joel_rosenbaum

Man, Paul burned me on this one! I think I remember Second Sight, but I might be mixing it up in my head with "Vibes", which used to run constantly on HBO. That one starred Cyndi Lauper, Peter Falk, and Jeff Goldblum, and also featured a prominent psychic element.

I didn't get to see so many new releases this year, given babysitter costs etc. But of those that I saw, "The Big Sick" and "Coco" were movies that I liked quite a lot. "Logan" and "Guardians of the Galaxy 2", I didn't care for as much.

Vincent Price factoid; The rapper Antonio Hardy took his stage name "Big Daddy Kane" from Vincent Price's role in Beach Party. Although judging by their wardrobes, it looks like his inspiration was more Dr. Goldfoot:

John Ritter, Gilbert Gottfried, and Michael Oliver star in this heartwarming anti-adoption parable. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3RyyjGf3BeA

Not exactly sure? Most (if not all) present day nuclear weapons are thermonuclear (e.g. hydrogen bombs). While they have a fission (uranium) component, the vast majority of the power generated derives from the fusion of hydrogen. The relatively minor difference in mass between four hydrogen atoms and one helium atom yields a massive amount of energy (per E=mc²) and so these bombs are quite powerful! But the entire core of the sun is hydrogen gas, and the sun generates energy through fusion reactions. Detonating mankind's entire nuclear arsenal on its surface would hardly make a blip in the sun's regular output. After all, the earth (and all its fissile material) probably came from the sun to begin with. And while radiation, like all particles, will expand to fill a greater volume in the vastness of space, it will also be more dilute. I don't think it would matter particularly much. It's also worth pointing out that almost none of those particles would be able to escape the Sun's massive gravitational field in the first place. In other words, the Superman disposal plan is totally solid.... I think?

Is now the appropriate time to mention that Sidney J. Furie won a BAFTA award and was nominated for the Palme D'Or for the 1965 thriller, The Ipcress File? Long way from that to being fired from the Jazz Singer and directing Superman IV.

How did Mark Pillow clear out his schedule?

Yep. People knew the earth was round since forever. They even knew that the earth revolved around the sun since forever, because the positions of the planets change eccentrically in the sky. But people in the western world *did* forget that one, at least until Copernicus came around and re-established that particular fact.

The conceit of Nuclear Man is that he came into existence when Superman threw all those missiles into the sun. Specifically, Luthor hid a device in one of said missiles. But why? The sun is, essentially, a massive fusion reactor. Why not just launch the device directly into the sun yourself? Why go through with the whole rigamarole of hiding a device in a nuclear missile hoping that someday, somehow, Superman will throw said missile into the sun? I understand that we're in Dr. Evil territory, but what's Luthor's backup plan?

In honor of Mariel Hemingway's grandfather:

There are some intuitive ways to understand how the earth is round. 1) As you head north or south, you'll notice that the length of days change. Well, if the earth was flat, that wouldn't happen. That's because your angle relative to the sun wouldn't change very much. That's true whether you assume the sun revolves around the earth or the earth revolves around the sun (spinning like a quarter?). 2) If you are flying over the ocean you can actually see the curvature of the earth. If you're on the water, it's harder to see, but you'll notice that distant objects "disappear" over the horizon (i.e. there is no longer a direct line of sight between you and the distant object).

Jumping into the Oscar discussion late, but Seth MacFarlane was just a terrible choice. His jokes are Friar's club material and that's not really what the Oscars are about. That said, I still think the absolute worst has to be Franco and Hathaway. They had essentially no chemistry and Franco seemed to treat the whole affair with thinly veiled contempt. I get that, but it's a pretty shitty way to treat your audience.

Love the Jon Klassen books. I'm a regular at my local library so I think we've run through just about every recommended kids book, but I'm always looking for more. Our adventures into the classics -- Make Way For Ducklings, The Little Engine that Could, etc. -- have been disappointing to say the least. Big exception for Dr. Seuss, whose work is unquestionably awesome.

I liked the "Day the Crayons Quit" but my son never really got into it. Parents, what is/was your favorite kids book? Like , I was a big fan of Anna Dewdney's "Llama Llama" books.But my crown has to go to Mo Willems, especially the Knuffle Bunny series. My son is on to chapter books now so this is mostly history, but my daughter is coming up on reading age...

I forget where I read this, but one reviewer pointed out that Sacramento is the kind of city that parents move to "for the kids". For me it feels like the part of California that most resembles Florida.

It was an eerie experience hearing HDTGM advertising on Maron's podcast. p.s. If Brendan McDonald reads the boards, "Hi!"

1 1/2 appearances: Sidney J. Furie - Jazz Singer (he was the fired director), Superman IV

Me too. I've also heard Jason mention Iron Eagle in an episode, which is a great candidate for that kind of movie. Now that we are very belatedly dipping into the Sidney J. Furie ouevre... So here's an off topic thought for the folks around here. One of my favorite things with the mini episodes is Paul's Picks. I don't usually adopt them but I'll occasionally give a few a try and have really enjoyed what I've come across. Since we have a lot of board-initiated regular features these days (musical mondays, classics) I was thinking we could take a shot at a "board picks" thread? Something semi-formalized; a rotation of posters with one or a few picks a week. Maybe a paragraph or two explaining their selection and why they made the recommendation. I don't know. Just a thought.

Any excuse to share this

old orson welles is my man, folks

What can I say, I'm a sucker for a good crew track. Even a not so good one. I can even tolerate the Ma$e verse. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2kkv16y7iV4

The "terrorists" comment has to be a reference to the SA. They were paramilitary so terrorist would be an apt description. Lawrence Olivier was born in 1907 so a similarly aged character would have been around to witness Hitler and the rise of the Nazis.

Neil Diamond?

surprised no one mentioned this example of blackface, given that it comes from a holiday season staple: