. It's four days of camping out and great music. I haven't been able to go again because it's always scheduled for Father's Day weekend and where I work Father's Day is like a second Christmas and no one can get off that weekend.

Well, this year Bonnaroo is June 11-14 and Father's Day is the twentieth something of June. So I can go if I want. The line up is pretty good. Bruce Springsteen, Wilco, Lucinda Williams, Neko Case, Tift Merrit, Jenny Lewis and a host of others will be there. Tickets are around $250, but they even offer a payment plan this year.

So I just have to decide if I want to go or not.

Disclosure Policy

This policy is valid from 24 January 2007 This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me. For questions about this blog, please contact John @ JohnH985@gmail.com. This blog accepts forms of cash advertising, sponsorship, paid insertions or other forms of compensation. This blog abides by word of mouth marketing standards. We believe in honesty of relationship, opinion and identity. The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics or posts made in this blog. That content, advertising space or post will be clearly identified as paid or sponsored content. The owner(s) of this blog is compensated to provide opinion on products, services, websites and various other topics. Even though the owner(s) of this blog receives compensation for our posts or advertisements, we always give our honest opinions, findings, beliefs, or experiences on those topics or products. The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the bloggers' own. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer, provider or party in question. This blog does not contain any content which might present a conflict of interest. To get your own policy, go to http://www.disclosurepolicy.org/

Saturday, February 14, 2009

Letterman Again!

The Chronicles of Sarah Conner

Dollhouse Review

Friday, February 13, 2009

Old School Fridays: It's The Blues Baby

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Happy Aniversary to Me!

More From Phoenix on Letterman

U2 On Letterman

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Is He Serious?

Ryan Adams and Mandy Moore Engaged

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Across The Universe

What Happened to Thursday Thirteen?

Monday, February 09, 2009

Green Day Album Coming

Sunday, February 08, 2009

Sick Again

Whitney Houston Making Comeback

Dave Robicheaux Movie

Saturday, February 07, 2009

Happy Birthday Starlight

Dewey Martin Dies

Friday, February 06, 2009

Bon Jovi Comes To Jazz Fest

Old School Fridays: Songs by New Edition or New Editions Mermbers

Thursday, February 05, 2009

Bonnaroo This Year

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