Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein first came to life on celluloid over a hundred years ago, with the monster’s appearance in what has become known as “Edison’s Frankenstein.” Although the great inventor had no direct involvement in the making of the silent short, it was made by the studio that bore his name and using his film process, the Edison Kinetogram. Made in 1910, it was the first horror film in cinema history.
It’s interesting to note that Boris Karloff was actually the fourth actor to play Frankenstin’s monster.
Laughing Squid alerted me to these awesome one-of-kind hand-blown Octo-pipes by Loud Actions.
This is a pipe, and an amazing sculpture. This red Octopus has light fades of white that go nicely with all the suction cups. Each white suction cup is put on one by one and then picked to perfection which gives you the suction cup appearance. Each piece, without complication takes over 10 hours of work.
This piece is now made to order. You won’t ever see the same Octo-pipe but you can have one similar.
These functional Octo-pipes are available in several different colors and can be purchased at Loud Actions’ Etsy shop.
Sharon Tate was murdered on August 9, 1969. We’re all too familiar with the details so I’m passing on discussing them here. Instead, I’d like to share this rarely seen clip of Tate at work as an actor.
In this screen test for Valley Of The Dolls, Tate is playing beautiful pill popper Jennifer North, a role she eventually landed much to the delight of guilty pleasure seekers like myself.
The actor is Tony Scotti who played the adulterous scumbag Tony Polar, whose cheating ways propelled the emotionally frail Jennifer into the arms of Morpheus.
Beloved mid-90s Nickelodeon children’s show, The Adventures of Pete & Pete had some of the coolest celebrity cameos of any American kid’s show, ever.
Here they all are, in one 9 and a half minute-long compilation video.
In order of appearance:
Patty Hearst
David Johansen
Ann Magnuson
Martin Donovan
Suzzy Roche (The Roches)
Sarah Shannon (Velocity Girl)
Chris Elliott
Bebe Neuwirth
Syd Straw
Steve Buscemi
Gordon Gano (Violent Femmes)
Janeane Garofalo
Debbie Harry
Heather Matarazzo
Kate Pierson
Michael Stipe
Marshall Crenshaw
Juliana Hatfield
Luscious Jackson
Iggy Pop
Hunter Thompson
The ULTIMATE Pete & Pete reunion will be a part of the fab Everything Is Festival! (co-sponsored by Cinefamily) on August 28th. On the stage of the historic Orpheum Theatre, Pete & Pete fans are promised “virtually the entire population of Wellsville (from its creators to its residents).” More information (and advance tickets) here.
I was in drag the last time I did stand-up, about twenty-five-years ago, in a crowded bar at the Tron Theater, Glasgow. It was a return appearance, on a ‘gong night’ bill that included Craig Ferguson, who was starting out with his comic character Bing Hitler.
In some respects I was amazed to be asked back, and was certain my invitation had been a clerical error. The first time I’d tried to be Lenny McBruce and was full of misplaced energy that led me to telling the audience to ‘fuck off’, whilst reading a copy of the Sun, riffing on its headlines, horoscopes, interviews and adverts. I’d got as far as Princess Diana and Pete Sutcliffe jokes, when the howls of abuse proved too much, I was gonged quickly off.
Other gong nights had seen a generation of new and original talent: a duo called Victor and Barry - Alan Cumming and Forbes Mason - those erstwhile founders of the Kelvinside Young People’s Amateur Dramatic Art Society (KYPADAS), who performed camp musical numbers, in slick-backed hair and monogramed smoking jackets.
And then there was Jerry Sadowitz, who was incredible, and still is. His humor was unpredictable, relentless and much in the spirit of Lenny Bruce - nothing was sacred, no subject off limits. When menaced with the gong, he pulled out a joke pistol and threatened to shoot the compere, John Stahl.
Amongst such talents, I was just a daft, wee laddie, who wanted to succeed more than I wanted to perform.
So, on my return, I revamped one of my old drag characters, Bessie Graham, a mistress of the single entendre. I went through the rehearsed material and it seemed to be working well - at least for half the audience, those nearest to the stage that is. But for anyone beyond row 4, I appeared as an indifferent mime artist, with a basic grasp of mime. Later, I was told my mic had not been working.
Afterwards, watching Craig Ferguson perform, I decided to give it all up. Over 2 years of performing, on-and-off, I’d found out I was fine at comic characters and sketches, but hadn’t grown-up enough to have my own voice, and know what I wanted to say. And without that, I would never be any good.
Today is the eighth of the eighth, the official day to celebrate all things to do with the Roland TR-808 drum machine. And what better way to spend the day than with LA’s own king of the beats, and undisputed pioneer of both the 808 and hip-hop music, the Egyptian Lover.
This in-depth interview, by Redefine Hip-Hop for Fifth Element Online, stretches to 25 minutes over two parts, and covers everything you could possibly want to know about Egyptian Lover, aka Greg Broussard. From the origins of his moniker, to his introduction to the 808, from some of his most memorable productions to his extensive djing background, this covers all bases.
The 808 is a staple of modern music making, as influential a sound source as anything produced by Moog or Arp. I fuckin’ love it, as my Bang The Box mix from a few months back proves. There’s just nothing that compares to those massive kick drums, those sharp snares and that iconic, ringing cowbell. As Greg states in the interview, the 808 is never going to go away, and even Madonna has name dropped the 808 recently, in an attempt to gain some cred.
Of course, Egyptian Lover beat Madonna to rapping about an 808 by almost 30 years, and the great news is that he hasn’t stopped rocking. He’s still touring, and playing to more people than ever, all over the globe, as successive generations get turned on to the 808 sound. He’s a real dj’s dj too, mixing and scratching with original vinyl over his trusty 808’s live rhythms, and of course it wouldn’t be an Egyptian Lover show if he didn’t take to the microphone to deliver his classic raps. Check the 70 minute live recording from last year, after the jump. That, brostep kids, is a REAL dj.
The Egyptian Lover is a legend set in stone!
After the jump, part two of the Egyptian Lover interview, and a live set recorded in Athens last October…
This just made my day: Black and white footage of Daevid Allen performing with New York Gong in Los Angeles, 1979.
Also known as the “Zu Band” because they were formed for rock impresario Giorgio Gomelsky’s “Zu Manifestival” event in Manhattan, the core musicians went on to form Bill Laswell’s Material. As seen here at the Los Angeles Zu Manifestival, New York Gong were Daevid Allen, guitar; Bill Bacon, drums; Bill Laswell, bass; Don Davis, sax, and future Shimmy Disc founder Kramer on trombone/synths. In the midst of New York’s abrasive No Wave scene, New York Gong were “Yes Wave” to the max, progressive, jazz, punk, progrock wunderkids led by the ultimate hippie
The sound quality is iffy, but that this even exists is a fucking miracle, if you ask me…
Hugh Cornwell and London-based Mariachi Mexteca take The Stranglers’ “Golden Brown” south of the border.
Golden brown texture like sun
Lays me down with my mind she runs
Throughout the night
No need to fight
Never a frown with golden brown”
It has been said (by Cornwell himself) that “Golden Brown” is a song about heroin (Mexican Brown). If so, this version is sort of a narcocorrido without the accordions.
I’ll take this any day over The Stranglers that are currently befouling the air.
