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I keep thinking that Bush’s first, best hope of pulling out of this is to find bin Laden. At this point, I’m really not sure what, if anything else, could possibly turn his numbers around. But if they did get bin Laden and he was hauled to the U.S. for trial, you’d see Bush’s numbers skyrocket.

I wonder if he’s going to step up activities in the search for bin Laden.

PAD

Every so often there’s a sudden crash of genre people we all know who pass away within weeks of each other. In what seemed a depressing rush to make the deadline for that part of the Oscar broadcast where they mention every showbiz person who passed away in the preceding twelve months, we lost Andreas, followed by Kolchak, and the Incredible Mr. Limpett. And now, tragically, Octavia Butler, who passed away of a stroke today after she collapsed outside her house.

Our condolences to the families of Darren McGavin, Don Knotts, and Octavia, plus I’m still reeling from the loss of Andreas.

PAD

People have been asking me whether I was in attendance. No. Originally I had no plans to go because I was going to be driving up to Cheektowaga this weekend to bowl in the PBA Pro/Am with Ariel and my brother, Wally, and his kids. But blowing out my right knee made that inadvisable. So I could have gone, but I figured either it was going to be incredibly underattended or incredibly overcrowded. I was pretty sure it was going to be one of those two extremes, and I wasn’t wild about facing either one. So I skipped it. From what I hear, it was the latter.

PAD

At the moment, I’ve got “The Fugitive” on so I can watch Andreas Katsulas in one of his more memorable non-G’Kar roles as the One-Armed Man. Meantime I’m rereading old issues of “The Champions” to refamiliarize myself with that team in order to write a one-shot Hulk vs. the Champions story for an upcoming Hulk annual. Meanwhile I’m working out by hand (because that’s how I always work on novel plots) a revised ending for my “Battlestar Galactica” novel since what I had was too similar to some recent episodes (the episode short descriptions I had for the rest of the season didn’t include several key plot points that overlapped). Furthermore I’m doing knee-flex exercises to help heal my blown-out right knee that I did some damned thing to while I was bowling a few weeks back.

Coming out soon on DVD, speaking of bowling: “The League of Ordinary Gentlemen,” a marvelous documentary about several key members of the Pro Bowling Association. Distributed by Magnolia Pictures and definitely worth watching.

PAD

The Wife Speaks
Well I saw a couple of copies at my local Barnes and Noble so I will take that as a sign that the book has been released. Which is great since I read this as he was writing it and had to hold my tongue all this time. So there maybe spoilers in the comments section and I am warning you before hand that they are there.

So what did you thing of it?

I’m hoping that the Department of Homeland Security is tapping the phones of one G. W. Bush. Because it appears that he’s in cahoots with a company, individuals or country that helped siphon money to the 9/11 hijackers, and is now endeavoring to take charge of half a dozen major ports–the most security-vulnerable means of entry into the country we have. And frankly, if someone is getting calls from people who may have assisted Al Qaeda, I want to know about it and know what they’re saying.

(Considering that even the most avid Bush supporters in Congress are lining up against this, it’s interesting to see that he has truly, finally become the uniter he claimed he was.)

PAD

Farpoint convention is in the process of winding down. Overall a good, if apparently underattended convention. As usual it had a family atmosphere and everyone had a good time.

Fairly good success at the masquerade last night A technical miscue started the music too early on Kathleen’s “mugato” costume, telegraphing the end gag when Caroline comes running out dressed as “Boo” and starts chasing the giant monster. But we had another sketch going as well, and that’s the one that everyone was talking about. Called “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Kal-El Kent,” the gag was simple: Four people in costumes evocative of the “Peanuts” Halloween special, ostensibly Lois, Lana, Clark and Lex discussing their Halloween swag. Lois got a 3 Musketeers bar, Lana got a bag of chips (as in “all that and a…”), and Clark naturally got a Clark bar. They turn to that bald, round-headed kid, Lex, and ask what he got. In a sulking voice, he says, “I got a rock,” and produces a green glowing rock–and Clark promptly collapses like a bag of cement. Black out, end of sketch.

Rotsler’s rules of masquerade: Short is better than long, funny is better than not funny, short and funny is best. The Mugato gag wound up getting most humorous, and Kal-El got best presentation. So everyone was satisfied.

Didn’t really have a chance to see any of the guests, although the only one who really interested me (aside from my writer friends) was Harv Bennett. Saw a fan-made film called Star Wars Revelations. Thought they managed to capture both the visual look and the archly bad acting of a Lucasfilm (not sure if they were aiming for that second part.) Was so tired that I actually dozed through parts, so maybe I wasn’t at my best in terms of viewing it.

PAD

While the New York Times and most other papers in the United States refuse to run the cartoons that have inflamed radical Muslims–and I say “radical” because I’d like to think that the majority of Muslims would actually, y’know, follow the Prophet’s teaching and react to criticism with patience rather than violence–the University of Illinois student newspaper, “The Daily Illini,” ran an assortment of them.

And why not? A dozen pictures that would have been here today, gone tomorrow if radicals hadn’t made them a cause celebre have become a major news item. So the newspaper ran some of them.

The result? Angry protests from students and the newspaper editor has been relieved of duty. World reaction in microcosm.

The most laughable reaction is the Iranian newspaper that wants to run cartoons lampooning the Holocaust. This despite the fact that the cartoons ran in Denmark and had nothing to do with Jews, Israel, or the Holocaust. Perhaps it’s because a contest for cartoons lampooning Danish pastries doesn’t seem ripe for humor. Or perhaps Muslims have yet to encounter a problem that they can’t blame on the Jews. Most likely they consider cartoons attacking Jews to be “payback.” As far as Jews are concerned, Muslims lambasting Jews isn’t called “payback.” It’s called “SOP.”

There is nothing–I repeat, nothing–that some Iranian newspaper can run that’s going to get the average Jew to do anything other than roll his eyes and say, “Yeah, whatever.” We’re sure not going to start burning down Iranian restaurants or embassies over it.

This entire business has been revelatory. It underscores the complete Muslim disconnect between their own actions and others. Anti-semitism, anti-Americanism, insults and lambasting of others based upon race, color and creed is completely ingrained into their culture. But at the same time they demand complete respect for their beliefs from others who DO NOT SHARE THEM. They demand from others what they would not even remotely consider dispensing themselves.

And it underscores the complete chickenshit nature of governments here and abroad who seem far more eager to condemn the publishers of the cartoons than the overreactions to them. “How can someone provoke the Muslims?” people wonder. I wonder how people can NOT provoke them, or at least provoke their extremist factions who are determined to sell the idea that the world is out to get them. (Then again, if Christians can try to claim that they’re under attack in the ninety-percent Christian United States, I suppose anything is possible.)

Governments are trying to sell the notion that we must all be careful to be sensitive to the religious beliefs of others. Which is nonsense. Cartoons trashing Jews are standard in newspapers throughout the Arab world and I don’t see the U.N. making a stink about it. No, the truth is that various governments want to show respect for Muslim beliefs in the same way that one shows respect for a test tube of nitro glycerin: You don’t REALLY give a damn about its preachings. You just want to make sure not to shake it up so it doesn’t go off.

If the answer to free speech is more free speech, then apparently the answer to intolerance is more intolerance. Don’t say to the Arab world, “It’s a damned cartoon, get a grip. And if you don’t like it, then how about cleaning up your own house by eliminating the practices that cause the world to see you as a bunch of dangerous, violent psychos, drowning out the teachings of peace and tolerance that your Prophet puts forward.” Say instead to everyone else, “Don’t get the Muslims upset because they’ll blow you up.”

What the hell is it with extremists anyway that they use historical figures who preached the ways of peace to justify the ways of war?

PAD

After years of a political landscape that considered it open season on Democrats, apparently things have taken a lethal and possibly fatal turn.

As the White House attempts to claim that they intentionally waited for a public citizen to report the story to the press–as convincing an argument as Pee Wee Herman announcing that he “meant to” take a header over his bike handlebars–Harry Whittington is (let’s face it) fighting for his life as pellets are apparently making a bee-line for his ticker.

Here’s what I don’t get:

Today’s newspaper ran a picture of Cheney from an earlier quail hunting incident. As one would expect, the rifle was tilted at what appeared to be an angle of about, oh, fifty degrees or so, as Cheney prepared to blow helpless birds out of the sky with his WMD–weapon of mass defowling.

Now the reports claim that Whittington wandered “into the line of fire.” Which I would believe if Cheney were trying to kill, say, Bambi’s mother. But he was trying to kill birds that were–unless I missed something–in flight.

I fully admit I’ve never hunted, but how the hell does one step “into the line of fire” of a gun elevated at fifty degrees toward the sky? I don’t know how close Whittington was standing, but if he was at point blank range he’d probably be dead, and if he was any distance, he’d have to be ten feet tall. I just don’t get it.

It should be interesting if, in addition to stonewalling Congress whenever investigations are launched, the White House attempts to stonewall the Texas sheriff.

PAD

According to www.billmumy.com, the marvelous actor, Andreas Katsulas, passed away of cancer.

He was a consumate professional. I once had the chance to observe him on the B5 set between takes. He would sit in a chair and just meditate, thoroughly in character as G’Kar. Cast and crew knew better than to come over and chat with him or make small talk. They respected his space and thorough preparation. And when he was out of make-up, he was approachable, polite, surprisingly soft-spoken and caring. (Kath will tell you her own encounter with him at a Maryland convention.) By the way, for those who don’t know, he also played the one-armed man in the Harrison Ford “The Fugitive.”

He will be missed.

PAD

(Followup from GH: One of the first entries ever done on this blog was a photo of Andreas taken with Peter’s wrist cam at I-Con some years back. We noticed it was missing on the site, so I’m restoring that photo here:)

Yes. The news is true.
Peter has signed an exclusive with Marvel.
He is quite happy about it.

“Fallen Angel” & ‘Soulsearchers and CO.” were grandfathered into the contract as was his Spike mini-series.

Oh I am very happy about it too but then I have been happy about it since last year. *grin*

Peter is making a big announcement at WonderCon today. Once I know he has made it (he’s gonna call me on the cell to tell me) then I will announce it here. It will probably will not be before 7 pm (REVISED time) EST.

Revised: I can tell you that it is not a new sibling for the David Girls. But it was a nice thought Shana.

So as Ariel’s season is winding down, here’s where things stand:

Her high school team finished first in their division. This Saturday the county-wide playoffs will be held at Sayville Lanes in Long Island. That will determine who goes to the State championships.

Ariel herself, along with one of her teammates, Kat, finished second in a two-game county-wide Doubles tournament. Her first game was an anemic 135, but she shook it off and came roaring back, firing off six strikes in a row on her way to a 232 that helped her and her partner clinch second place.

Tragically, I’ll be at WonderCon this weekend and will miss the counties. I agreed to the convention eight months ago before we even knew whether Ariel would make the team, much less when counties were. But Ariel and Kath will be calling me with updates, so don’t be surprised if my cell phone rings during one of my Saturday talks and I take the call.

PAD

…aboard a brand new luxury ocean liner has just been announced from the Royal Caribbean line. It is designed to be sixty feet longer, far more luxurious, and capable of carrying twice as many passengers (over 6000) as the current largest ship afloat.

It’s set to launch in 2009, just five years shy of the Titanic’s Centennial. Am I the only person who thinks that God is cracking his knuckles over this floating testament to hubris and saying, “Oh, PLEASE. Bring it ON. I double-dog DARE you.”

To make it worse, the working title of this thing is “Project Genesis.” Dude! You really want to name your new ship after something that self-destructed in “Star Trek III?”

PAD

Understand that I absolutely don’t give a crap about the game. But the commercials warrant comment. So before I forget them, I’m going to comment on them as we go (and maybe about the game as well, but don’t count on it):

6:35: The Bud Light commercial with beer being hid all over the office as an incentive, thus resulting in chaos. It almost makes me want to go out and drink a Bud Light, and I don’t even drink beer. Hysterical, particularly the last bit when the boss gets tackled.

Burger King: At last Burger King acknowledges, at least in song, that their Burger King Mascot is “freaky” looking. If a member of SCA ever adopted a serial killer disguise, that would be the result. As for the rest of the over-the-top Busby Berkely-esque number celebrating the construction of a whopper…I don’t think I’ll ever eat another whopper.

6:39: Sierra mist: I’m pretty sure I ran into those security inspectors coming back from South Dakota.

Second Bud Light commercial: “The Magic Fridge.” Whoever is handling the Bud Light campaign, they’re brilliant. “Magic Fridge” is, so far, the best commercial of the evening.

6:46: Hybrid commercial. Eh.

FED Ex! Entertaining with impressive FX, and then slam dunked the final moment with the caveman getting wiped out by the passing mastodon.

Bud Light: Wow. Third BL commercial in a row that’s a winner. Not quite as good as “Magic Fridge,” but the outrage from the guy shouting “Not cool!” as his friend thoughtlessly leaves him to a bear’s mercies just to grab a Bud Light…that was great.

6:51: V FOR VENDETTA: “From the creators of the Matrix trilogy.” Gee, here I thought it was from Alan Moore. Looks cool, though. First footage that I’ve seen of it.

DIET PEPSI: Great to see Jay Mahr, but it doesn’t especially make me want to get a Diet Pepsi.

I think the Seahawks should win. They have snappier uniforms.

One of the announcers–Kath says it’s John Madden–sounds like Penn Jilette of Penn & Teller, except just a bit huskier, like Penn if he smoked too much.

COMMERCIAL CATCH-UP:

Aleve: Aside from the fact that Aleve is what I use if I pull muscles bowling or something, the use of Nimoy unable to do the Vulcan salute without taking some was brilliant. The new funniest commercial of the evening, although probably only because we’re fans.

Diet Pepsi: Much more imaginative than the first one, especially with the snarky substitution of Diet Coke for the stunt sequence.

Ameriquest: A funny sequence, but it doesn’t make me want to mortgage the house.

Bud Light: The most elaborate, and each one a masterpiece of absurdist writing with brilliant timing. What made this one was the total lack of reaction from the wife as her husband crashed through the ceiling…with the capper being his declaration of “I’m all right!” followed by getting clonked with the falling toolbox. Who the hell is writing these? David Ives?

Budweiser; Broncos vs. the Rams. Cute.

Mobile ESPN: Nicely done. Fantastic if you’re a sports fan. I’m not sure, but I think that was pro bowler Chris Barnes in there.

7:18–Career Builder.com. Entertaining.

Escalade: Eh.

7:20–MI3. Saw the trialer before. Looks interesting.

Dove Self-Esteem fund: As a father of daughters, and having had to deal with their self-esteem issues, I highly approve of this. I’ll be checking into it.

7:26: The Shaggy Dog: Seen the trailer, and the commentary doesn’t do much.

Ford Hybrid: Not thrilled with my favorite Muppet song being put into a commercial.

Michelob: Boy, I just can’t get enough of actors tackling each other.
7:35: Go Daddy: Wow. That was…pointless.

7:38: Poseidon, the remake of the Poseidon Adventure. I’ve no more interest in seeing it now than I did decades ago.

Gilette Fusion: Eh.

7:41: Overstock.com. A female-oriented commercial during Superbowl. What were the odds?

7:45: Standard Walt Disney commercial.

7:56: Sprint: Okay, THAT was funny. “Crime deterrent.” Heh.

Toyota Rav 4: If I were in the market for a car, I’d check it out.

Prudential: Eh.

8:05: I haven’t been commenting on the ABC house ads, but the “Might as well face, you’re addicted to Lost” is the best so far.

8:25: Okay, that was a better Disney commercial.

8:33: Ameriquest: Even better than the first. But I still don’t want to refinance the house.

MotoPebl…Uhm…okay.

Sharpee Retractable: I had that at a recent convention and got oohs and aahs from fans and pros, underscoring for me just how easy it is to impress fans and pros sometimes.

Been off for a while, dealing with Caroline. The only commercial I’ve seen since then that’s really memorable–the one that easily wins the “Okay, that’s just F’d up,” is the Hummer commercial: A female Godzilla mates with a giant robot to create “the little Monster” called Hummer. That’s just wrong on so many level…but it’s memorable.

Oh, also the MacGuyer Mastercard ad was pretty good.

9:54: “Running Scared.” Eh.

“Outback”. Eh. We eat there occasionally, but that ocmmercial wouldn’t make me want to.

With the Superbowl ended and Caroline still fussing we have stumbled upon her dream TV program: Puppy Bowl II. From now until midnight on Animal Planet it’s nothing but a dozen or so puppies cavorting in a minature football stadium. I’ve never seen Caroline so blissful.

Oh my God! It’s the Kitty half-time show.

I’m posting it here on a separate thread so the discussion of X-FACTOR #3 can remain focused on that issue rather than going off the rails.

The report is correct: Issue #4 of X-FACTOR will be Ryan’s last. This is entirely his decision. Andy and I would love for him to stay on, and Ryan reportedly loves the book, but he has taken himself off it because–I presume, since I haven’t spoken to him–the monthly schedule is just too problematic for him. He is, however, going to be continuing doing the covers.

Dennis Calero, who I think is doing an excellent job, will be doing issues 5 and 6, and Ariel Olivetti is doing issue 7 (the one that addresses the death of Banshee.) An announcement of an artist beyond that point would be premature, although Andy is considering several possibilities, all of whom I believe would be great for the series.

As for Ryan, it was far too short an association for my taste, and I’m certainly hoping to work with him again.

PAD

Issue #3 of what is essentially a four-issue introductory arc. Whad’ja think?

PAD

People in showbiz (and other bizzes, I imagine) refer to the Flyby (or Flyover) States…that is, states that don’t register on their personal radar other than that they fly by them while jetting from Los Angeles to New York and back. Well, fly by states have viewers with ratings boxes as much as NY and CA do, and I have a strong feeling that they’ll be watching something else this year for the Oscars.

(Broad brush warning: The following is speaking in generalities, not individuals. If you feel you’re an exception, then you probably are. I’m speaking of general viewing habits, not specific viewers.)

None of this year’s Oscar nominated films are remotely what one would call populist fare. My purely unscientific guess is that the vast majority of film goers have not seen the vast majority of this year’s films or its nominees. Not only that, but two of the films focus on homosexual protagonists (“Capote,” “Brokeback Mountain”), but one of the nominees (Felicity Huffman) plays a transsexual. So not only do you have no films that are general viewer turn-ons (such as “Titanic” was), but considering the number of states that went out of their way to introduce the legislative bigotry that is the gay marriage ban (there, I fixed it, happy? You knew what I meant), I have to think you’ve got some active turn-offs in there. This may well be the first Oscar cast that’s picketed by the religious right.

And who’s the MC? Jon Stewart, whose work I adore and you probably do as well. But compared to the heartland appeal of Johnny Carson, or the vaudeville schticky “eager to please you” Billy Crystal, Stewart may well be perceived as that smart ass smug New York Jew (plus anyone who doesn’t have cable may well not know who the hell he is.)

When you consider all that, I have a sneaking suspicion that this year’s Oscar cast may well have ratings that make the Tonys look like a ratings bonanza.

Me, I’ll be watching. What can I say? I’m a glutton for glitzy out-of-control sluggish behemoths of awards shows. Plus it’s Jon Stewart, and we smart ass smug New York Jews must show solidarity. But I’m doubting I’ll have a ton of company, especially in the Fly Bys.

PAD