What Movie Are You?

Playing along with Siskoid's game:

Look up movies that came out on your year of birth. Select NOT the one you like best, but RATHER the one that best represents your life in terms of mood, theme, incident and characters.

(Tips: Google "Movies YEAR" and you should have the most popular possibilities to scroll through at the top. For cinephiles or if you find nothing useful, the first link is usually an IMDB list of all films from that year. Down a link or two is a Wikipedia page that lists some films' release dates.)

Man-child wants to stay in the jungle and be a shiftless, stupid jungle bum, but eventually has to face reality and learns that it isn't so bad after all. Yep!

Myself in Three Fictional Characters

Tomorrow's October, which means that this blog is going to turn towards Halloween and if I'm going to do that Three Fictional Characters meme, I'd better do it today.

The 2013 Saga Reader Survey

Since I was just talking about writing to comics letter-pages, it seems appropriate to write an open letter to Saga, though maybe not the kind you'd expect.

Brian K. Vaughan has a tradition of doing Reader Surveys that are more slam books than actual demographic data about his audience. The questions are always fun, and he asked a bunch of new ones in Saga #14. I'm answering mine here instead of mailing them in, so feel free to chip in with your own answers in the comments or on your own blog.

Beware the Internet

1. In the parlance of these newfangled "chat rooms," what is your A/S/L?

I'm not at all embarrassed that I had to look up that term. 46/M/Saint Paul.

2. And if you don't mind us asking, where do you buy your comical books?

The Source Comics and Games.

3. Okay, but when was the last time you climbed a rope and/or used a rope to aid your ascent?

Ha! Last time they forced me to do one of those "skills" tests, so probably like fifth grade.

4. Do you believe in any kind of afterlife?

Yeah, but I'm real shaky on the details.

Tony Angelotti and Johnny Depp

5. Who's the most famous person you went to school with?

Johnny Depp's stunt double from Pirates of the Caribbean.

6. In adolescent sex talk, what does "third base" represent to you?

Anything that you can do unprotected and still not make a baby.

7. President Obama probably hasn't had too much freetime since he was elected, so which (non-Saga) comics that have been released in the last five years would you most recommend to him?

Tumor, The Unsinkable Walker Bean, the Resistance trilogy, George O'Connor's Olympians series, The Unwritten, Beasts of Burden: Animal Rites, Return of the Dapper Men, American Vampire, Kill Shakespeare, Pepper Penwell and the Land Creature of Monster Lake, Sailor Twain, Hark! A Vagrant, Planet of the Apes, The Dare Detectives, Wonder Woman, Daredevil, Hawkeye, FF (the Fraction/Allred version), Battlepug, the Pinocchio: Vampire Slayer trilogy, Templar, Boxers & Saints, and I'm kinda partial to Kill All Monsters.

8. It's your final meal; what would you like to drink with that?

Part of me wants to try something that I've never had before like absinthe, but truthfully I'd go for something familiar and comforting like Pepsi.

9. On Star Trek: The Next Generation, which two characters had a never-acknowledged love affair that only you know about?

I bet I'm not the only one who knows about Troi and Dr. Crusher, but that'll still be my answer.

I paid for this one. Promise.

10. What's the best thing you've ever stolen?

A Magnum p.i. T-shirt. Not that I got away with it.

11. Who or what do you miss?

Mr. Hooper.

12. Have you ever had a possible supernatural experience, and if so, what happened?

I'm such the opposite of having supernatural experiences that my super power, apparently, is to repel all ghosts, aliens, and sasquatches. Whenever people get around and share those stories, I just have to sit there and listen jealously.

13. Do you know anyone currently in prison?

Not currently. I've got a dear friend who spent some time in the joint, but not anymore.

14. Which field or fields do you consider yourself an expert in?

I am to Alpha Flight what Chris Sims is to Batman.

In all seriousness, I'm really proud of
the Harvey Award that Robot 6
won this year.

15. Have you ever been given an award?

Sure. I got that one Letter of the Month from Milestone. And a perfect attendance award from work several years ago. And I won first prize at a Halloween costume contest for dressing up like a scarecrow when I was a kid. When people used to pass around those blogging awards, I got a few of those too. I even got a participation trophy for being on my last-place city-league soccer team. I'm very well recognized for my achievements.

16. Has Twitter made you a happier person?

Let's just say that I'm happy to have finally figured out how to make Twitter useful for me.

17. What did your parents almost name you?

I'm named after my dad, so there was never any debate as long as I was born a masculine child. But had I been a girl child, I'd have been "Michelle."

18. Did you watch any of those videos that Chelsea Manning helped leak, especially that one?

Nope.

19. If you had to fight in any war from human history, which would you choose?

The Cold one. Armed with an Aston Martin and a Walther PPK.

Card by Witsickle

20. Isn't there someone you should finally apologize to this week?

Anyone reading this. And Witsickle for borrowing the photo of her awesome card.

21. What is the most important article of clothing that you own?

Man, clothing is so low on my list of important things, but lately, I'll go with my coat.

22. Are you happily addicted to anything?

Caffeine.

23. We're having a dance! Would you like to come to our dance?

Only if I get to DJ.

24. You have to permanently give up either movies or television, so what's it gonna be?

Movies. That would be difficult, but forced to choose, I'll keep the one that's more adaptable and conducive to long-form storytelling.

25. Finally, please draw a quick doodle of yourself, especially if you're not an artist.

Michael of the Kryptonian House of Dar

I always figured that Siskoid and I must be related; I just didn't realize that our shared heritage was Kryptonian. Find out what family you belong to by answering a few questions at the Man of Steel website.

Create your own pulp covers with the Pulp-O-Mizer

Writer/illustrator Bradley W. Schenck has put a cool thing called the Pulp-O-Mizer on his Thrilling Tales of the Downright Unusual website. It lets you create pulp magazine covers with your own text, like this one I made of an alternate take on Kill All Monsters.

Once you've created your piece, you can save it in a couple of different formats, including one designed especially for Facebook. And if you really like what you made, you can order stuff with your cover on it, from posters to mugs to shirts to iPad cases.

I'm not getting anything for pimping the Pulp-O-Mizer; I just saw it and thought it was fun enough to mention.

Go! Play!

The Mighty Cave of Cool Survey

[From CCCoC, of course]

Ice cream!

NAME: David Michael May, Jr.
NICKNAME(S): Michael, Mike
BIRTHPLACE: Cocoa Beach, Florida
WEBSITE: Yer on it.
FAVORITE SALAD DRESSING: Ranch. Just 'cause it's so versatile.
FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR: Kemps' Under the Stars (peanut-butter-filled chocolate stars in chocolate ice cream with peanut butter swirls).
FUTURE CAREER GOALS: Write more.
PROBABLE CAREER: Write more.
FAVORITE FOOD: Lately, chili.
FAVORITE NON-ALCOHOLIC DRINK: Lately, coffee.
FAVORITE SCHOOL SUBJECT: English Literature
FAVORITE SCHOOL ACTIVITY: Reading.
LEAST FAVORITE SCHOOL SUBJECT: Gym.
LEAST FAVORITE SCHOOL ACTIVITY: Running

Bearded dragon

WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT YOUR TOWN: Lots of places to see plays, movies, and concerts.
WHAT DO YOU LIKE LEAST ABOUT YOUR TOWN: Concrete.
GREATEST ADVENTURE: Visiting Haiti during food riots.
MOST ROMANTIC MOMENT: Too many to pick one.
HOW MANY PILLOWS: Three.
PETS: He's actually David's, but a bearded dragon.
THREE FAVORITE MOVIES (SO FAR THIS YEAR): Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Attack the Block, and Crazy Stupid Love.
THREE FAVORITE MOVIES (ALL TIME): Casablanca, Star Wars, and Raiders of the Lost Ark

Justified

THREE FAVORITE TV SHOWS (THIS YEAR): Justified, Downton Abbey, and Modern Family.
THREE FAVORITE TV SHOWS (ALL TIME): Batman, Doctor Who, and The X-Files.
THREE FAVORITE SONGS: It's futile to try to pick just three, but ones that have endured for me have been "Ruby" by Kenny Rogers and the First Edition, "Gloria" by U2, and "Ring of Fire" by Johnny Cash.
THREE FAVORITE ALBUMS OR CDs: The Joshua Tree by U2, Cosmic Thing by the B-52s, and No Angel by Dido.
THREE FAVORITE MUSIC VIDEOS: "White Wedding" by Billy Idol, "Why Can't I Be You" by The Cure, and "Brand New Lover" by Dead or Alive.
FAVORITE SINGER: Bono.
FAVORITE MUSICAL GROUP: U2
FAVORITE CELEBRITY: Right now, Timothy Olyphant.

Action hero

LEAST FAVORITE CELEBRITY: Anyone who's only famous for being rich, on a reality show, or both.
FAVORITE MALE STAR: Harrison Ford as Han Solo or Indiana Jones.
FAVORITE FEMALE STAR: Kate Beckinsale in any film where she kicks butt.
WORD OR PHRASE YOU OVER USE: Absolutely.
BODY PIERCINGS OR TATTOOS: I have my left ear pierced.
IF YOU COULD WITNESS ONE EVENT IN HISTORY WHICH WOULD IT BE AND
WHY WOULD YOU GO THERE: Probably something from the American Revolutionary War. Maybe Paul Revere's ride? Washington's crossing the Delaware? The signing of the Declaration of Independence? It was such a cool, adventurous, but totally scary time in the history of my country.
WHAT DO YOU THINK OTHERS ADMIRE ABOUT YOU: My beard.
WHAT DO YOU ADMIRE MOST ABOUT YOURSELF: My hat.
WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE ABOUT YOURSELF IF YOU COULD: I really should lose some weight. Fortunately, I can change that.

I could spend the rest of my life right here.

IF YOU COULD LIVE ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD WHERE WOULD YOU GO AND WHY: An isolated island in the Caribbean. With WiFi. I'd be near the ocean and away from crowds, but with the ability to interact with people and enjoy culture when I wanted.
WHAT WOULD BE YOUR LAST MEAL (INCLUDE EVERYTHING): As long as I'm able to pig out: chili (topped with shredded cheese, sour cream, and tortilla chips), pizza (Italian sausage, mushrooms, and onions), a burrito, cream cheese won tons, Vietnamese egg rolls (with fish sauce), a prime rib sammich (with A1), and Mountain Dew. Pecan pie for desert.
WHAT LIVING PERSON WOULD YOU MOST LIKE TO HAVE LUNCH WITH: Bono.
WHAT DEAD PERSON WOULD YOU MOST HAVE LIKED TO HAVE LUNCH WITH: Jesus Christ.
THREE BOOKS TO TAKE TO A DESERT ISLAND:  The Complete Sherlock Holmes, The Riverside Shakespeare, Bone One-Volume Color Edition.

The perfect spaceship

THREE PEOPLE TO TAKE TO A DESERT ISLAND: My wife, my son, and Alexander Selkirk (the inspiration for Robinson Crusoe)
THREE WISHES (NO FAIR WISHING FOR MORE WISHES): World peace, enough food for everyone,  and my own spaceship with a hyperspeed drive.
SPORT YOU MOST LIKE TO WATCH: American football
SPORT YOU MOST LIKE TO PARTICIPATE IN: Bowling.
WHAT DO YOU COLLECT: Books and movies.
WHO DO YOU ADMIRE MOST IN YOUR LIFE: My dad.

Welcome to the 18th century

WHAT HISTORICAL PERIOD WOULD YOU HAVE LIKED TO LIVE IN: The eighteenth century. You've got pirates, revolutions, and gothic romances all in one place.
FAVORITE MONOPOLY PIECE: The dog. And don't you dare run it over with that car.
SPIRIT ANIMAL: The bear.
FAVORITE ANIMAL: Today, gorillas.
BEST AND WORST PARTS OF LIVING IN THE FUTURE: The best parts are the jetpacks, flying cars, rayguns, and bubble helmets. The worst parts are all the alien warlords.
DO YOU PREFER CATS OR DOGS: Cats. For the most part, they mind their own business.
WHAT WOULD BE YOUR SPICE GIRL NAME IF YOU WERE IN THE GROUP: Pumpkin Spice.
DO YOU PREFER COKE OR PEPSI: Pepsi! If a place serves Coke products, I'm ordering the water.

100 Things I Love About The Movies

Inspired by Cinema Fanatic and Jason.



1. Raul Julia and Angelica Huston as Gomez and Morticia Addams
2. Harrison Ford's caving to Gary Oldman in order to save his daughter's life in Air Force One
3. Grumpy the dwarf
4. Nick and Nora
5. Disney's version of Captain Nemo's Nautilus
6. Mr. Whitmore and Helga in Atlantis: The Lost Empire
7. The five notes from Close Encounters of the Third Kind
8. Both performances of Peter Pan in Finding Neverland
9. Ernest as the snake farmer in Ernest Saves Christmas
10. Bowing to the Hobbits in Return of the King

Music Meme: 2008

Completing - for now, anyway - my list of favorite albums from every year I've been alive. I suppose I'll have to add another to the list at the end of the year.

2008

The Ting Tings: We Started Nothing



I still remember the first time I heard "That's Not My Name." I was in the car and by the time the song was over I had it cranked up as loud as I could get away with with my son in the backseat. I thought to myself, "I'm buying this album as soon as I get home."

Then the song ended and David said, "Daddy, what's the name of that song?"

I said, "I don't know, but I'm looking it up when we get home and we're buying it."

"Good," he said. "I love that song."

And the rest of the album's nearly as good. We still love it and David came in to watch the video with me as I embedded it here. In fact, he's in his room right now singing the song.

The Ting Tings - New Music - More Music Videos

Runners Up:
The B-52s: Funplex

Singles:
Beyoncé: "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)"
Katy Perry: "I Kissed a Girl"

Music Meme: 2007

Continuing my list of favorite albums from every year I've been alive.

2007

Mika: Life in Cartoon Motion



Music in 2007 began and ended with this album for me. I love every single song on it and frankly it's impossible for me to even look at what else came out that year because I'm too busy singing "Grace Kelly" in my head.

Music Meme: 2006

Continuing my list of favorite albums from every year I've been alive.

2006

Rock Kills Kid: Are You Nervous?



This album is like the '80s all over again in the best way possible. I love albums that open strong and the first two songs on this one ("Paralyzed" and "Hideaway") are a powerful combination. The rest of the album's also very good, but man those two songs are awesome.



Singles:
Gnarls Barkley: "Crazy"
The Flaming Lips: "The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song (With All Your Power)"
Pink: "Stupid Girls"
Snow Patrol: "Chasing Cars"
KT Tunstall: "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree"
"Weird Al" Yankovic: "White and Nerdy"

Music Meme: 2005

Continuing my list of favorite albums from every year I've been alive.

2005

Death Cab for Cutie: Plans



This was kind of a tough decision. I love My Morning Jacket's sound and Z is a great showcase for it. But Plans has some of the best lyrics I've ever heard. The imagery and final message of "What Sarah Said" is heart-breaking and haunting, and the "Brothers on a Hotel Bed" metaphor is a profoundly sad, but true statement on stale, passionless relationships.

And then there's "Soul Meets Body," which is just catchy as can be.



Runners Up:
My Morning Jacket: Z

Singles:
Coldplay: "Speed of Sound"
Keane: "Somewhere Only We Know"

Music Meme: 2004

Continuing my list of favorite albums from every year I've been alive.

2004

U2: How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb



In 2004, the light appeared at the end of my dark tunnel of adult contemporary music. The best radio station in the history of mankind wouldn't go on the air until the following year, but at least I had the best U2 album since The Joshua Tree to keep me company until then.

Riot on an Empty Street by Kings of Convenience was also released this year, but I wouldn't learn about it until 2005 thanks to the Current. It's a great album to chill to, has a fantastic single ("I'd Rather Dance With You"), and it introduced me to Faust.

But U2 had "Vertigo."



Runners Up:
Kings of Convenience: Riot on an Empty Street

Singles:
The Killers: "Somebody Told Me"

Music Meme: 2003

Continuing my list of favorite albums from every year I've been alive.

2003

Dido: Life for Rent



I was still still having a miserable time finding good, new music in 2003. Fortunately, there was Dido.

Seriously, the adult contemporary station I was listening to was killing my interest in music altogether. Life for Rent wasn't as great an album as No Angel, but it was way better than the other crap I was exposed to. And it was another fantastic concert.



Singles:
Fountains of Wayne: "Stacy's Mom"
No Doubt: "It's My Life"

Music Meme: 2002

Continuing my list of favorite albums from every year I've been alive.

2002

Johnny Cash: American IV: The Man Comes Around



I was still having a miserable time finding good, new music in 2002. Fortunately, there was Johnny Cash.



Runners Up:
Badly Drawn Boy: About a Boy Soundtrack

Singles:
Coldplay: "Clocks"
Coldplay: "In My Place"
Kylie Minogue: "Can't Get You Out of My Head"
Pink: "Don't Let Me Get Me"
Pink: "Get the Party Started"

The Pop-Culture Audit

We're supposed to be answering these questions in the comments section at NPR's Monkey See blog, but I'm not very good about following directions. I figured I'd share my responses with you guys instead. I'd love to hear your answers too.

The Instructions: Audit the culture around you -- both the good and the bad -- and consider a few questions in the areas of movies, TV, books, games, digital culture...whatever "popular culture" means to you.

1. What has been your biggest pleasant surprise of the last three months? (This takes you, so you don't have to do math, back to late May.)

A Perfect Getaway.

2. What has been the rudest surprise of the last three months?

That a book about pirates attacking a dirigible and the resulting shipwreck on a jungle island could be boring.

3. What are you most looking forward to between now and New Year's?

Where the Wild Things Are.

4. What are you dreading most between now and New Year's?

Weeding through more Twilight mania to get to my other pop culture news.

5. If, at this moment, you could only watch television between now and December 31, or you could only see movies between now and December 31, which would you choose if you knew you couldn't go back later and catch up on what you missed?

I'd choose TV. Which sounds contradictory since the thing I'm most looking forward to this Fall is a movie, but it's really not. I may want to see Where the Wild Things Are more than I want to see any one of the 8,000 TV shows I follow, but I guess I'd rather miss one movie - however excellent I expect it to be - than the total of all those shows.

6. If you could press one book you have read this year into the hands of ten strangers when they were trapped during a blackout with nothing to do but read, what would you give them?

I'm not finished with it yet, but unless it takes an unexpected and nasty turn towards awfulness, it's going to be Matt Ruff's Bad Monkeys. I'm loving the heck out of that book.

7. What are you currently trying to like and finding it difficult to like?

The graphic novel American Widow. It's the memoir of a woman who was pregnant when she lost her husband on 9/11, so I really want to honor her strength and her willingness to tell her story. But I'm also having a hard time connecting to it as she's written it. Still hoping I'll be able to do that by the end.

8. If you could guarantee that five people -- actors, writers, directors, whoever -- would have their calendars filled with funded projects for the next five years, to whom would you grant full employment?

It's tempting to fill this list with some of my talented friends whom I'd love to see get regular, paying work, but I don't want to have to pick only five. I'm also not picking people like Keira Knightley and Johnny Depp who are already guaranteed that kind of work for the next five years.

So... five people whom I don't know that I want to see more from over the next five years: Timothy Olyphant, Kenneth Branagh, Chris Hemsworth, Sandra Bullock, and Keri Russell.

9. What do you love in spite of being outside the target demographic? (Example: "I am a nineteen-year-old dude and I loved The Proposal.")

Grey's Anatomy.

10. If you could personally wave your wand and stop one trend -- toy movies, remakes, crime procedurals -- what would be your target?

"Reality" TV.

Music Meme: 2001

Continuing my list of favorite albums from every year I've been alive.

2001

Travis: The Invisible Band



Slow year. In the absence of a decent Alternative station in the Twin Cities, I was still listening to the Adult Contemporary station and not liking the Nickelback and Hoobastank I was getting. The only two albums I enjoyed from that year I discovered through other means.

One was a movie soundtrack and I was introduced to Travis by a buddy who'd seen them live and loved them. I got to see them live myself when they opened for Dido and I loved them too.

(Calvin, I'm deeply sorry about the weaponized octopus in this video.)



Runners Up:
Moulin Rouge Soundtrack

What the heck, let's do another (cephalopod free) video. It's not like there was anything else going on in music that year.

Music Meme: 2000

Continuing my list of favorite albums from every year I've been alive.

2000

U2: All That You Can't Leave Behind



The Year 2000. Wow. Remember when all the computers crashed and the world blew up?

After a couple of disappointing albums (especially Pop), I was thrilled to hear U2 go back to a sound I recognized and loved. I'd gotten away from buying new U2 albums on the day they came out, but as single after great single was released for this one, I got more and more excited.

It's not one of my favorites of their albums, but that's probably because it was so overplayed on the radio that year. "Beautiful Day" is an excellent song, but all these years later I still never find myself thinking, "Boy, I sure would like to hear that again."

A really close runner-up to this record is a-ha's Minor Earth Major Sky. Actually, I replay the a-ha album much more than the U2 one, but I didn't realize it existed until a few years later. All That You Can't Leave Behind, on the other hand, is the year 2000 for me, musically speaking.

And "Elevation" is a song that I still can't get enough of.

U2 - Elevation


Runners Up:
a-ha: Minor Earth Major Sky
Richard Cheese: Lounge Against the Machine

Singles:
Coldplay: "Yellow"
The Dandy Warhols: "Bohemian Like You"
Doves: "Catch the Sun"
Nelly Furtado: "I'm Like a Bird"
Nelly Furtado: "Turn Off the Light"
Matchbox Twenty: "Bent"

Music Meme: 1999

Continuing my list of favorite albums from every year I've been alive.

1999

Dido: No Angel



Even though there were a few albums that I liked in '99, this was an easy choice. I still love this record. Still love Dido. I've been in love with her stuff since the first time I heard "Hear With Me." At the time I thought it was an interesting cross between Garbage and the Cranberries and I loved it enough to watch Roswell every week because they used it for the theme song. (I went to Roswell for Dido, but I stayed for Emilie de Ravin.)

Though I started off comparing her to other musicians, the rest of the album is totally it's own thing. My earliest memory of "Thank You" is lying in bed sick one morning, knowing that I had to go into work later for an important meeting and dreading it. I heard the song on the radio and it made me happy enough that I got up and moving. Went out and bought the album right after that.

Love her voice. Love her words. Love her music. Love her love her love her.



Runners Up:
Lou Bega: A Little Bit of Mambo
Macy Gray: On How Life Is
Smash Mouth: Astro Lounge

Singles:
Baz Luhrmann: "Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen)"
Ricky Martin: "Livin' la Vida Loca"
The Offspring: "Pretty Fly (For a White Guy)"
Sixpence None the Richer: "Kiss Me"
Sugar Ray: "Every Morning"

Music Meme: 1998

Continuing my list of favorite albums from every year I've been alive.

1998

Semisonic: Feeling Strangely Fine



Not a lot of great albums this year, but all my favorite songs were towards the Alternative end of the Pop spectrum, so I guess it was an okay year. I liked "Closing Time" enough to buy the album and ended up liking the whole thing.



Singles:
Cake: "Never There"
Fastball: "The Way"
Alanis Morissette: "Joining You"
New Radicals: "You Get What You Give"

Music Meme: 1996

Continuing my list of favorite albums from every year I've been alive.

1996

Squirrel Nut Zippers: Hot



I can see from the Singles below that I was starting to - if not warm up to - at least make my peace with '90s Alternative. It's still pretty slim pickings for music I like from this year though.

And it's telling that my favorite album of the year - perhaps spinning out of the previous year's discovery of Smooth Jazz - isn't an Alternative release, but by a Swing Revival band. I really got into that whole Swing Revival thing. Still would be probably if it had stuck around.

Squirrel Nut Zippers - New Music - More Music Videos

Singles:
Beck: "Where It's At"
Butthole Surfers: "Pepper"
Soul Coughing: "Soundtrack to Mary"
The Wallflowers: "One Headlight"
"Weird Al" Yankovic: "Gump"