The web. It’s a big place, full of plenty of distractions ““ some funny, some informative, some ludicrous, some disturbing, some inane, some profound. Each and every weekday, we present links to a few of our favorite finds”¦
Have a THINGAMABOB? Send it in!
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SModcast is the meandering palaver of a pair of dudes whose voices are so dull, they don’t deserve to be on the radio (and, hence, aren’t). Kevin Smith and Scott Mosier are SModcast.
The best thing about SModcast? It don’t cost nothing.
SModcast 2: A Dubious Super-Power –
In which our heroes ponder about C U Next Tuesdays, discuss the death of a human train wreck, compare amateur porn to Elmo, create a platform for Walt Flanagan’s mayoral candidacy, contemplate dalliances with the famous, do bad Salma Hayek impressions, and discern exactly how spineless the fat one is as they relate tales of criminal victimization in major metropolitan areas.
[CONTENT WARNING] SModcast features harsh language and even harsher notions of propriety. Listener discretion is advised.
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SModcast 2 (MP3 format) – 52.5 MB
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Wanna add your two cents? Spend it here, in the SModcast mailbag.
CLICK HERE FOR THE SMODCAST ARCHIVES
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Here are today’s top entertainment headlines:
Kevin Costner and his wife are expecting their first child together. While the couple is happy about the news, Mrs. Costner is not looking forward to drawn out labor and thinly conceived plot.That’s all for today’s news, stay tuned to this channel for all the news that matters least but you still care about.
(Compiled by J. Allen)
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The web. It’s a big place, full of plenty of distractions ““ some funny, some informative, some ludicrous, some disturbing, some inane, some profound. Each and every weekday, we present links to a few of our favorite finds”¦
Have a THINGAMABOB? Send it in!
##
VIDEO BLOG #76: “My Blog To Nowhere” ““
The night is long, everyone’s a bit punchy, and they’re filming in a three-walled motor home sitting in a soundstage while first time director Mark Stegemann reveals how “first-timers” symptoms have frightened his wife. Enjoy!
Download Scrubs Video Blog #76:
The weekend’s here. You’ve just been paid, and it’s burning a hole in your pocket. What’s a pop culture geek to do? In hopes of steering you in the right direction to blow some of that hard-earned cash, it’s time for the Quick Stop Weekend Shopping Guide – your spotlight on the things you didn’t even know you wanted…
While I thought the big-screen adaptation of Mike Mignola’s Hellboy was a bit hit or miss (though more hit than miss), it’s not often that the entire live action cast and director take their act to the small screen – and succeed. Both Mignola and director Guillermo del Toro have returned as creative producers for the first in a series of Hellboy: Animated films, Sword of Storms (Anchor Bay, Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP). Even better than the tight, Asian-influenced story (our hero must tackle a pair of ancient Japanese demons) is the streamlined, evocative adaptation of Mignola’s art style for animation. Combined, they make the kind of fun yet adult action-adventure series that Spawn only wished it could have been. Bonus features include an audio commentary, behind-the-scenes featurettes, interviews, and much more.
Dark Horse has also jumped on the Hellboy: Animated bandwagon with a whole slew of merchandise, including collectible character magnets ($7.99 SRP each), stationary ($4.99 SRP), and journals ($9.99 SRP).
It’s not very often that you get a DVD release that contains just a single episode of a show – the pilot, in fact, but that is exactly what you get with the DVD release of the pilot for the animated adaptation of Mike Mignola’s steampunk adventure The Amazing Screw-On Head (Lionsgate, Not Rated, DVD-$14.98 SRP), about an articulate, seemingly immortal head (voiced by Paul Giamatti) that uses a series of robotic bodies to defend the country against supernatural threats – such as his maniacal former manservant, Emperor Zombie (David Hyde-Pierce) – at the behest of President Abraham Lincoln, with only his current manservant, Mr. Groin, and his dog, Mr. Dog, at his side. It’s offbeat and fun, and with a little more development it probably would have been an adventure in the vein of The Venture Bros., but sadly this seems like all we’ll get. The DVD features an audio commentary, a featurette on the adaptation process, storyboard comparisons, and trailers.
TwoMorrows, I love ya. Not only have you given me entries in your Modern Masters artist spotlight series featuring John Byrne, Walt Simonson, George Perez, and Alan Davis, but you’ve added Kevin Maguire to the list (TwoMorrows, $14.95 SRP), and for that I thank them. In fact, flipping through the selection of artwork contained in the volume, it reminded just how much I adored his run on the Justice League, bringing to brilliant life the scripts of Keith Giffen & J.M. DeMatteis – a run, sadly, that has been completely destroyed by the incompetent mooks at DC (I’m looking at you Dan Didio… ya schmuck). Until Blue Beetle, Booster Gold, Max Lord, and the Dibneys find a way back from DC’s idiocy, at least we can remember the good times.
It’s a shame that Hollywoodland (Universal, Rated R, DVD-$29.98 SRP) largely came and went from cinemas, because Ben Affleck turned in quite a memorable performance as the late George Reeves – an actor whose most memorable role, much to his chagrin, was that of TV’s Superman, and whose life ended either in suicide or murder at the height of his TV fame. The film itself is largely the story of a P.I. (Adrien Brody) who tries to piece together the pieces of the puzzle, even though the LAPD has already ruled it a suicide. Was it a scheming fiancée that killed Reeves? A jealous husband (Bob Hoskins)? Or perhaps the police were right after all, and a despondent Reeves – a serious actor who lamented the typecasting his superheroic role brought him – did take his own life. Bonus features include an audio commentary with director Allen Coulter, deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes featurettes, and more.
It’s aged rather awkwardly in some sections, but by and large, Eddie Murphy’s Delirious (Anchor Bay, Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP) remains a legendary bit of stand-up, and is a wonderful document of a performer at the height of his powers. Not only does the DVD feature additional bonus footage, but a brand new interview with Murphy as well.
It’s been almost 3 years since the last full season release of Mad About You, and when the “Best Of” collection was released a few years back instead of another season, I despaired of seeing things back on track anytime soon. Thankfully, things are back on track with the arrival of the complete third season (Sony, Not Rated, DVD-$39.95 SRP), featuring all 24 episodes. For the recurring appearances from Cyndi Lauper alone, this is a great season – and it’s the era just before things went downhill when the once brilliant sitcom decided to do “very special” episodes.
If you’re under that yellow journalism and political mudslinging in the American press is an invention of the 20th century, let Eric Burns’s Infamous Scribblers: The Founding Fathers and the Rowdy Beginnings of American Journalism (Public Affairs, $15.95 SRP) set you straight. The title itself comes from a George Washington quote describing the journalists of his day, and the portrait of the Fourth Estate painted by this tome – and the politicians that both manipulated and were mauled by it – is far livelier and altogether surprising that one would expect.
You know, you think there’d more themed releases like Van Morrison: At The Movies (EMI, $18.98 SRP). The disc collects 19 Van Morrison tracks featured in movies ranging from An Officer and a Gentleman to The Departed. It’s a great idea, and hopefully it inspires other artists to follow suit… If only to get that McCartney release containing both “Band on the Run” and “Spies Like Us.”
In the early 90’s, an odd thing happened – Richard Lewis and Jamie Lee Curtis co-starred in a network sitcom called Anything But Love (Fox, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP) as a pair of best friends and co-workers who set aside their long-standing refusal to give in to their attraction for each other for fear of ruining their friendship, only to discover it’s every bit as tricky as they’d feared. Thankfully, it was actually quite a funny sitcom, as you’ll discover with the 28 episodes contained in this first 3-disc volume, that also features commentary from the stars on select episodes, plus brand-new featurettes. I do, however, want to also mention that Fox has become maddeningly cheap with their packaging choices, and it’s leading to damaged discs. It’s bad enough that they insist on continuing their use of double-sided discs, but when you combine that with lousy DVD cases, you get loose, scratched discs. Please, Fox, stop doing this crap to good releases.
Love is in the air and a brand new batch of themed catalogue releases are out just in time for Valentine’s Day, as Warners rounds up a batch of oft-requested titles from the vaults. The 5 tittles include Sandra Dee and Troy Donahue in A Summer Place (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP), George Segal as an ex-wife obsessed lawyer keen on rekindling romance in Blume In Love (Warner Bros., Rated R, DVD-$19.98 SRP), Judy Garland and Robert Walker as wartime paramours in The Clock (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP), Amy Irving as the object of her matchmaker grandmother’s attentions in Crossing Delancey (Warner Bros., Rated PG, DVD-$19.98 SRP), and Jane Wyman and Van Johnson as two lovestruck strangers in Miracle In The Rain (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP). All 5 discs features the original theatrical materials, while The Clock gets vintage shorts and the radio adaptation, and Miracle contains a pair of vintage behind-the-scenes segments.
I’ve watched it twice – just because I loved Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind so much – but Michel Gondry’s solo writer/director effort The Science Of Sleep (Warner Bros., Rated R, DVD-$27.98 SRP) is a largely incomprehensible visual exercise about a dedicated young dreamer (think a French version of Brazil) that is quite nice to look at, but very hard to care about. It’s a shame, because there’s obviously a lot of brilliant ideas in Gondry’s head – I just think he needs a collaborator to bring them out in a form an audience can connect with. Bonus features include an audio commentary with Gondry, behind-the-scenes featurettes, a music video, and more.
Based on numerous recommendations from friends (and a healthy plug from the likes of Derren Brown and Penn & Teller), I finally sat down and read Richard Dawkins’s treatise on religion, The God Delusion (Houghton Mifflin, $27.00 SRP). Regardless of which side of the religion debate you fall on, I can’t recommend this highly enough to those with an open mind.
Of all the kids TV out there, very little of it is suitable for adult consumption. On that very short list, I can add the adventures of 10-year-old Ben Tennyson, whose discovery, while on holiday, of a mysterious wristwatch buried in a meteorite gives him the ability to transform into any of 10 alien heroes – a handy thing now that he has to fight the villainous Vilgax and his alien hordes. The 2-disc set features all 13 first season episodes of Ben 10 (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP), plus commentary, drawing lessons, and a sneak peek into the future.
Speaking of palatable kid’s shows, another that fits the bill is Teen Titans, and you can now pick up their feature-length adventure Trouble In Tokyo (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP), as our heroes take on the seedy underworld of Japan’s big city and the villain Brushogun. The disc features an additional “lost episode,” “Robin’s Underworld Race Challenge.”
While watching The Grudge 2 (Sony, Not Rated, DVD-$28.95 SRP), I couldn’t help but be nagged by the feeling that I had already seen the movie. I had, of course, and it was called The Grudge. Just swap out the quickly dispensed with Sarah Michelle Gellar for Amber Tamblyn, and hit “repeat” – there you go, instant sequel. It’s certainly an acceptable diversion, but nothing to remember 5 minutes after the credits roll. The unrated edition features the obligatory extra gore, plus an intro from Sam Raimi, deleted scenes, and behind-the-scenes featurettes.
It’s no When Harry Met Sally, but as romantic comedies go, Trust The Man (Fox, Rated R, DVD-$27.98 SRP) is likeable enough. Most of that is due to the cast, which includes Julianne Moore and David Duchovny as a New York City married couple whose marriage is in serious trouble – but so is the relationship of Moore’s brother-in-law, played by Billy Crudup, who’s having trouble committing to his novelist girlfriend (Maggie Gyllenhaal). Bonus features include an audio commentary, a making-of featurette, and deleted scenes.
Those wanting to complete their Hitchcock collections will probably want to snag a copy of the 3-disc Alfred Hitchcock: Collector’s Edition (Lionsgate, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP), featuring 5 of the master’s earliest films – The Ring, The Manxman, Murder!, The Skin Game, and Rich and Strange. The set also features the documentary Pure Cinema: The Birth of the Hitchcock Style.
If you’re addicted to sites like “The Smoking Gun” and “Defamer,” then odds are that you’ll get a kick out of Celebrity Secrets: Government Files on the Rich and Famous (Paraview Pocket Books, $14.00 SRP). The title is pretty self-explanatory, as author Nick Redfern dives into the files of celebs like Lennon, Hemingway, Costello, Presley, Monroe, Princess Di, and many more. Prurient, but engaging, reading to be sure.
Shopping for a toddler in the family (as I constantly am for my nephew Cameron)? You can’t go wrong with a pair of new collections from two of Nickelodeon’s most popular shows – The Backyardigans: The Legend of the Volcano Sisters and Dora the Explorer: Musical School Days (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$16.99 SRP each). Both discs feature 4 episodes, plus additional songs, games, and sneak peeks.
And speaking of DVDs for toddlers, the BBC has put out the third volume of Charlie and Lola (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$14.98 SRP), which features outtakes, games, and hidden surprises.
Proof that not everything he touched turned to gold, Darren Star’s stab at soapy sitcom – about a group of 6 young actors forced to cope with instant stardom when their show becomes an unexpected success – met with much indifference after only 17 episodes, but the great age of DVD means you can get that complete run of Grosse Pointe (Sony, Not Rated, DVD-$29.95 SRP) for your very own library. Bonus features include audio commentaries on select episodes and an interview with Star.
I know somewhere there’s an audience of a touchy-feely tale of a rebellious 16-year-old and her horse, but I know I’m not it. Still, for those of you who fit that category, there’s Flicka (Fox, Rated PG, DVD-$29.99 SRP), starring Tim McGraw, Maria Bello, and Alison Lohman. Bonus features include an audio commentary, deleted scenes, bloopers, and a music video.
The release of Sideshow Collectibles‘s massive 12″-scale Jabba the Hutt is fast-approaching, so you’d better get on the ball and start picking all of the characters necessary for making an incredible display piece, starting with the “inclusive” edition Salacious Crumb Creature Pack ($32.99) – containing Jabba’s favorite cackling toadie, plus Ghoel Wol Cabashite (with bendy tongue and magnetic body), Worrt, a Sand Skitter, and a Dwarf Varactyl. Get them now before you’re outta luck.
So there you have it… my humble suggestions for what to watch, listen to, play with, or waste money on this coming weekend. See ya next week…
-Ken Plume
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Here are today’s top entertainment headlines:
That’s all for today’s news, stay tuned to this channel for all the news that matters least but you still care about.
(Compiled by J. Allen)
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The web. It’s a big place, full of plenty of distractions ““ some funny, some informative, some ludicrous, some disturbing, some inane, some profound. Each and every weekday, we present links to a few of our favorite finds”¦
Have a THINGAMABOB? Send it in!
##
Adult Swim’s Dana Snyder and FRED’s Ken Plume set out to have a literate conversation between two pals, but inevitably devolve into a verbal, and funny, free-for-all full of bickering, infighting, and the special kind of male bonding that comes from conflict expressed through the podcast medium.
Actor/comedian/raconteur Dana Snyder, you’re certainly aware, is Aqua Teen Hunger Force’s Master Shake, Squidbillies‘ Granny, Minoriteam’s Dr. Wang, and The Venture Bros.‘ Alchemist. Available for weddings and bar mitzvahs (bat availability pending), you can keep tabs on him via his website, www.eyeofthesnyder.com.
Ken Plume is the editor-in-chief here at FRED. He is a friend of Dana’s, as well as his arch-nemesis.
VISIT THE SNYDECAST EXPERIENCE
KEN P.D. SNYDECAST #24: Little Gold Thingees – [adult swim]’s Dana Snyder and Ken Plume’s weekly chat podcast returns with their first annual, extra special Oscar wager, wherein both Ken & Dana make an absurd bet based on their predictions of just who will win the Academy Award this year. Oh, and there’s plenty of kazoo.
[CONTENT WARNING]: This podcast may contain some foul language and horribly off-color jokes. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.
DOWNLOAD: (right click to save)
Episode #24 (MP3 format)
[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/snydecast/ken_p_d_snyde_cast-24.mp3]
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Got something to say? E-mail Dana & Ken at the Snydecast mailbag.
CLICK HERE FOR THE SNYDECAST ARCHIVES
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Over at my home site, Hembeck.com, I have a sub-category on my catch all More page called “Stuff I Had NOTHING To Do With”, the general concept of which – if not the specific contents – should, I trust, be reasonably self-explanatory.
Of course, if I had nothing to do with the material contained therein, then I really don’t have any, um, RIGHT to post it, now do I? Not wanting to overstep any ethical bounds (at least, not by TOO much), I’ve tried to resist the urge to host online any but the most obscure strips, pages otherwise unlikely to ever again see the light of day.
Okay, admittedly, that description’s a bit extreme – and doesn’t quite cover some of my earlier selections – but friends, it sure does hit the nail square on the head concerning what I have to show you THIS time around!
Anybody out there besides me remember THIS?…
This 15 page story was unceremoniously chopped up into three parts and run in three consecutive early 1972 issues of the RBCC, numbers 85, 86, and 87. As I’ve mentioned here in the past, the main purpose of that once popular zine was the buying and selling of comics, and clearly, any editorial material contained within was likely included mostly to satisfy mailing regulations. The cavalier way this lost gem of a story was treated bespeaks its second class nature, at least in the context of RBCC‘s primary mission (in fact, the story’s concluding panel dates the work as being completed in 1968, meaning it sat on the shelf for an agonizingly long period of time before FINALLY seeing publication!).
What exactly IS “The Massacre of the Innocents” you might well ask ? Well, for one thing, it’s one of an unheralded trio of stories that nonetheless perhaps had the greatest impact on my own personal approach to doing comics (I plan to post the other two in due time – in for a penny, in for a pound, I’m thinking…). Back during a time when the very notion of a legitimate Spider-Man/Superman teaming seemed less likely than man walking on the moon, this cleverly constructed tale intermingled characters from both Marvel and DC, all plopped down in a lovingly rendered, richly atmospheric Eisner-like setting. Someone’s killing all the super-heroes, y’see – and though all the names have been changed (to protect the innocent, we’re told – the author!…), the art styles are strikingly familiar…
Ditko, Kirby, Boring, Sprang – they’re just a few of the cartooning immortals whose iconic styles are paid loving homage in this stirring – and in the end, moving – tribute to the costumed crimefighters of The Silver (and Marvel) Age of Comics. As big a comics geek as I was at the time (and yes, remain), there was just no way a story like this WASN’T gonna get to me! And though it was labeled an amateur effort (by the late Bruce Hamilton, who was auctioning off the pages in an ad adjacent to the stories’ very last page, something I never actually noticed until now! Guess it’s a tad too late to get my mitts on a page or six, huh?…), this was obviously the work of someone destined for great things.
Brad Caslor.
Yup, I don’t know who he is either.
Certainly, he didn’t go on to make his mark in the comics field. Happily, though, these days we have a little thing called Google, so once I typed in his name, I quickly discovered what had become of the talented gentleman who’d created “The Massacre of the Innocents” – he went into animation! (Unless, of course, there’s ANOTHER Brad Caslor that likes to draw funny pictures out there, but hey, what are the odds?…).
Fact is, there’s a swell little cartoon called Get A Job posted over at YouTube that was done by our Mr. C, and you animation buffs out there in readerland might want to go grab a peek at that as well! But before you do, take a few minutes – and this link – to zip on over to my site and read “The Massacre of the Innocents,” one of most memorable stories – and maybe the best “insider” tale of its kind ever attempted – I’ve had the privilege to read.
I love this story! I worship this story! I treasure this story! And now, I’ve just gone and completely WAY oversold this story! Pardon my passion, folks, but I’m telling you – you’ll probably enjoy this story, at least a LITTLE bit. Honest.
And if you somehow get wind of this, Mr. Caslor, I hope you’ll dig that I only want folks to share the thrill your delightful tribute afforded me, all those years ago. I calls ’em as I sees ’em, and I calls it a lost classic, case closed!
Believe me gang, when all is said and done, you’ll be just like THIS guy…
There won’t be a dry eye left in the house.
Sniff…
Hembeck com – now also featuring Hembeck! Check it out!
-Copyright 2007 Fred Hembeck
Welcome back, my friends, to the show that never ends! We’re so glad you could attend… come inside, come inside! This week at Music for the Masses, I’m offering up a brand-spanking new podcast with the help of my “good friends” J. Allen from QSE News and M4M’s (as the “cool” kids like to call it!) own Double A. This week’s discussion focuses on, in no particular order, the latest “big band” reunion news, The Good, The Bad and The Queen, a “Cat Empire” and the various “things we wish the Teletubbies could do.” Oh yeah, and for those of you with “short bus” (read: slow) internet connections, we offer up a new installment of J.D.’s Reverb for your reading pleasure. Sound like fun? How’s about we find out?
I can’t quite put my finger on it… but something about those damn Teletubbies just makes me horny.
[CONTENT WARNING] This podcast is firmly grounded in “bad taste” and contains foul language, foolish notions regarding bass playing and the inexplicable butchering of some artist’s names. As a result of this, QuickStop offers up sincere apologies to the families of Gary Cherone, Paul Simonen and Cat Power… forgive them… they know not what they do…
DOWNLOAD: (right click to save)
Music For The Masses: Episode 3 (MP3 format) ““ 24.13 MB
REVERB… WITH J.D.
Back in 1984, the #1 song of the year according to Billboard magazine was Prince’s “When Doves Cry”. The 90th ranked song that same year was “The Longest Time” by Billy Joel. I bring this up, of course, because these were the two artists featured at this year’s Super Bowl game. Many jokes have been made regarding the relevancy of the entertainment, but consider for a moment that a) the previous two Super Bowls featured Paul McCartney and The Rolling Stones, so at least we’re 20 years closer and b) the last time the NFL opted for relevancy we got Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake”¦ and we all know how that turned out.
Anyway, I couldn’t wait to see Mr Joel’s rendition of the National Anthem”¦I mean, who at the NFL thought it would be a good idea to trot out someone recently out of rehab (second stint, I might add) to sing a hard song in front of one billion people? This had all the trappings of an historic crack-up – indeed, Adam Schefter of the NFL Network reported that Joel was puffing nervously on a cigarette right before he went on (smoking, of course, being Step One of Alcoholics Anonymous’ 12-Step Program).
Luckily, though, ol’ Billy pulled it off just fine. Watching him sing, I was reminded that, in the 80’s, he also pulled off one of the all time ‘going way, WAY out of your league’ feats by marrying Christie Brinkley. Some of you youngsters may not know who Christie Brinkley is, but do the words “Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Cover Girl” mean anything to you?
Please rise and, umm, remove your pants”¦
In today’s terms, Billy Joel marrying Christie Brinkley is like Pete Doherty dating Kate Moss (and by “dating” I mean “wooing with blow”)”¦excepting of course that Doherty’s main skill is not music but you know, not od’ing”¦.yet. Anyways, they’re both a couple of homely homeys who took down Supermodel Grade Betties.
Billy Joel in 1984: The most inspirational 5’5″ guy this side of Rocky Balboa
Three more notes on the National Anthem: One, did you know that the gambling website bodog.com was taking prop bets on how long it would take Joel to sing it? They put the over/under at 1:44. Now if you’re Joel, and you’ve practiced this thing 1000 times, aren’t you telling all of your buddies to bet the under?? (He came in at 1:36).
Two: I have no idea how they do it, but seeing those F16 flyovers hit right after ‘the home”¦.of the”¦.braaaaaaave’ is ALWAYS a goosebump moment.
And three, don’t you just love Marlee Matalin’s voice?
As far as the Prince halftime show goes, I’ve come across a fair number of dumb asses in the blogosphere either a) claiming that Prince hasn’t done anything good in years or b) bitching about his babooshka (say that five times fast).
Regarding point a, Prince has actually released two excellent albums in the past three years”¦.and both Musicology and 3121 were nominated for a slew of Grammys (not that Grammys equal cool, not at all. But you know”¦). And as for point b, I think it’s fair to say that Prince long ago established that he is one of the two men on earth (along with Lenny Kravitz) who can wear whatever the f**k he wants and still be Boss”¦.including a babooshka.
(So all of u Prince haters out there should keep yr comments 2 yrself & instead sit back & appreciate the Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic. Or whatever.)
While Prince’s performance was typically fantastic, I was scratching my head a bit at his choice to include three cover songs (“Proud Mary”, “All Along the Watchtower”, “Best of You”) in his little medley. But then again, as my buddy Tony likes to say, sooner or later every band is going to cover Dave Matthew’s “All Along the Watchtower””¦(I love that joke).
However, it was nice to see Prince opt to flex his ridiculously sick guitar chops on most of the songs – strange as it seems, guitar skills are way down on the list of what you think of when it comes to Prince, but he’s among the best. And him singing ‘Purple Rain’ in the downpour that day? By far the best Super Bowl musical moment to date.
And finally, did you know that Prince is in need of hip replacement surgery? Seems that years of performing in 4-inch heels have done a number on him. So in retrospect, I’m sure it was a relief to everyone at CBS and the NFL that the little guy didn’t slip and blow out his hip on the rain-slickened stage that day. Just as I’m sure those same folks breathed a sigh of relief that Prince refrained from making any sexual innuendos whatsoever during his performance.
Hey, wait a second”¦
UPCOMING MUSIC RELEASES… 2/13/2007…
| ARITST | TITLE | GENRE |
| SOUL KID #1 | Americanized | ALT |
| OLSON, MICHAEL | Where Fear and Faith | N/A |
| PO’ GIRL | Home To You | N/A |
| CELLSKI | Mr. Predicter Chapter 2 | RAP |
| DA’UNDA’DOGG PRESENTS | Da’Unda’Dogg Presents “Bay Boyz” | RAP |
| G-DEP | Bad Boy | RAP |
| KEAK DA SNEAK | On One | RAP |
| SOUTH CENTRAL CARTEL | Westurrection | RAP |
| LUCINDA WILLIAMS | West | ROCK |
| NOTHINGTON | All In | ROCK |
| THE SOFTLIGHTES | Say No To Being Cool – Say Yes To Being Happy [En. CD] | ROCK |
| AMY STOLZENBACH | On and On | POP |
| ANTON BARBEAU | In The Village Of The Apple Sun | POP |
| BETH WATERS | This Little Piggy | POP |
| BLUETONES, The | The Bluetones | POP |
| DR. JOHN | In The Night – Early Sessions Of Dr. John | POP |
| HAGEN, NINA | Fearless | POP |
| ICEAGE COBRA | Brilliant Ideas From Amazing People | POP |
| JADE, FAINE | Introspection – A Faine Jade Recital | POP |
| REID, TERRY | River | POP |
| SEAFOOD | Paper Crown King | POP |
| SOPHE LUX | Waking The Mystics | POP |
| THE VISITORS | The Visitors | POP |
| WEBBE, SIMON | Grace | POP |
| WONDERFUL BROKEN THING | Looking For Mike Lookinland | POP |
Thanks for tuning in! Until next time, keep wearing it proud and playing it loud!
Send the proper pronunciation of artist names, review copies, presents and assorted hate mail to:
M.C. Bell
P.O. Box 1222
Arvada, CO 80001
If I had a Cat Empire, this would be my queen…
This would be my jester…
And this… the Royal Guard… only he’d have corrective lenses… for those fucking “Budweiser Lizard eyes” of his…
-by David J Lieto (aka The Squeeg)
PURE Indulgence
The Holidays were a little lonely at the Squeeg household this year. The step-kids both started new jobs and won’t have any vacation time until next year. So Mrs. Squeeg decided to visit Ohio for a few days and, in true Vegas fashion, we drew for high card to see if I was to accompany her. (Could not believe my Eight of Clubs held up!)
While she went a-visiting, I showed some friends from Jersey what Vegas is all about. My guests, however, weren’t into gambling – zoinks! I mean, I know this city’s got a lot to offer but taking me away from gambling is like letting the air out of my wheelchair’s tires during a rain storm. Be-that-as-it-may, I recalled that my friends were fond of the nightlife and one of the best clubs Vegas has to offer is PURE.
PURE, located at Caesar’s Palace, is the place to go for a great time no matter what your taste might be.  This is due, in part, to the design. There are three distinct and separate areas to the club – PURE Nightclub, the Red Room, and the Terrace. And let’s not forget the wonderful and adjacent Pussycat Doll Lounge; where one may be tantalized by the very talented and beautiful Las Vegas Pussycat Dolls.
As you enter PURE, you pass the entrance to the Red Room on your right. The Red Room is a private enclave for VIPs with a spectacular mirror-faced bar, VIP restrooms, and luxurious private booths. The rich red tones of the upholstered walls and dramatic drapery are contrasted by a warm champagne glow emanating from glittering chandeliers. This all comes together to create an unparalleled ambiance of sensual sophistication. The Red Room is the perfect balance between revelry and refinement.
The Terrace can be reached by taking the German-imported glass elevator or by ascending a twisting staircase designed for dramatic effect and offering great views of the main nightclub. Once atop the Terrace one is treated to awesome panoramic views of Sin City from four stories above The Strip. There’s nothing like partying up there below the stars. The Terrace has its own bars, dance floor, and DJ.  There are private cabanas and tables for those who love fresh air. The Terrace is open year round, with an ample supply of heaters on cool winter nights.
The PURE Nightclub is an astounding 36,000 square feet of uncomplicated sophistication. It feature three bars, oversized bed seating, and a raised VIP area which overlook the dance floor. The DJ’s selection of tunes and flawless segues brought a beat that just drew people to the dance floor.
The service at PURE was exceptional and, really, that’s the most important element to consider in my opinion. The bars were adequately staffed by courteous and attentive bartenders. As soon as I reached the bar someone was right there to see to my needs. There’s nothing worse than holding an empty glass and waiting for what seems an eternity to get a refill. I saw no evidence of this at PURE. That is because those with empty glasses received the same level of attention as those just arriving at the bar.
The bouncers were friendly and efficient. This is a far cry from what I was used to at the Jersey shore. Most of the bouncers I came across, in my clubbing days, were arrogant meatheads who were more concerned with impressing young females rather than ensuring that the patrons were having a good time. Again, this was not the case at PURE. The club’s bouncers handled any issues that arose in a timely manner, with a level of discretion that made their intervention unnoticed.
PURE is a fantastic club. I’d recommend it to anyone looking to have a great time.
Here are today’s top entertainment headlines:
That’s all for today’s news, stay tuned to this channel for all the news that matters least but you still care about.
(Compiled by J. Allen)
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The web. It’s a big place, full of plenty of distractions ““ some funny, some informative, some ludicrous, some disturbing, some inane, some profound. Each and every weekday, we present links to a few of our favorite finds”¦
Have a THINGAMABOB? Send it in!
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Actor/Filmmaker Sam Jaeger takes the “Take Me Home Blog” into brand new territory by introducing the miracle of SOUND! Partake of the “Take Me Home Blog Podcast”… And maybe even hear Sam play guitar… Will there be no end to miracles?
EPISODE 1: We’re well into a new year, and Sam kicks off the “Take Me Home Podcast” with an optimistic look at sports disasters, independent filmmaking, and promises of podcasts to come.
DOWNLOAD: (right click to save)
Episode #1 (MP3 format) ““ 10.45 MB
[display_podcast]
-Sam Jaeger
Here are today’s top entertainment headlines:
That’s all for today’s news, stay tuned to this channel for all the news that matters least but you still care about.
(Compiled by J. Allen)
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The web. It’s a big place, full of plenty of distractions ““ some funny, some informative, some ludicrous, some disturbing, some inane, some profound. Each and every weekday, we present links to a few of our favorite finds”¦
Have a THINGAMABOB? Send it in!
##
CHICO, CA – He did it! The Great Jackie Earle Haley is now Oscar nominated for Best Supporting Actor.
When his name was announced, I felt a joyful rush. I’ve had acquaintances get nominated for Oscars and not been that elated. I would have cried, but my tears are reserved for Dick Clark’s funeral.
On the big board, behind Salma Hayek, was Jackie Earle Haley’s face. Luckily his name was called early so there was no gritting of teeth for the final name. This column has been spreading Oscar buzz back in October when Little Children ran at Toronto. And the buzz wasn’t merely marketing hype. Jackie Earle Haley had the goods.
What are the odds of him beating the Eddie Murphy juggernaut? It could be very good. Eddie has pissed off a lot people in Tinseltown. He’s notorious for being a pain on the set. Where do you think Martin Lawrence learned how to be a soundstage diva? On top of it, the airwaves are flooded with ads for Norbit. It’s another unfunny Eddie Murphy movie with him in a fat suit. A few years ago, Bill Murray had his Lost In Translation nomination derailed thanks to his voice being abused in Garfield. Murphy could suffer the Garfield Effect.
There’s also hope that Peter O’Toole and Kate Winslet might be walking up the stairs. Plus Jennifer Hudson grousing about American Idol might backfire. The Academy Awards can’t afford to be seen as the victory lap for the usual winners. Are viewers going to stick around to see the same folks that collected hardware at the Golden Globes and the SAG awards? Expect to see “upsets.” Jackie’s best bet is that he gets Jim Broadbent action – since Jim won the Best Supporting Actor award for his work in Iris, a film starring Kate Winslet.
The cool thing about Jackie Earle Haley is that he didn’t end up having to launch his comeback by appearing on Celebrity Justice or The Surreal Life. He didn’t have to embarrass himself in order to get back in the spotlight. He was able to land serious acting gigs. I can’t wait to see him take on Joan Rivers. Although best would be if he beats the crap out of Ryan Seacrest on the Red Carpet. He’d win the Presidential Medal of Freedom for popping American Idol boy. Or at least Angelina Jolie’s undying love.
LITTLE MISS BOOZE
Do you know what I call a 20 year old girl that likes to get drunk, takes a sniff or two of cocaine and sucks face with hot girls? A sophomore in college.
Are we really supposed to get a message out of Tara Connor’s new sober ways? After seeing her fresh out of rehab on every TV channel, here’s my message to her: We don’t care. The only reason a vast majority of America knows about you was because you came off as Tara Reid’s less skanky, but still slutty younger sister. But now that you’re all clean and sober, you bore the crap out of us. You can now vamoose like nearly every other woman that has won Miss USA.
High profile rehab centers have invented a 13th step that declares, “You must appear on every major talk show to promote your new life.” Who didn’t watch her tell-all interview on The Insider and begged for Pat O’Brien to lapse into his voicemail rant?
I do hope that rehab didn’t make her want to stop humping Miss Teen USA. America needs to know that girl-girl action doesn’t always involve Rosie O’Donnell. We need to dream that those pictorials in Penthouse had a basis in reality. If Miss America and Miss Teen USA aren’t getting nasty, then the terrorists have won.
WORST MOTHER OF THE MONTH
Dina Lohan has lowered the bar for bad motherhood with her recent antics. While her daughter Lindsay is in rehab, Dina has turned the spotlight onto herself. Instead of making Lindsay’s recovery a private family matter, she made an exclusive deal to have a reporter and camera crew record her motherly plight. Nothing was more pathetic than her rushing from New York to Hollywood to reunite with her troubled daughter as an exclusive for a certain infotainment show.
Dina has the nerve to complain about the photographers hounding her meeting with Lindsay at a ritzy store. She despises how the media dares to exploit her daughter. Yet there she is turning home movies into an easy profit source. Is she just upset that the paparazzi have hounded in on her exclusive moment?
Dina is just a step above the mother who sells her daughter’s panties to Japanese businessmen. But Dina might be willing to stoop if the price is right.
NO MORE EXTREME ACTION?
While I was wandering around on the Raleigh location of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, I overheard a rumor that the show has only one more season before ABC-Disney gives it the axe.
Pretty much Ty Pennington will be putting down the megaphone after the 2007-08 season, according to the water cooler chatter. Why? The show still pulls in good ratings. People still love to come out and see the houses being built by volunteers. But the suits at the Mouse network are upset that it’s not really their property – even though each episode promotes various Disney properties. The Rat must be fed.
Write the network and complain now.
GATES TV
Why is the press drooling over Bill Gates’ vision of television five years from now? While the internet has already changed how people watch TV, his examples are rather clueless.
Gates declares that TV is terrible when it comes to the Olympics. Why? Because it has fixed times for the various events being broadcast. He envisions a split signal that will allow people to just watch their favorite events at the proper time. But it can’t go down that way. Why?
Because NBC is paying billions of dollars to run the Olympics in America. They need top dollar for commercials. And they won’t get top dollar if they splinter-cast the various events through the internet. They don’t want you to merely watch your sport. They want you to watch the show. If you really gave a crap about certain events, wouldn’t you just go see the Olympics in person? NBC has to run women’s gymnastics in prime time cause that’s where the money is at.
“Internet presentation of these things is vastly superior,” declares Bill. Really? Who is footing the bill for all this content? The networks and cable channels barely want to pay anyone for content right now. NBC pays billions to the NFL, but they’ve decided sound guys are unnecessary for news reporters. It’s just going to turn into the Al Franken SNL joke where he had the camera attached to him along with the Sat dish. The big question is who will be paying his expenses to collect the truth? Even though Mark Cuban has hired an investigative business reporter, the stories are tilted to giving Cuban stock tips. Of course media news is now being used as corporate football. Did you notice how Fox News and the Boston Herald (owned by Rupes) went after Ted Turner for the Cartoon Network’s publicity stunt that went bad? Ted doesn’t own the Cartoon Network anymore. But that didn’t stop Rupert Murdoch’s minions perform an around the clock character assassination. Heaven forbid a news organization check their facts.
The biggest problem with the narrowcasting vision of Bill Gates is that viewers are allowed to avoid being informed about the outside world. “You have to wait for the guy to talk about the thing you care about,” Gates says. Maybe while waiting, a person has to listen to something they don’t know about to hear something that needs to be heard. Bill and his buddy Bono keep going on about Africa. But under Bill’s vision of tomorrow, I can exist in an information world where I don’t have to know a damn thing about Africa. Dafur for all I care is another specialty cup served at Starbucks. And who is going to tell me differently in Bill Gates’ Five Years into the Future?
What regular TV offers us is the ability to stumble across stuff. We are a society that loves to flip channels. But if we have to pay for each channel we click, are you really going to be that adventurous? We don’t want to think that hard to be entertained. I’ve a wall full DVDs, but I’d rather not have to get up, decide on a title, open the box, load the DVD player, wait for the “don’t download movies” crap, and finally click on the movie. I’d prefer to channel surf to Green Acres.
Leave it to a billionaire to tell us how we should watch TV. When is the last time Bill sat down and watched HBO’s Cathouse: The Series on his 110 inch flat screen plasma TV? Isn’t this guy too busy saving the world with his foundation and figuring out ways to give you more Blue Screens of Death on your PCs to watch Charlie’s Angels and Gilligan’s Island? Go save the world, Bill. I’ll keep the sofa warm.
MORE CATHOUSE!
Cathouse, my favorite reality show, returns to HBO this Friday (Feb. 10). Get a sense of what it’s like to hang around a legal Nevada brothel with the lovely ladies as they service their customers. It’ll also be on the HBO OnDemand channel so you can watch it whenever you get the urge.
We’re hoping to get a few questions answered from Shelly Dushell in an upcoming column. She had told me earlier that while she’s now working at the Wildhorse Rance, she was at the Moonlite Bunny Ranch during the recent tapings.
The highlight of the show will be the return of Isabella Soprano, America’s Sweetwhore. After the first series aired, Isabella become a sensation as an internet fetish model. She knows her way around a ball gag. The things they do to her with a water hose would melt a fireman. She even made a guest appearance on Seymore Butts’ Family Business series on Showtime. Even when she’s strapped down to a bed with various mechanical devices working her private parts, she still has that true girl next door appeal. She’s like an extra sexy graduate assistant teacher. I want help refine her oral thesis. For those curious about the tattoo on her back, it reads, “Dream out loud.” And I’ve got a couple dreams involving her – although most of them end with my wife opening up the credit card bill and wondering what cost $13,000 in Nevada?
The amazing part about Cathouse is that if you really want to meet the “stars,” you can fly out to Reno and book time. This isn’t like The Girls Next Door where Hef teases you from behind the Playboy Mansion gates with his ladies. Bunny Ranch owner Dennis Hof is eager to welcome you into his life – as long you can pay in advance and be nice to the ladies.VERN IS YELLOW!
The “find the sticks of fake dynamite with the Party Favors logo in Boston” promotion has been canceled because I don’t want to be butt raped in jail by Vern Schillinger.
Here’s a strange piece of trivia, did you know that Vern Schillinger from Oz is the voice of the Yellow M&M? Yes, America’s favorite leader of the Arayan Brotherhood (played by actor J.K. Simmons) is our beloved candy icon. Can you imagine what’s been done to the Red M&M after all these years? Did Vern burn a swastika into the Red M&M’s butt like he did Tobias? Are red M&Ms the candy of choice for cellblock bitches?
The weird thing is that on an early episode of Oz, Vern experienced a chocolate coating. Simmons was able to connect the two roles on the gym floor.
An extra creepy moment is when Bill Fagerbakke arrived at Oz to play an Arayan prison guard. He’s the voice of Patrick on Spongebob Squarepants. If you close your eyes, it’s the Yellow M&M and Patrick the starfish talking about white power. Forget all the buzz about Harry Potter getting naked and nasty with horses on stage. Here’s two childhood icons that took on very daring roles and I’m scarred for it.
IS SHE FUNNY YET?
Has it really been 4 1/2 years since Jimmy Kimmel hooked up with Sarah Silverman? Some view this “power couple” as the comedy version of John and Yoko. I prefer to think of them as a super group featuring Yoko and Linda McCartney.
PRESIDENTIAL POOP
President Brownback? Come on. That sounds like character in a German fetish video. Does this guy really expect to run for president when his name sounds like a UPS slogan? Damn shame he can’t name Scatman Crothers as his Vice President. I’d put a “Brownback & Scatman ’08” bumpersticker on my Yugo.
And Gov. Huckabee is doomed because I Heart Huckabees put me to sleep. If people ignored the film, why are they going to care about the live act? Likewise, I’d never vote for Sen. Jurassic Park III.
And what is Gov. Pataki waiting for? Can’t you hear the corn growing? Can’t bother to run until you discover all the secrets of Lost?
With only two more years before the real presidential election, I’m already sick of these people and their hats in the ring. These goofs will mouth off about people taking advantage of welfare programs, but they’re the biggest welfare moochers in Americas. They need to con hundreds of millions of dollars from us for their campaigns. The winning candidate needs $100 million to win a job that pays $300K. It’s disgusting. Do we allow aspiring pizza delivery boys the right to raise millions so they can land a gig at the Pizza Transit Authority?
And I’m sick of Iowa and their caucuses. For three years out of the year, we only care about Iowa if they can beat the spread when Michigan stomps them. But for the next year, all we’ll see on TV is Sen. John McCain standing in a corn field. Whoopie.
Here’s a scoop: Saudi Arabia is in the process of building an ethanol plant on their soil. Why? Where does Saudi Arabia grow their corn?
And why is “Al Franken Considers Run For Minnesota Senate Seat” considered a new story? They made a two hour movie about his positioning for the job. Unless Franken puts his name on the ballot – it’s a non-story. You want an exclusive, I’m thinking about having an affair with Angelina Jolie. Put that on the cover of the New York Times. Or maybe Weekly World News.
LET’S GO COVERING
Why did Prince have to cover the Foo Fighters during the Super Bowl? I mean, here’s Prince and he’s doing covers of Hendrix and Ike and Tina Turner at halftime. And the Foo Fighters? Why no Sublime tribute? At least they didn’t try to force My Chemical Romance onto the bill. It was a great mini-show, but somehow it would have been nice if Prince had played something newer of his own than 23 year old material from Purple Rain.
It is amazing how he doesn’t completely come off as a nostalgia act. If the 1984 Super Bowl had Frankie Avalon, we’d think they were behind the times. Well at least they chose an American act this year instead of their First wave British invasion acts. Herman’s Hermits must have booked for a cockfight.
WHERE’S THE DVD?
When is The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh coming out on DVD? With all the talk about Pittsburgh getting a new arena for Mario and the Penguins, it’s hard to think of them trashing the old arena. It’s cinema history for the shot of the balloon with Dr. J in the basket floating down through the opening in the Mellon Arena’s retractable roof. If Orca and Gymkata can get released, then it’s time for the greatest basketball film to get shiny disc love. Plus it’s time for a James Bond III revival.
Gymkata is this month’s must see DVD. Director Robert Clouse helped define Bruce Lee when he directed Enter the Dragon. A decade later he was given the weirdest task in filmmaking – transform a male gymnastics star into an international action hero. And don’t play it for laughs. Kurt Thomas, the diminutive star who missed his chance to shine in the boycotted 1980 Moscow Olympics, is sent on a secret mission to a small Eastern European country. He has to win a brutal competition in order to get the US a site for a defense project. Instead of being buried under secret gadgets, Thomas has to use a mixture of gymnastics and karate against the opposition. And thus the world was introduced to Gymkata.
The greatest moment in the movie is when Thomas uses a town monument to score a perfect 10 in the Pummeling Horse. This film is pure unintended hilarity. It’s like a pilot for a show to follow Sledge Hammer. Shockingly enough, there would be no Gymkata 2: Vault of Death.
If you have a bottle of Jack Daniels, you need to watch this film as part of Really Dumb Action movie night. This would be the perfect double bill with John Cena’s The Marine. Did anyone else laugh during the film when they kept claiming Australian countryside was really South Carolina? I kept waiting for them to have Kangaroo-shaped possums.
Here are today’s top entertainment headlines:
Rick Rubin, the man behind the most recent and crappiest The Cure album, has been offered a job as co-chairman of Columbia Records. Rubin has yet to commit to the job but has told friends and family that he looks forward to ruining albums for a whole new group of artists.That’s all for today’s news, stay tuned to this channel for all the news that matters least but you still care about.
(Compiled by J. Allen)
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The web. It’s a big place, full of plenty of distractions ““ some funny, some informative, some ludicrous, some disturbing, some inane, some profound. Each and every weekday, we present links to a few of our favorite finds”¦
Have a THINGAMABOB? Send it in!
##
-by Ken Plume
In a tenure lasting over 25 years and beginning in the transition from the Nine Old Men to young turks that included fellow artists like John Lasseter and Glen Keane, Tad Stones made his mark not in the Disney Company’s fabled feature animation department, but in its burgeoning TV Animation division.
Stones was one of the chief architects of the “Disney Afternoon” period of classics, including creating the much-loved Darkwing Duck. He went on to play a role – as both writer and producer – in shows such as Aladdin, Hercules, Buzz Lightyear, and Atlantis. Since leaving Disney, he’s produced The Adventures of Brer Rabbit for Universal.
In addition to that rather hefty line of accomplishment, he’s now the producer for the new line of direct-to-DVD Hellboy: Animated films, which kicks off with the just released Sword of Storms. Reuniting nearly the entire cast of Guillermo del Toro’s live action film (including Ron Perlman, Selma Blair, and John Hurt) and working closely with Hellboy creator Mike Mignola, these films promise to be an exciting new chapter in the history of everyone’s favorite big red devil. You can even visit Stones’ online Hellboy production blog HERE.
I got a chance to chat with Tad about what it was like putting these films together (including the upcoming Blood & Iron), working with Mignola, his Disney past, and a few other odds and ends…
KEN PLUME: Is this Tad?
TAD STONES: Yes it is.
KP: Hey, this is Ken Plume from Quick Stop…
STONES: Hey! And I just stubbed my toe, so I’ll be in pain… Give you that extra edge…
KP: That’s good. Well, hopefully it’ll make up for what I’m sure will be a completely banal line of questioning…
STONES: Exactly…
KP: That you’ve heard thousands of times before.
STONES: Only in the last three weeks, I’m sure.
KP: Apologies for not being able to call you earlier…
STONES: No, that’s fine. Actually it turned out I was at a recording session for the whole first part of the morning.
KP: Oh, so it worked out.
STONES: Yeah. And then I was supposed to have an interview and I realized I must have made the time zone mistake. The guy goes, “Well, we’ll try to reschedule, sorry.” And it’s like, “I’m not supposed to talk to you until hours from now!” Oops!
KP: You’re certainly banging the drum in any way you can to get the word out about this Hellboy release…
STONES: Definitely. And shameless. People don’t get it. I don’t get a cut of the movie – It’s just that I want to make a lot more of these. It’s just so much fun and so cool, and the only way to do that is to get people to buy that first one.
KP: I noticed that you have an online journal that you’ve been keeping during production…
STONES: Yes. All the good stuff is earlier in the archives, though. It’s kinda like, once the movie’s done, it’s a lot of whining and complaining about, “Why aren’t people buying this?” “Because it’s not on sale yet.” I feel honored in that my composer Christopher Drake sent me an email to say we’re nominated for the “Rondo Hatten Horror Movies Awards.” It’s just like, “Ooh, I didn’t know that there was an award named after Rondo Hatten.”
KP: You know, if you can get the Hatten Award, then that’s got to be center on your mantelpiece….
STONES: Yeah, exactly. Definitely. Unfortunately, we’re up against Battlestar Galactica, so somehow I’m thinking…
KP: Yeah, but come on – if the Hattens know what’s good for them…
STONES: (laughs) Exactly.
KP: Then they know what they need to pick. Anyone can choose Galactica.
STONES: Exactly.
KP: They need to go with the quality choice, not the quantity.
STONES: That’s what I’m thinking.
KP: I’m wondering – is it an oversized award?
STONES: No, it looks like… about the size of an open fist.
KP: I would think the Rondo Hatten award would have to be at least somewhat larger than the average award…
STONES: Yes. Well, the nose alone, I think…
KP: It has quite a stunning profile up on the shelf.
STONES: Yes. (laughs)
KP: My first question would have to be when your first exposure to the Hellboy material was…
STONES: Well, you know, I was a comic fan, so I had been collecting a lot of Mike’s work even before I knew who Mike Mignola was. Certainly at Cosmic Odyssey, that he did for DC, is when he really started, I think, stepping onto the style path that he’s continued ever since, of exaggerating action – of simplification just in general – and just his storytelling started changing. So when Hellboy was announced, I was one of those people waiting for it. So, I was there from the very beginning. In fact, I pitched it at Disney Studios as a prime time show, because they were asking for new and different ideas about 12 years ago. I did a little Adobe Premier presentation, and I only had “Wake the Devil”, “Seed of Destruction” and “The Corpse” to choose from. I didn’t have any more visuals than that. So, early on there, I was already pitching the idea.
KP: Were you actually pitching it as an adaptation of his visual style, as well?
STONES: At the time, X-Files was huge. It was at its peak. This was 1994, I guess… ’93, ’94. And Bruce Timm had proved – along with Alan Burnett and Paul Dini and Eric Radomski and his whole gang – that animation didn’t have to be just morality tales for tweens. Animation could do some cool drama with The New Adventures of Batman. So my pitch was that this was the animated X-Files. It pretty much would have been the tales of the BPRD. (laughs) They never picked it up, so who knows what it would have become, because I certainly wanted to keep the folklore aspects and everything that was Hellboy. But the pitch was basically an animated X-Files. And they were looking for something more akin to, say… oh, I don’t know – The Simpsons…
KP: So, in other words, if you’d just put a couple more jokes in it…
STONES: Well, like I said in other places, thank god they didn’t take it or we might be dealing with Heckboy or having Hellboy in the Fantasyland castle posing with Tigger and Pooh. I don’t think the world’s ready for that.
KP: No. Or you can have a little BPRD section of Disneyland. Although they’d probably stick it in California Adventure.
STONES: That would probably be a whole different take on the Haunted Mansion.
KP: Yeah, like the Nightmare Before Christmas redress for the holidays…
STONES: Exactly. You just have agents there blowing the heads off some of the existing ghosts.
KP: Works for me.
STONES: Anyway, so it didn’t go there. But as a fan, I went way back right to the beginning – the very first publication, I guess, was in a San Diego Comic-Con handbook, but the first thing I saw was the few pages Mike did in the center of the Next Men, by John Byrne.
KP: How would you describe the creative boundaries of Disney TV animation at that time? You were able to accomplish quite a lot within that “Disney Afternoon” block that was unprecedented as far as Disney material was concerned…
STONES: Well, way back when on the Disney afternoon, we were kind of masters of our own destiny. We didn’t realize how good we had it. Although we had to answer to our boss, Gary Krisel, pretty much any show that we could sell to Jeffrey Katzenberg and Michael Eisner got put on the air. We didn’t have to deal with the network in any of that. And I doubt that those early shows would have been as solid if we had been doing it with a normal network, because they would have been more gag oriented or there’d be no continuity. Where some of those shows really banked on that. It was just a different style of storytelling, I think. Especially when you get into something like Gargoyles. Arguably, it could have been too complex, but the point is working that, with a normal network situation, I don’t think that would have happened. It was just a special time in syndicated history. And then Fox started up their own network and that shifted things, and then as soon as cable got into cartoons, it’s a kind of golden age for animation in that it’s everywhere. But the problem is no one place makes a huge amount of money, so it’s hard to fund projects and things like that. So anyway, on Disney Afternoon, we were kind of left on our own, other than internal notes. We still have such a large fanbase… In fact, those fans are starting to have kids…
KP: Is there anything that surprises you, to this day, that you were able to get away with?
STONES: Not really. Because with the Disney Afternoon, we were still at Disney. So you just gear your thinking “G-rated.”
KP: Right. But I can’t imagine a show like Darkwing Duck getting launched today within Disney.
STONES: Yeah, just because they’re oriented to a whole…I don’t even think they’ve got funny animal programs outside of Mickey, Donald and Goofy. Just that kind of Carl Barks/Donald Duck tradition. A lot of us loved that stuff, and so that oriented toward thinking of, “Hey, you can tell any kind of story with these characters.” And now it’s just a whole different mindset, as to what they’re looking for. And not just at Disney, I think in all the networks you don’t see the same kind of shows. Darkwing Duck was my salute to the silver age of DC comics. You know – Julie Schwartz would just do those crazy covers of kryptonite stories of Superman turning fat or bald or old or something like that, and Darkwing had that same kind of silliness. It was back before the days of continuity, so Darkwing had, like, four origins at least that we animated. And we would have had more, had it gone on longer.
KP: I remember hearing the voice tracks for “Justice Ducks,” and being blown away, as a comic book fan, that this was being done for TV animation. And by Disney! That sense of superhero fun hadn’t been done at that point…
STONES: Basically, back then – especially with Darkwing – you had a lot of oversight at the very beginning when you’re creating the show, when you’re pitching the show, and then around the third script they all back away and start picking on other people. And then the scrutiny returns when you start getting animation back. So, in between times, I could pretty much come to work and say, “You know what? I’m thinking of an episode with mafia penguins.” Today it would be, “Let’s do the The Departed, but we’re doing them with penguins and Darkwing’s going to infiltrate this gang of penguins, and one of the penguins is going to come and masquerade as Darkwing Duck,” or something. You know, whatever the idea, whatever the notion is, there is no one to say no. It was like, “Okay, let’s make that funny.”
KP: I remember, to my young mind, I was thrilled with the idea that here was legitimately a spin-off series that was in the same universe as DuckTales, and piecing that together…
STONES: You know what? I never worried about that. I mean, by definition he was a spin-off because Launchpad was in both…
KP: And Gizmo Duck…
STONES: Yeah, and that really came more from the origin of the show than it came from… well, certainly Darkwing has nothing of the Carl Barks sensibility, or the DuckTales sensibility, which I feel is very different than the Carl Barks stuff. The notion started out as an episode called “Double 0 Ducks,” which was just Launchpad as a James Bond parody. And Jeffrey Katzenberg just loved the name, and asked me to develop a show, and I just felt, “Spy parody? We’re, like, 10 years too late.” This was before Austin Powers.
KP: “And we just did that episode.”
STONES: Yeah. (laughs) Well, I mean, it was done in DuckTales, and he was just saying, “Spin it off as a show.” I pitched something, and I just felt it had no sense of family to it, there were no strong relationships, it was just parody. I presented it, and he said, “You know, there’s no sense of family to it, there’s no relationships, it’s just parody. Do it over.” Suddenly, it’s like, “Oh crap, I can’t do the easy thing.” And then that’s when I started thinking about the old pulps like Green Hornet and The Shadow, and Doc Savage having a band of people who helped him. And that’s when he really got redeveloped. And until we found out we couldn’t use the words “double 0.” So the name is what kept him alive, and then we couldn’t use it. And we couldn’t come up with a new name, so we had a contest in the studio. The winner would get 500 bucks, and ironically the winner was Alan Burnett, who came up with Darkwing, and I said, “Oh, we just gotta make it a little sillier – let’s make it Darkwing Duck.” And Alan took his money and then left to go to Warner Brothers and write the first season of Batman. Had he stayed, Darkwing might have been much darker.
KP: What were the complications with “Double 0”?
STONES: It was owned by Cubby Broccoli. It’s not a real thing, it was made up by Ian Fleming, and Cubby Broccoli had the rights to all of the Ian Fleming novels.
KP: I never knew that.
STONES: Yeah.
KP: Must have been a heck of a thing to find out.
STONES: Well, Disney always pays attention to that stuff, because they want to sue everybody else. We’d see stuff all the time at Warner Brothers cartoons, and we’d say, “Why can’t we do that?” And it’s like, we didn’t want to get them in trouble, but they would never let us do similar things.
KP: Playing in that superhero wheelhouse with Darkwing… I was about to use the horrible pun, “wetting your beak…”
STONES: But it was gooey and you thought better of it.
KP: I caved in at the end. Moving on to Hellboy, do you think, in some ways, you can look back and see Darkwing as a precursor for fully embracing that sort of superhero storytelling in animation?
STONES: I enjoy comics. I’ve always enjoyed stories of the supernatural. My work on Hellboy had nothing to do with any evolution of my Disney stuff. It’s very strange, because I feel in a strange way that my almost 30 years at Disney was kind of a precursor to my work now. I really feel like now I’m taking the next creative step, and that they love me at Disney because yes, I could do fun shows, but I always watched the budget and the schedule because it was my job as a producer. And I look back at things with Darkwing and I say, “This could have been so much funnier if I’d gone back in and given the extra note and got in a little trouble to push things even better.” But now on Hellboy, it’s like, because of my work with Mike Mignola, I don’t want to let him down, and I’m striving to do something new in American animation. In Japanese animation, they’ve done all these subjects and they’ve done it in the same way and in a million different variations. But I just felt like animating horror and suspense and really making it suspenseful is something I’d certainly never done. And I no longer had to write for kids. I mean, yes, you always say, “We write for ourselves,” which is true, but you’re writing for yourselves with certain limitations. Just like you may use certain slang with your friends watching the Super Bowl game, but if you’re at a tea with Aunt Betty who’s 93, perhaps you wouldn’t use the same language. It’s still you, but you’re watching what you say. And it’s the same way when you’re writing for kids. Yes, you use your own sensibilities; yes, you’re coming up with gags that you think are funny, but they’re a certain kind of gag. With Hellboy, I could really work on stories and work with other writers to say, “Let’s do this for ourselves. For our peers. For people who are adults.” Because that’s who Mike wrote for.
KP: How would you describe actually working with a property that has a creator that is still very much with us and very much involved, as opposed to – with Disney – largely working within a corporate structure with corporately owned characters?
STONES: Well, it’s night and day. I feel Mike’s a friend now, and I feel a commitment to do things as good as I can, and to push for things, and to really get his vision as much as I can into our work, because we write the stories together. If he comes up with ideas, I generally take his, even if they’re just a different way of doing things. That’s the whole point. He has a unique perspective, a unique sense of humor. I just feel like he’s done this incredible thing on the page, and let’s try to get as much of that on the screen as we can. And I think our second movie is much stronger than our first, and we hardly had a learning curve on that one because we practically did it at the same time. We really produced these two movies as one big movie. Currently I’ve got a green light to write a third movie, and now I’m finally getting to use what I learned – what worked, what didn’t work as well, what’s a better way of carrying off a certain moment, how much information I have to give to the overseas studio to really capture a moment. That’s all stuff I’m finally able to apply.
KP: When you say “what didn’t work,” what are the lessons that you walked away with on these first two films that you’re carrying into the third?
STONES: I realized that if I wanted a really cool looking skull, we basically had to design and fully paint it here. A storyboard artist will just draw, like, a symbol for a skull, with just big circles for the eyes and all that, and that’s what you get back overseas. I just… it seems a stupid little thing, but it’s symbolic of – with Mike’s comics, he will cut to architecture, he’ll cut to a statue. And there’s always a reason for it. We do the same thing in the films, but normally you do a background key for an entire sequence, so that if you cut to something within the room, it’s up to the overseas studios to put a little more detail in it. Because it’s a close-up, and when it really matters for those insets, it’s just another level of detail we’re gonna have to push ourselves here to include in our design package. So, that’s a very specific example, but it’s indicative of a larger mentality of, “Boy, this little moment, what’s the best way we can do that moment and how do we pull off that special effect?” In a live action film you would have a room full of experts worrying about where to put the squibs and what’s safe and is the fire department there, and how big does the green screen behind it have to be. Nothing can just be done casually. You’ve got all these people in the middle of it. In animation, a storyboard guy could just say, “Oh, well this flares up and this rock melts,” and it could just go through. But at that point, you say, “What’s the best way to reveal that she’s getting so hot that the rocks are melting around her?” And you realize that has to be a whole discussion. Everybody’s got to be in on that and thinking about it just like we would for a live action movie. So at this point I think we accomplished the huge part of the task. Now I’m just anxious to refine things and to get more of Mike onto the film.
KP: Are there any lessons that you learned in terms of character or pacing or story?
STONES: Um, in the comics there’s definitely scenes in the BPRD where they’re handing out mission reports, and we have one in the second film, where guys are eating donuts and looking at photographs as you get the back story. We’ll still have sequences like that, but now I think I will illustrate them more. Whereas, if they say, “Okay we’ve got reports of strange ghosts walking around the streets of Burbank,” we will cut to Burbank, and show some little kid being stunned by an apparition crossing his path.
KP: You’re saying the Hill Street Blues debriefing doesn’t quite work for animation?
STONES: Exactly. You’ve got to put a little bit more in there. And especially when dealing with the paranormal, and just how we pace things. The pacing for the most part I’m happy with, in that the difference between doing a series and doing a movie is that when it comes to a haunted house in a movie, I get to reveal slowly that it’s a haunted house and hopefully in a spooky way so you have an emotional reaction. In a series, we have to just say, “It’s a haunted house,” because we have to get on with the story. And the fun stuff is actually trying to evoke an emotion in the audience.
KP: In the first two films, are there any characters that you feel were underserved? Or you really want to concentrate more on in the future?
STONES: Well, the only character who will be in every movie is Hellboy.
KP: One would hope.
STONES: Yeah. Well, I mean there’s a certain sentiment where people are saying, “Well, wait a minute, how come Liz and Abe aren’t around more?” Well, in the first movie, Liz and Abe were barely in it. They were in the first sequence, and then on the end of a telephone call. And because we felt like we’re gonna be dealing with this weird Japanese world, let’s have our world more normal by just having Kate Corrigan and another human agent. Then we were short and we had to come up with more material, and Abe and Liz got their own little subplot, which has some of the coolest moments in the movie. Certainly some of the best personality moments in the movie. There’s also the feeling that Liz should use her fire powers more. And we had to say, “She’s not the human torch.” The series of comics and the films are called Hellboy for a reason. Not Hellboy & Friends, or Hellboy and the Amazing BPRD.
KP: But there’s your spin-off…
STONES: Well, exactly. You know, we will do that show. No problem. That’s not a problem at all. In fact, we could do an animated X-Files. Why not do that series while we’re doing the Hellboy movie…
KP: Or you can do one for the under-5 set – Playhouse Hellboy…
STONES: Maybe not. (laughs) Maybe we won’t do that. We’re very lucky to be able to work in the long form on these. And there are characters that fans really want to see. Roger gets named entirely, and my feeling is that Roger the Homunculus can’t just be another agent. You don’t introduce him in a briefing and say, “Oh yeah, here’s a guy who’s kind of made of pig manure and straw and a few incantations.” You know? It’s like, “Okay, she’s a pyrotechnic. Got it. The fish guy? Okay, got it. I saw Creature from the Black Lagoon. Hellboy, devil. I understand that. The fist is a little odd, but it’s big and it hits things. I understand that.” Once you start getting into other stuff that gets weirder and weirder, I don’t want to make them mundane. Roger deserves his own movie. Will we do that movie? Maybe. That would kind of have to be a direct adaptation, and I don’t know if we’re ready to do one of those yet. We did, within Hellboy: Sword of Storms – available February 6, Tuesday! Buy two, they’re small.
KP: Why not three?
STONES: Exactly. I think they make a great set of coasters for your dinner table.
KP: Arbor day is coming up.
STONES: Hey, Valentine’s! Nothing says love more than Hellboy.
KP: Or three copies of it.
STONES: Exactly. Like I say, there’s no number three without people buying number one. Where was I?
KP: Well, fans may want to see characters…
STONES: Yeah, so fans really… you know, there’s that kind of thing with what they want to see and they really push for, and they’re not thinking it through, because if we just included those things, it’s gonna become the Fantastic Four or the X Men. Which are fine, but they’re not Hellboy. And the next one, if it goes as we plotted it out, the only BPRD agent with Hellboy is Kate Corrigan. Liz and Abe and those guys aren’t in it. And it’s partially because we’ve got so many other characters that are cool that are gonna be in it. We’ve talked of one where it’s Hellboy on a trans steamer. And then we’ve certainly talked others that really feature Liz.
KP: What are the characters that you really want to see? Forget about the fans for now. You’re a fan as well. Particularly when you talk about the problems with Roger, that you just can’t see a way to quite work it through just yet…
STONES: Well, Roger I could see doing it. I’m just saying if we did that story, “Almost Colossus”, the thing we would have to figure out is how to bring Liz Sherman more into the story. Because currently, her story starts in the previous adventure, and she’s comatose through the whole thing. And it’s like you’d really want to take time to set up how Liz fears her power and doesn’t want it and how dark it is, and then she gives it up to this homunculus. We just haven’t given thought to how to do that. A lot of Roger’s story doesn’t have Hellboy in it, so that’s kind of a tough row to hoe. So I’m not saying we couldn’t do it, it would just be a whole project in itself. Meanwhile, we have other stories that are original that fans don’t know anything about. It’s like, “You know what? Maybe we ought to do those.”
KP: Who would be the character that’s closest to you, besides Hellboy?
STONES: I just love writing him in interactions. I love writing between him and Kate Corrigan. So it’s less about any specific character, it’s about what story we’d come up with. Certainly Lobster Johnson is always talked about… Lobster Johnson is a lot stranger than fans realize. And they may not realize that until the second Lobster Johnson miniseries. Mike is quite the storyteller and part of his creative process is telling people stories he wants to do. Because it just helps him – when he says it out loud he comes up with more ideas, and it’s like, “Yeah, yeah…” That’s just part of his process. So, I will never have another unspoiled Hellboy story. The things he told me – it’s like, “That’s incredible. That’s weird! Yeah, I want to see that!”
KP: It’s going to complicate things, is what you’re saying…
STONES: Well, part of the thing is that Mike feels is, “I want to tell my Lobster Johnson story before you tell yours, or Guillermo tells his.” And it’s like, I’m all for that, because I’m a fan. Or we could use him, but we’ll only tell this little part of the story, because that’ll be a tease into the comics or something like that. So we go back and forth on everything, and he’s the one who kinda keeps me updated on what the live action movie’s going to do, without Guillermo having to drop by. We basically try to stay clear of each other’s subject matter.
KP: So how would you describe the working relationship between you and Mike?
STONES: Fun. Absolutely the best part of the production is working on the story with Mike. And he is just incredible at how many stories he can come up with in a short amount of time. Whereas you develop a story, he’ll come up with a visual that even has color references in it. So he’s already seen the movie in his head kind of, or at least a sequence, and you’re taking notes wildly. And some of my best moments is when I come up with something that he feels like he could have written… That could have come out of him, and by the time we get to the end people say, “Well, which ideas were yours and which ideas were Mike?” There’s a couple that I really know are mine and a couple that I really know are Mike’s, but past that, I have no clue. And that’s a good sign to me. It means that we’re really doing his kind of story. Mike has, from his point of view, just the right amount of involvement in our shows, in that he works on story, even up to dialogue notes. He may come to a recording session or two. And then he’s done. He’ll describe visuals. He doesn’t draw anything for the show. And then he sees it finished. I would love to have him more, except that I’m a fan, and we could use up all his time, and it’s like, “No, go write some comics.” (laughs)
KP: Is there anything, creatively, you’ve come to loggerheads over?
STONES: No. Part of what I did before starting these projects is read a lot of the source material that Mike did… Source material is the wrong way of saying it. Mike loved the Weird Tales stories. He loved the work of Manly Wade Wellman and obviously H.P. Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith and Hope Hodgson. I read a lot of that stuff to get kind of the vibe, some of the things that he loved that led to Hellboy, which led to a certain kind of a story idea, which put us more on the same level. There was nothing…I’m not trying to sell him my version of Hellboy – we’re working on the story together and he’s keeping me on track on how to do Hellboy. If there was such a thing as he has a suggestion, and it’s just different, it’s not necessarily better, I’m gonna go with his idea, because that’s the whole point. He has the unique point of view, the quirky sense of humor that gives it a special flavor. And that is what I’m trying to get on film. It’s much different for Guillermo, who’s doing a movie that he’s gonna spend several years living with, both writing and developing and putting on. At a certain point, Guillermo is saying, “In my movie, Hellboy and Liz are going to have a romance.” And that may be the thing that made that movie stand on its own for an audience who’s never picked up a Hellboy comic. But it’s not something I would do, because my goal is to stay as close to the comic as possible. Although the specific events in our universe are different from Mike’s universe.
KP: Is there anything in your eyes that you’d say is completely inappropriate, either for a story or a character beat, within the universe that you’ve created?
STONES: There are things we did in the first one because we were still finding our way that I wouldn’t have done. Or I wouldn’t have done the same way. There’s a sequence where the Japanese artifact spirits kind of dance into the room, and it was kind of a little fun jab at Beauty and the Beast, and then they attack. That’s one of those moments where I should have gone back in and said, “This attack has to be horrific.” Part of it is, they’re in real jeopardy and Kate’s being smothered, but it’s like, that requires special care. The psychic character in the first movie is sillier than we should have gone. He was just a little too cartoon. In the second movie, Sidney Leach is involved, the Human Metal Detector, who’s a very minor character from the comics. But he felt right. He’s a little more solid in his portrayal, and he fit in with the other agents. So that kind of stuff, I look back and say, “You know, that’s inappropriate.” In one case, if you don’t try hard enough with something that seems like a silly concept, and then you can’t give it the energy and the effort to turn that silly into horrific, then avoid it. If there’s limitations with your schedule or personnel or whatever it is. And the other’s just a tone thing. “Here’s the level of silliness we’ll do.” There are places for broad, slapstick humor in this movie, but that wasn’t the spot.
KP: How much of it was a boon to you as a writer and a producer, knowing that you had by and large the film’s cast to depend on?
STONES: Well, it took away the worry there. You knew that you didn’t have to go through casting or, “What’s Hellboy going to be like?” or “How’s he gonna say this line?” We know how he’s gonna say the line. And I don’t want to make light of Matt Wayne, who wrote Sword of Storms – I came in and had to write the extra material and rewrote some of the stuff because of changes we made, so we split a credit. But Matt was one of the story editors on Justice League Unlimited, and did a huge amount of research into the legends. And really, a lot of the authentic feeling came right out of his work. The second movie was written by Kevin Hopps, who I’d worked with well before on Darkwing Duck. He had the benefit of having a little more time and he got to go to Mike Mignola’s house with me. In those early stages of working out the story, we kind of gave him the story and then he pitched it back to us on index cards, having fleshed out moments, and we could talk about that. So he had a little more involvement at the beginning than poor Matt did.
KP: At this point, within your own mind and between you and Mike, how many germs for films would you say you’ve developed?
STONES: Well, we’ve talked about, I’m sure in passing, at least another four or five. But not to say that we would do those four or five, that’s just kernels of… not even a premise. Barely a springboard. But you know that, “Oh! Of course! We can do a William Hope Hodgson Sargasso Sea type story with Hellboy.” And you kind of immediately know, “Yeah… yeah… I know exactly how that would do and how we would set it.” You don’t have to talk about it and you kind of know that when we get there, that’ll be a piece of cake. That’ll be a whole different feeling from these other movies, and we’ll get to that one. I was working with some Native American actors and I started talking about supernatural tales of the American southwest, and Michael Horse – who was the deputy on Twin Peaks, and played Indians in all sorts of movies and television, because he is one – grew up on the reservation in New Mexico, and was telling me about how he used to clip his crystal radio set to the barbed wire fence, and pick up blues music. And I thought, “Hellboy was raised in the American southwest, and that’s just the kind of thing that he would do, and that’s just the kind of music he would love,” and I said, “Can you give me references for paranormal stories or the supernatural?” I’ve got some, but the Navaho, the Hopi… I told that to Mike, and he thought that was great. There’s a huge space of Hellboy’s life he’s never touched. And we could possibly do that. So that one’s exciting. We were talking about it the other day. And then there’s certainly spin-offs of the books themselves, saying, “Gee, do we want to take the short story and make something more of it?” If you wipe out all those ideas and Mike got in a taxi in Manhattan Beach and was driving up here to Burbank for the studio, and I said, “We’ve got to come up with some new ideas,” I guarantee you he would have a half dozen ideas, and some of them fully fleshed out by the time he got here. It’s just the way his brain works. He cannot turn it off.
KP: Is the current plan to keep these as movies, or is there some plan to perhaps eventually spin this into a series?
STONES: The plan now is to do a series of DVD movies. As I understand it, it’s actually harder to sell a series on DVD unless you are a huge hit on television already. I would be much more comfortable with a BPRD TV series. Because you’d say, “Okay, we can plan it out in a different way, or we can do standalone stories or continued stories, or whatever we’re allowed to do.” But the movies are it. That’s what’s been talked about so far, and they’ve got the rights for several more years. I’d love to do three movies a year. You know, the sales would have to be pretty spectacular for them to commit to that, but I’m hoping they’re strong enough, and certainly with the second one being such a strong movie, that they commit to three more instead of just one more. But we’ll see. I take it as I get it.
KP: So, looking back on your 30 years in the animation industry, is there anything you would tell the your of 30 years ago, just starting out in Eric Larson’s training program at the Disney studio?
STONES: Yeah. Buy Xerox! Buy land in Sedona, Arizona! Buy Apple Computer. And hang out with John Lasseter a lot more.
KP: What was the he like at that point?
STONES: When Lasseter was there? John was just one of the trainees, and he worked on a lot of little Mickey Mouse ideas that were just great. He certainly did a great sequence in the movie Fox and the Hound with Glen Keane. The two of them plotted out this big bear fight. And then when he got a chance to do a little CG animation, plan out a test – actually, it was with Glen – he just… it was when Bill Kroyer was at Disney still working on Tron stuff. John, I think, had a vision of the future. He just saw that there was a lot of potential there, and wanted to do more and more about it, and that wasn’t going to happen at Disney. Not at that time, anyway. They didn’t recognize the potential of the medium, they just worried about the medium that they had. John is more Disney than Disney. So the fact that he’s now heading Disney animation – everything is right with the world.
KP: Was there any point that you regretted the transition into TV animation?
STONES: (laughs) Yeah, whenever my good friends would put out a movie that made 300 million dollars – yeah, around there. And I see books and magazines about them. Seriously…
KP: Yeah, but how many people are talking to an interviewer that has a Megavolt action figure on their desk?
STONES: There you go. And you know what? Actually, as silly as that sounds, that is exactly the difference. I always envied their resources, and literally the animation quality. I’m talking about the quality of acting and movement in the characters. I’ve always envied that. But for my personality, I love the fact that every year and a half or so I do a new show, or Darkwing is on longer because we did so many episodes. But I had, at that time, a lot of ideas. On Darkwing, it was fun generating those different ideas for stories and trying to get the most fun out of them. On Hellboy, I’m now enjoying the telling of the longer story, but already – as we’ve said in this conversation – we’ve got ideas for a half dozen more. I’m anxious to get those in work, too. So, I envied their ability to create these fantastic pieces of cinema, but what I enjoyed is the variety of storytelling I’ve gotten to do. In general, when people ask, “What are your favorite episodes?” I say, “Well, the episodes animated by Walt Disney Australia,” because they had the best animation and that was like, “Look!” You know, the first Darkwing Duck animation that we saw was a pencil test of an episode I had written. It was basically the pilot, which was called “That Sinking Feeling,” with Professor Moliarty. And they just did such a fantastic job of execution. I had never had a pencil test shown to the staff where the staff is laughing out loud. And, in fact, people came from the next office over and asked if we’d be quiet.
KP: And who was that office next door?
STONES: That was Gary Krisel, president of animation. And at the time, I’m thinking, “You see what’s happening? It’s like we’re laughing at one of our cartoons! In a big way!”
KP: A sign of things to come…
STONES: Yeah. Unfortunately, on my shows, I think I never got more than eight Australian episodes. In other series somehow it worked out that they had like 20 Australian episodes. How’d that happen?
KP: Like Little Mermaid?
STONES: No, it was things like Goof Troop and Bonkers.
KP: It always seemed, animation-wise, that Darkwing was two different shows. You had the really high-end, nicely on model stuff that would come from Australia every once in a while, and stuff that might not come from Australia but it was still on model. Then you had these episodes that would pop up that just, you wondered what show they were working on…
STONES: That was just that the shows back then were done by three or four different studios. So it’s purely…
KP: But there was one that had very bulbous designs and this weird sort of elastic animation style…
STONES: All I can say is they were all supposed to look alike. And then everything else is the studio overseas.
KP: But the stories always carried through.
STONES: Well, good. That stayed the same.
KP: So outside of Hellboy, if there’s any one thing that you worked on that they would turn to you and go, “We’ll give you all the resources you want if you want to revisit this,” is there anything that you would revisit?
STONES: Not really. I mean, as much as I love Darkwing – and if you had a gun to my head and say you must pick something, then I’d probably pick Darkwing and come up with some goofy superhero adventure. Give him yet another origin to drive the fans crazy. I’ve done that. I’ve done that stuff for 30 years. I’m up for an Annie Award on another show I did, for Universal. The Adventures of Brer Rabbit. It’s like, I’ve done that. I don’t need to return to that. There may be a time when, to pay the bills, I’d return to that, and I’ll enjoy what I’m doing, but as far as the creative challenge, I would much rather do Hellboy or talk to Dark Horse about some other properties they have, or just continue with projects that stretch what I can do, or what’s been done in animation.
KP: Are there any projects of your own that you’ve either pitched in the past or never pitched?
STONES: I have a character or two that it’s like, “Yeah, I’d like to get back to that character,” but I won’t even worry about that until I stop having fun with Mr. Mignola’s friends.
KP: So, for the immediate future, as far as you can see, this is your primary focus?
STONES: I was offered a huge Marvel property. They wanted me to show run it, and I gambled on staying here because of Hellboy.
KP: It was Mort the Dead Teenager, wasn’t it?
STONES: Yeah, exactly. No, it was Forbush Man…
KP: If it was Brother Voodoo, you would have been on it in a flash…
STONES: Exactly. Anyway, I gambled that there would be more here. Next week I’ll find out if that gamble paid off. But it’s just such a combination of a character I love, the type of stories I’ve always wanted to do, and working with a creator who’s just fun to work with, who I really admire and respect, and who I consider a friend.
KP: So, bottom line, you’re enjoying yourself.
STONES: Yes. It’s like, at this stage in my career, enjoyment means a lot.
KP: I think that’s a perfect place to end.
STONES: Okay.
KP: Anything else you want to get the word out on?
STONES: Well, the main thing is mention like is it comes out Tuesday. Hellboy: Blood & Iron, which is a much darker story, premieres on Cartoon Network on March 10th.
KP: Is there a current release date for that DVD? Is that summer?
STONES: If there is, I don’t know it. I believe it’s in May.
KP: Just in time for Comic-Con.
STONES: Yeah, basically. In fact, Mike and I will be in New York for the New York Comic-Con in February, and we’re going to have a rather large sneak preview of Blood & Iron at that point.
SModcast is the meandering palaver of a pair of dudes whose voices are so dull, they don’t deserve to be on the radio (and, hence, aren’t). Kevin Smith and Scott Mosier are SModcast.
The best thing about SModcast? It don’t cost nothing.
SModcast 1: Fisting Flipper –
In which our heroes primarily puzzle over when “Oriental” became a derogatory term, as well as touch on the following subjects: the very tall, “Pump Up the Volume”, parental groping, the detritus that gets washed off a newborn, the notion of a Birth-Day celebration, mobile units, bear bars, and Wolfie.
[CONTENT WARNING] SModcast features harsh language and even harsher notions of propriety. Listener discretion is advised.
DOWNLOAD: (right click to save)
SModcast 1 (MP3 format) ““ 47.5 MB
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Here are today’s top entertainment headlines:
Actor Ryan O’Neal, the star of the film Paper Moon, was arrested for allegedly assaulting his son. According to police reports, O’Neal assaulted his son by forcing him to watch his film The Assault of the Killer Bimbos 13 times in a row.That’s all for today’s news, stay tuned to this channel for all the news that matters least but you still care about.
(Compiled by J. Allen)
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The web. It’s a big place, full of plenty of distractions ““ some funny, some informative, some ludicrous, some disturbing, some inane, some profound. Each and every weekday, we present links to a few of our favorite finds”¦
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