February 01, 2004
Inevitabilities of Life
On Cops, whenever they go inside somebody's house, they always have wood paneling.January 30, 2004
Kitten with a Whip
Retrocrush's Ann-Margret gallery. I believe Ms. Margret in her '60s prime would rank right up there on the Women I'd Turn For list.
Music Geek Central
The Internet iTunes Registry (via Robot Johnny) - upload your iTunes xml file to a central database which then catalogs your music library by year, genre, most played albums, etc. You can view the entire community's stats as well. If you're feeling voyeuristic, I have an account under the name mhinrichs. According to the registry, my most played artist is the early-'70s soul trio the Honey Cone ("Want Ads"). Maybe I should be embarrassed by that, but goddam it I love the Honey Cone.January 29, 2004
The Award Goes to ...
I filled out my predictions in the Web Goddess Oscar Contest. There's a sock monkey at stake here, people!January 28, 2004
Don't Give Up on Dean
A-ha. An editorial on the Dean campain (via Romenesko) that deals with a sorely underreported aspect of that drama: the media was waiting for something, anything, to topple Howard Dean from his perch. They collectively came to the conclusion that Dean is too emotional to be president. This was the same thing that dogged John McCain in his 2000 presidential bid. You remember - after McCain's campaign gathered lots of momemtum, everyone concluded that he was a Hothead, and we can't have a Hothead President. As opposed to one who's unable to pronounce simple words correctly. Howard Dean might get passionate, but he's passionate about the issues that count to regular Americans. The Arizona primary is this Tuesday. I'm voting Dean.Related links: tasty Mark Morford screed on Bush's environmental policy; MoveOn.org petition urging CBS to run anti-Bush ad.
January 27, 2004
January 26, 2004
I Eat Golden Globes for Breakfast
Anybody watch the Golden Globes last night? Me neither. Here's the New York Times recap. This article is notable not so much for the words, but for the byline: Sharon Waxman. If you caught the Trio channel's excellent "The Golden Globes: Hollywood's Dirty Little Secret" last year, you might remember that Ms. Waxman was among the people who talked about what a sham the awards are - how the Hollywood Foreign Press Association is little more than a bunch of retired old biddies who call themselves journalists but are really starstruck old farts who enjoy sampling lavish buffets at press junkets and collecting gift baskets from the major studios. Her article begins as dry AP-style reportage, but about halfway through a streak of cynicism shows through. Good for her. Sharon Waxman: cool. Golden Globes: stupid.January 25, 2004
Monochromatic Art I
Berenice Abbott: Changing New York 1935-1938. At the museum opening, we saw an exhibit of modern art from various collections. There was a hanging Calder mobile, a couple of Warhol prints, a snarky Haim Steinbach shelf installation, and much else. The highlight was a Berenice Abbott photograph showing the nocturnal Greenwich Village of 1933, an abstract matrix of angular buildings which gleamed like a multi-faceted jewel. (thx, Christopher!)Monochromatic Art II
A page of Calvin and Hobbes snowman comics (via Cup of Chicha). Man, I miss Calvin and Hobbes.January 24, 2004
Fun, With a Purpose!
At Home with Ozzie and Harriet (AZ Republic article) is an exhibit on '50s design that just opened here at the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art. It was inspired by a bunch of items Christopher and I donated to the museum. The focus was more nostalgic than we hoped, but otherwise it was a handsomely presented show. The highlight, for us, was an entire wall of colorful Lifetime Plastic dinnerware credited to designer Jon Hedu. We believe this is the first time Hedu's name has been used in a museum - at least not since The Museum of Modern Art included Hedu's dinnerware in a 1947 modern design exhibit.
Pictured are cups from Russel Wright's line of miniaturized American Modern dinnerware, done in plastic as kids' dishes. Cute, eh?
Portfolio Update
Did a little internal maintenance here and updated my portfolio. Included are some new CD covers, two recent illustrations created for Mindjack.com, and a batch of travel banners I did while at the Republic. Those banners are among of the most creatively satisfying work I did there. They came out great, had blessedly little interference from management and thus made it to print almost entirely intact.Despite these changes, the portfolio still needs some additional design examples. The trouble is, these designs are from the paper and I'm still harboring bad memories of working there.
January 22, 2004
Leave No iPod Behind
I Pod, You Pod, commentary from the Phoenix New Times: "MP3 players are deadly in the way they appeal to the narcissistic record-collector geek in all of us, rendering us drooling, bag-eyed, obsessive-compulsive fools who painstakingly type in album after album and track name after track name just so everything's absolutely perfect."3D Glasses Not Included
In his blog, Gary Panter recounts how the cover artwork for the Red Hot Chili Peppers' first album came about.Book Biz Blues
This article on finding success with a self-published book using unconvential publicity means struck a chord with me. Terry Teachout's blog entry linking to said article illuminates the frustrations of people who have self published books: the mainstream media won't touch them with a ten foot pole. We've been encountering this with Mama Cat. So what have we done? Sent a few copies to big media in vain hopes of it being noticed, local media outlets (including my ex-colleagues at The Arizona Republic), a few prominent bloggers, family members and friends; wrote about it here. Overall the response has been so-so, kind of lukewarm. I don't have any experience with this, so I'm at a loss as to what to do. Our best bet might be pushing it to niche-y publications aimed at pet lovers, such as 'Cat Fancy' magazine. What else?By the way, 'Mama Cat' is currently ranked at 2,636,259 on Amazon. Woo hoo for us.
January 21, 2004
Remotely Diverting
I'm going to keep an eye on Too Much Free Time - a collaborative TV weblog from Freakgirl, Johnny and Max. Nice job, people! This will join the hundred or so other TV-related websites that I check regularly. TV Tattle is the king, of course - possibly the best single-subject weblog around (they need to update their logo, however!). Also, lurking the reader forums at TV Barn and Television Without Pity are becoming dangerously addictive activities for me lately.All this TV reading is odd, since 'The Simpsons' is the only prime-time network show that we watch on a regular basis. Not that we're TV deprived, however. Lately, we've been getting into Cops. You can't flip through the channels without finding at least one 'Cops' running, they're everywhere. Out of curiosity, we counted up the number of 'Cops' repeats broadcast in a week - and it was something like 110!
Another show I dig: VH1's Bands Reunited. Could've been cheesy, turned out fascinating. In the two installments I saw (Berlin and Romeo Void) the participants seemed humbled and even surprised that someone wanted a reunion, and the resulting concerts are happy occasions. '80s music freaks rejoice!
January 20, 2004
"A Glow of Prophecy"
Anthony Lane's 1993 review of Indecent Proposal, his first piece for The New Yorker. Lane is at his best when he pounces on a really bad movie, like squirm-in-your-seat, make you wanna puke bad. I've been enjoying the paperback edition of Nobody's Perfect for the last week. While I doubt he'll ever be a great film critic a la Kael or Agee, he certainly is one of the most entertaining writers on the planet.January 19, 2004
What I Bought at Dusty Groove
For Christmas, I received a $50 gift certificate at Dusty Groove America. Thank you, Santa! This is what I ended up getting:
Nino Nardini and Roger Roger
Jungle Obsession
Pulp Flavor [France] reissue of 1971 LP
Nino Nardini and Roger Roger were twin titans of library music, supplying mood pieces for countless movies and television productions. 'Jungle Obsession' is a rarity of the genre - a complete, cohesive album centered around the idea of a magical jungle. Their approach here was late-period Exotica with a little funkiness, similar to Les Baxter's Que Mango! The end result is atmosperic, crystalline a-go-go music that wouldn't sound out of place at Disney World's Tahitian resort.
Various Artists
Cafe Apres Midi: Olive
Universal [Japan] compilation, 2000
The best mix discs ever? On the Cafe Apres Midi series, compiler Toru Hashimoto delves into the most obscure and eclectic tracks to achieve one overriding mood - summery, sweet, jazzy and impossibly hip. The Olive edition is basically the sexy Brazilian ladies (Gal Costa; Astrud Gilberto; Elis Regina) competing with the swinging French chickies (Catherine Deneuve; Claudine Longet; Brigitte Bardot), ending in a draw.
Barbara Randolph
The Collection
Spectrum [UK] compilation, 2003
Barbara Randolph released only two singles on Motown subsidiary Soul records, neither a hit. Thirty plus years later, she finally gets her own compilation with 15 (!!) previously unreleased songs joining the singles. The newly unearthed material is not especially outstanding, but Ms. Randolph keeps it funky and exciting with several interesting covers (such as a smokin' rendition of "The Look of Love"). Nice; not essential.
The Free Design
Heaven/Earth
Light in the Attic [US] reissue of 1969 LP
The Free Design must be the most underrated group ever. This album is a good example of their gorgeous harmony folk-pop - mellow and groovy but with sharp songwriting that has a playful, witty edge. The Light In The Attic label is reissuing the F.D. catalog with beautiful remastering, neat packaging, and unexpectedly good bonus songs. I'm eagerly awaiting others later this year.
