July 30, 2003
Evolution of the word "fudge"
Only it isn't the evolution of the word "fudge." It is the evolution of the F dash dash dash word, the granddaddy of all curse words. At least according to the lawyer of one Eric Vanatta. I am beginning to think that the mighty F-bomb has lost its luster, though, as I hear it regularly in public conversation, although giappino might disagree with my assessment. Any nominations for a new King of Curse Words?
July 29, 2003
Storm Knocks Memphis' Lights Out
For those of you who do not live in Memphis or were too busy taking care of your prostate to notice, we had a storm on June 22 that pretty much wiped the city out for a week. You may remember the ice storm of '94-- this weather catastrophe was much worse. In fact, I suppose many of the memphilter regulars have not made any posts lately because they still do not have power. The Commercial Appeal has a slideshow of much of the damage around town. I don't have an interesting storm story of my own, but the best one I saw on the local news was about one of Andy Lawson's kinfolk with no power who got tired of the heat and decided to make a pool by laying of a piece of blue plastic sheeting into the bed of the El Camino parked in his driveway, then filling the bed with water. Half the neighborhood came by for a dip.
Tell us your own harrowing tale of mother nature's fury.
July 28, 2003
Mick Jagger, older than my dad
Mick turns 60. I see a convalescent home I want to paint it black.
July 25, 2003
Sanity for Sale
A website calling itself "The American Gallery of Psychiatric Art" has assembled scans--spanning four decades--of ads for psychiatric pharmaceuticals. The ads run the gamut from classic ad copywriting to senseless to downright scary. As a bonus for those of you who are sick and tired of that goofy Zoloft® ovoid ad that is currently running on television, I offer this parody (which has Flash and sound and should be viewed with extreme discretion if at work) . (via Wood_s_Lot)
July 24, 2003
Rokken ebay auction
Probably on sale from Bill S. Preston, Esquire.
July 23, 2003
50,000,000 Nixon Fans Can't Be Wrong
The single most requested item from the National Archives is the famous photo of Elvis and Richard Nixon. Consequently, the National Archives has assembled When Elvis Met Nixon, a great website dealing the famous rendezvous. Elvis arranged the visit on the pretense that he could become a Federal Agent-at-Large to help the government, as he had experience with the "drug culture." Nixon, who had applied to be an FBI agent himself, agreed to the meeting. Nixon certainly did not like drugs, among other things. Nixon also had a bit of insight into the music business, as he had stumped on the television show Hee Haw during the '72 campaign.
Unintentionally Ironic Quote of the Day
"I think all foreigners should stop interfering in the internal affairs of Iraq"
-Deputy Defence Secretary Paul Wolfowitz.
Badass of the Day
Balram, who after nearly cutting his head off, drove himself 30km to a nursing home, which refused him admission, so he drove to another where his life was saved.
July 20, 2003
Contents May Catch Fire...
...is an odd thing to see written on the side of a box of matches, but it's true according to the folks at DumbWarnings.com. They have found plenty of other gems, such as the hair coloring product that warns, 'Not to be used as an ice cream topping'. If, however, you feel there are not enough dumb warnings out there, just head on over to the Safety Sign Builder and make your own.
Fake or Foto?
Do you have the eyes of an eagle? Can you spot a photoshop job at 10 paces? Well, here's your chance to prove it. Fake or Foto shows ten images and asks you to decide if they are real or CG. It's tougher than you think. I got a failing grade: 50%.
July 19, 2003
And He Should Know a Thing or Two about Impeachment
Former White House Council John Dean lays out the case for impeachment.
July 18, 2003
Six Degrees of Jack Nicholson
Worth1000.com is running a Jack Nicholson photoshop contest. Many of the entries are darn funny.
Quote of the Day
"Mr. Bay may lack restraint (also taste, wit and shame), but he does have an undeniable flair for sleaze, noise and vulgarity."
-New York Times reviewer A. O. Scott on the latest Bay/Bruckheimer debacle Bad Boys II.
July 17, 2003
Quote of the Day, or, You Knew This Was Coming
"Men have many ways of using their prostate which don't involve women or other men."
-Dr. Graham Giles, Cancer Council Victoria, Austrialia, on the unexpected benefits of masturbation.
The fading ad campaign
Frank Jump is on a mission to photograph the quickly disappearing painted mural ads that once graced the sides of buildings in New York City. The images are catalogued at fadingad.com for your viewing pleasure. Anybody out there know of a good fading ad? If so, grab your camera, get a shot, and post it in the comments.
July 16, 2003
The Force is strong with this one...
Remember the Star Wars Kid (SWK) we helped to humiliate several months ago? Well now he has his own fan club. And some of the members are rather adamant about George Lucas using him in the next film:
"We have all come from dust and will return to dust, but once in the life of a universe does a figure emerge with the blinding virtue of the SWK. Like the flame of a blow torch against the rusting hulk of the Star Wars empire, the SWK has ripped asunder the falacy of the myth. The SWK must be included in the final installment of the series to achieve lasting harmony among the tribes of earth. Otherwise the golden orb will descend and the horrors will be unleashed. Only the SWK can save us... include him in the next film and all will be right. Exclude him, and face the wrath of the golden orb. Plus that, this kid has better moves than Harrison Ford."
July 14, 2003
It's art... it's music... and now it's pop?
Although they debuted in the New York gallery scene with a retro electronic sound and a stage show that would make Bowie jealous, Fischerspooner has recently been popping up in such non-hepcat places as Britains music show Top of the Pops . Their debut label release, #1 promises to take them into even more living rooms. Can satire stand adulation? And can these guys keep delivering the goods? I, for one, hope so...
Won't buy the Herve! t-shirt?
Then put together the Herve! jigsaw puzzle, or make your own. It's free, ya cheap bastard.
Hallucinogens are dangerous because...
...while under the influence you might cut off your penis, fry it, and eat it.
Mexican Wrestling and Movie Posters
Great vintage Mexican posters to movies such as La Noche de Los Mil Gatos (Night of a Thousand Cats), which must be like The Birds except with cats. The Santo films, which I suppose jump-started the whole Mexican wrestling movie genre, are also well represented. as are the numerous Santo knockoffs.
July 13, 2003
Finally, A Cause We Can All Get Behind!
The slackful masses of the SubGenius were, despite much anticipation, once again let down by the Men from the Planet X who failed to come to Earth in their Pleasure Saucers on July 5 and Rupture the Slackful away to immortality and SexHurt amongst the stars. Trapped on this planet for another year, some of the SubG's are striving to make it a better place.
July 12, 2003
Quote of the Day
"It took me 25 minutes to snort all the cocaine the dog had on her coat. The fringe benefits of this were that the fleas, the dog hair, the mud and the sweat went in my nose, too. It's not a good flavor coming off of the dog."
-Gary Busey, New York Post
Dialtones (A Telesymphony)
Dialtones is a large-scale concert performance whose sounds are wholly produced through the carefully choreographed dialing and ringing of the audience’s own mobile phones.
July 10, 2003
Speaking of Nudists... Got Wood?
Literally that is? Some of these all natural pics are new to me, though others are already ubiquitous.
A few certainly look human-enhanced, but funny anyhow. Those easily offended need not click.
Also on eBaum's site, under Animation, is John B's version of American Flag Bikinis and KunstBar.
Einstein at a Nudist Camp is to...
Stephen Hawking at a strip club.
July 09, 2003
The IneptiDudes
This assemblage of mighty superheroes are powerful enough to make rubble out of all political, cultural and moral strongholds of the world in a matter of two years. Their superpowers include laser-guided ineptness, the power to leap over all international laws, and the ability to put the majority of the American people in a hypnotic trance. They are: The IneptiDuuuuuuuuuuuudes!
a cool link I found in the process
July 08, 2003
Pavement Terror!
Or how Howard Stone learned to liven up his delivery job by making his truck backfire and rigging a camera up to take pictures of startled bystanders. Hooray for Howard. (via Boing Boing)
Quotes of the Day
"The president's statement was based on the predicate of the yellow cake [uranium] from Niger. So given the fact that the report on the yellow cake did not turn out to be accurate, that is reflective of the president's broader statement."
--Ari Flescher, Press Secretary to President George W. Bush, July 8, 2003
"This is the operative statement. The others are inoperative."
--Ron Ziegler, press secretary to President Nixon
July 07, 2003
MoOM for short
The Museum of Online Museums is a one-stop shop for museum links on the web. While the usual suspects--Moma, Musee d' Orsay, and the Art Institute of Chicago--are there, the real beauty of MoOM is in the "Galleries, Exhibitions, and Shows" section. There you will find such gems as Weight Watchers Recipe Cards, the Moist Toweltte Online Museum, and Bollywood LP covers, and that is just scratching the surface. A hearty recommend.
July 06, 2003
Why my wife won't let me wear my new Herve! t-shirt outside the house...
Because Herve looks remarkably similar to my nextdoor neighbor, Brian, who is pictured here (he's the one in the middle with the big hands):
Brian is a very cool guy who works at the Veterans Administration Hospital and is the lead singer for The Gecko Brothers, a local cover band not to be confused with these Gecko Brothers. If Brian ever sees this I hope he's not offended, but he does look like Herve's younger, much taller brother.
July 05, 2003
Star Spangled Soul
It's a day late but...
This version of the SSB is by far my favorite. Check it out.
July 04, 2003
The Comic Book of the Atomic Revolution
Artist Ethan Persoff discovered an odd '50s era comic detailing the atomic revolution at an estate sale. Scans of The Atomic Revolution comic book can be found on his site. Greg Allen, aspiring to turn the comic into an animated movie musical, did a little research about The Atomic Revolution comic and compiled it at his blog. An interesting look at the optimism of a nuclear future past.
July 03, 2003
Quote of the Day
"He's got a mane, the whole nine yards. He's a full-grown lion. I don't drink and I don't smoke pot, although after this I wanted to. I can't get those eyes out of my head. I'm edgy."
Andy Lawson, on seeing a lion that is currently loose in Cincinnati. That is, of course, if Mr. Lawson is not hallucinating.
Miracles of the Next Fifty Years
From fifty years ago, that is. You know, things like jet-propelled planes, insect repellents, electric suns suspended from arms on steel towers 200 feet high, rayon underwear converted into candy...
July 02, 2003
Why I'm not a morning person.
I've always been a little night owl, since I was a baby. Similar to my father, waking me up early is like raising a bear from its cave. My sister and my mom, however, are little sprites, waking us up at 6 or 7 am on Saturday to chit chat or plan all these things they want to do. Now I can see there's a genetic reason why. Apparently height isn't the only thing I inherited from my father! (Ahh, if only I'd inherited his very Italian ability to tan.)
July 01, 2003
Memphilter Summer Reading
"Sir," Saint-Savin replied, "the first quality of an honest man is contempt for religion, which would have us afraid of the most natural thing in the world, which is death; and would have us hate the one beautiful thing destiny has given us, which is life. We should rather aspire to a heaven where only the planets live in eternal bliss, receiving neither rewards nor condemnations, but enjoying merely their own eternal motion in the arms of the void."
-- The Island of the Day Before, by Umberto Eco.
Since summer is the time for everyone who writes anything to make a reading list, we at Memphilter should have one of our own that is appropriately eclectic, but not abstruse. So make some book suggestions we can all enjoy that don't include The Lovely Bones, Harry Potter books, or anything by John Grisham.
Followup to Honda Cog
Meet the folks at www.the118118experience.com and view one of their latest, a spoof on the Honda Cog Commercial. Albeit a series of ads for a British directory assistance company, they are at least a refreshing change from what we get on this side of the pond.
Here is a link to a state-side server hosting the Cog Spoof (faster than the original UK server).
Maybe this is in response to those Heaven's Gate folks.
It is not uncommon for people to see visages of the Virgin Mary, Jesus, or Kris Kristofferson (wait, that's Band-Aids) in galactic phenomena. But a recently photogrpahed nebula perhaps has the definitive message from the heavens to the Earth: Fuck off!
Posted by 
