Category Archives: Entertainment

Jake Turns Informant

The Most Amazing Toddler in the World is now officially holding up two fingers. And, the Thriller and I went to see The Informant! last night. This post addresses both; hence, the catchy title.

Before I go back to researching for my delightful class assignment…

Clicky:

After the party, #1 Son took him to the county fair to see his first-ever demolition derby. His reaction upon seeing the first collision:

He also loved his gifts. Boy is going to be bizzy for awhile. It was a great party.

Later, Grammie & Grandpa Thriller went to the movies. The Informant! started out a bit on the slow side (too many sidebar meetings & conversations for my taste), but really picked up in the second half. Advice: if you don’t know the Eric Mark (sorry, got him confused with a choral composer) Whitacre story (the movie is based on an actual event), then don’t read up on it before you leave. I saw this same advice in a movie column yesterday morning, and I’m glad I took it. The last 20 minutes of the film are *much* more satisfying and revealing if you don’t know how everything ended in real life.

Suffice it to say that the story’s twists are really twisted, and Damon is dead-center in capturing Whitacre’s bizarro personality. On the brand-new “Rat-O-Meter” movie scale of five cheeses, I give it:

Have a grand Sunday. Back underground…

All things fair

10 Replies

<bulletin>

Before I get started this morning — congrats to RtB poster Meg, who was elected Homecoming Queen last night at the football game. YaAaAAay for a fellow Finkite — we heart her.

</bulletin>

The county fair has been here this week. I didn’t get a chance to go, but boy, I used to do the fair bigtime when my kids were little.

And when I myself was a tiny fink, we used to do the carnivals every chance we got. I don’t mean county fairs (I can’t even remember going to a bonafide fair — the kind with ani-mules and baking contests and ribbons and royalty and such — until coming to Ohio in ’73) but rather the carnies that came to town. Mavis and I, along with a gaggle of friends, would look forward to being dropped off at the carnival and staying all day, into the evening hours.

Fellow crusties, do you remember when these were THE rides to ride for every daredevil in town? Long before upside-down roller coasters were the norm, we feasted on these, of the Wonders of Physics/Vomit Comet variety. If you could ride all of them at least twice in one night and not hork your dinner everywhere, you were a champ indeed…

Octopus. They still have these at a lot of the major theme parks.

The Rock-O-Plane and the Roll-O-Plane (we also called it the Bullet). Awesome thrill rides.

The Rotor -- one of the scariest for me, especially when the floor disappeared.

Ah yes, the Roundup, with its accompanying question: If someone barfed, what are the chances....?

Still see these everywhere and in different colors. I like the old silver.

I get woozy thinking about this one.

The Matterhorn or Himalaya. Bad memory here...almost lost a 3-year-old Lars on this one.

The number-one most awesome carnival ride EVER. The Zipper.

Thanks to all the FlickR sites and other places from which I janked these photos. A nice Saturday retro experience for the crusties.

OK fiends. Enjoy your weekend, because it is now officially about half over. Yay.

Kanye (the biggest knucklehead in the) West

Yeah. Like I told a colleague yesterday: he has, in one shining collection of short moments, given every ignorant, stereotyping, racist bigot moron in America a freaking Quonset hut full of ammo.

He wasn’t alone in the outburst category this weekend, either. Tennis star Serena Williams also got into the act.

Sounded to me like Serena just got her diva on and lost her composure. No excuse, but I suppose it happens (can you say John McEnroe? — although I don’t remember him threatening to shove a tennis ball down the judge’s throat):

But West…he’s just a tool who can’t hold his tongue (or his Hennessy), so all that comes out of his mouth is stupid tripe. (“I’m anti-book” — way to influence America’s impressionable youth, Einstein.) But of course, it’s everyone else’s fault because, you know, he spent a million dollars and jumped across canyons & stuff.

Kanye attempted to apologize after he’d realized what a consummate butt-clown he’d made of himself (it showed a decided lack of class when compared with Serena’s apology — even if it was blatantly obvious that Serena’s handlers made her think again and amend her previous statement to appear more “apologetic”). After he was escorted from the building and delivered to his “crib” (*sigh*), West attacked his blog, writing his apology, or cognac-soaked regurgitation, whichever you want to call it:

I’m sooooo sorry to Taylor Swift and her fans and her mom. I spoke to her mother right after and she said the same thing my mother would’ve said. She is very talented! I like the lyrics about being a cheerleader and she’s in the bleachers! I’m in the wrong for going on stage and taking away from her moment!

Beyoncé’s video was the best of this decade!!!! I’m sorry to my fans if I let you guys down!!!! I’m sorry to my friends at MTV. I will apologize to Taylor 2mrw. Welcome to the real world!!!! Everybody wanna booooo me but I’m a fan of real pop culture!!! No disrespect but we watchin’ the show at the crib right now cause … well you know!!!! I’m still happy for Taylor!!!! Boooyaaawwww!!!! You are very very talented!!! I gave my awards to Outkast when they deserved it over me … That’s what it is!!!!!!! I’m not crazy y’all, i’m just real. Sorry for that!!! I really feel bad for Taylor and I’m sincerely sorry!!! Much respect!!!!!”

I am not making this up. Takes all kinds and all that, and I know some weird folks who are great entertainers. But going up onstage (drunk or not) and stealing someone’s moment so you can have your own big fat stupid say just screams one thing to the rafters — and I can’t print it here. Suffice it to say that the blogs were absolutely smoking with this story yesterday.

So WTG, Kanye. I am entertained.

Fink out.

Fab Wednesday

10 Replies

Yes, fiends. It’s 09.09.09. And we all know what that means…

I covets it. I wants the game. Complete with the Hofner bass and Ludwig drum kit.

And speaking of the Fabs (and being fab in general), RtB fiend Ross — my writer idol — did a new piece for AskMen.com on the top ten controversies surrounding the Beatles. Checking it out is mandatory; you won’t regret it.

“…coolest coven of all time.” Haha. Yep. Home run, Ross — loved it!

*sigh* I don’t want to work. I just want to bang on de drum all day. Have a goody, everybody.

Fink Rundgren

Now don’t go gettin all riled up.

2 Replies

Cuz this ain’t about politics.

I noticed these images on a couple of blogs yesterday, and followed some links. It’s amazing (and gratifying) how visual art, after several millennia, still moves people to all manner of emotions.

A gaggle of different feelings will serve as reactions to the following picture. (You know the Law, so I ain’t interested in what those particular reactions are for you personally, or why. Just be nice and play my little game for today, k?)

Maybe this evokes less of a “convicted” response. I think it’s funny, myself:

Art has been controversial for centuries, but there was a time not too long ago when it was the only commercial visual stimulus available, and much attention was paid to its viewing, criticism and social commentary. I like art history — especially the periods which coincide with music history (Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic, Impressionistic, Contemporary).

I won’t go into the whole of it, as I’d be writing all day instead of planning my glorious return to the school house, but imagine the shock of looking at this painting up close, when you hadn’t been raised on watching realistic reenactments of it on television:

Artemisia (yep, a girl) painted several versions of this scene, over and over. Traditional misinformation classifies the painting as channelling the artist’s personal revenge against the men who humiliated her in her lifetime (she has an interesting story if you ever want to search it out), but in fact she maintained a closeness to the real story of Judith, who performed this grisly deed on an enemy general to scare his troops into retreating and leaving her people alone. Therefore, it’s more an indictment of tyranny than a kicking, screaming fit against the misogynistic ruling class of the day.

Interesting stuff.

Still, look at the determination on the women’s faces. Then look at Holofernes. How do you think the men of 1620 Italy reacted to it? And the women (though likely in secret)?

Did I mention I like visual art? It was the subject of one of my very first posts here at RtB. I could talk about it all day, really. Alas…

I found this quote from Artemisia herself:

An artist’s feeling is the white-hot core of painting…You’ve got to use your own emotions and paint with your own blood if need be in order to discover and prove the truth of your vision.”

If only we all felt that way about our own visions, eh?

Rockin' the Bourgeoisie

Your friend Rat Fink fires the neurons at random