This is a thing I found that I wrote on 2 September, 2007. That was almost three years ago. What have I even done since then?
I want to take the train cross-country with my grandpa and soak up all his stories so that someone will be there to tell them again when he dies.
I want to go to Seattle where it really doesn't rain that much or that hard and take so many pictures like if I'd never been there before. I want to go up in a tall building and take pictures of the spaceneedle and go up in the spaceneedle and take pictures of tall buildings and then piece them together and make a whole new skyline that no one would dare to recognize.
I want to go to France and pretend I'm pretending to be American and chain-smoke cigarettes.
I want to go to England and smile and have tea and crumpets.
I want to go someplace I've never been before, seeing as I've never really been anywhere.
I want to go to Ann Arbor, Michigan because it seems like a pretty nice place but no one ever really acts like they want to be there.
29 April 2010
27 April 2010
26 April 2010
THE LITTLE THINGS: Queen Christina (Mamoulian, 1933)
Nowhere for an angry mob to gather quite like the pretzel store...
24 April 2010
PROBABLY MY SOULMATE: Chuckie's Dad from Rugrats
Charles "Chas" Finster, Sr., oh, what a catch...
The glasses, the moustache, and impeccable style:
He runs a coffee shop and loves public libraries, boo-yah! Already know where me and Chas can hang out!
And we all know I have a thing for "young dads," but having Chuckie as a son brings its advantages. First, Chuckie's (and Charles') high frequency of nasal problems would make my anosmia old-hat! We could skip the questions about my ability to taste, and do our own eating....... out............ like at a restaurant.
Also, my dreams of having a gay, mostly-friendless son would be automatically fulfilled come matrimony:
He will love all of the Woody Allen movies I will force him to watch.
And don't go ribbing on me, "But he's already married!" and yaddah yaddah yah. I never watched the Rugrats movies or any episodes that came out after that, so I don't consider that whole "Kimi" situation really a party of Charles' life. And come on, Chas, you chose Kira Watanabe for your second wife? More like Wannabe... You can do so much better than that. You need someone who respects your fine facial hair and your "fabulous" son. Someone like me, Charles Norbert Finster. Someone like me.
Shhhh, baby, just go back to sleep. That whole Parisian nightmare was just a dream. I'm here now and before you drift back to doze-land how about we see what that moustache can do...
The glasses, the moustache, and impeccable style:
He runs a coffee shop and loves public libraries, boo-yah! Already know where me and Chas can hang out!
And we all know I have a thing for "young dads," but having Chuckie as a son brings its advantages. First, Chuckie's (and Charles') high frequency of nasal problems would make my anosmia old-hat! We could skip the questions about my ability to taste, and do our own eating....... out............ like at a restaurant.
Also, my dreams of having a gay, mostly-friendless son would be automatically fulfilled come matrimony:
He will love all of the Woody Allen movies I will force him to watch.
And don't go ribbing on me, "But he's already married!" and yaddah yaddah yah. I never watched the Rugrats movies or any episodes that came out after that, so I don't consider that whole "Kimi" situation really a party of Charles' life. And come on, Chas, you chose Kira Watanabe for your second wife? More like Wannabe... You can do so much better than that. You need someone who respects your fine facial hair and your "fabulous" son. Someone like me, Charles Norbert Finster. Someone like me.
Shhhh, baby, just go back to sleep. That whole Parisian nightmare was just a dream. I'm here now and before you drift back to doze-land how about we see what that moustache can do...
23 April 2010
YOU SHOULD KNOW: Allison Jones (casting director)
NOTE: I HAVE NO AFFILIATION WHATSOEVER WITH ALLISON JONES. I HAVE NO IDEA HOW TO CONTACT HER. THIS IS JUST A FANPOST, AS SOMEONE WHO APPRECIATES THE WORK SHE'S DONE.
Do you watch television, or movies? Do you have good taste in the aforementioned media? If so, then you've probably seen something cast by Allison Jones. She's kind of amazing.
Allison has been in the casting industry since at least 1985, that year working in the casting department of Golden Girls and as the casting director for a comedy horror movie, Hard Rock Zombies, and on the show Family Ties.
Yeah, yeah, those are things I'd probably choose to read a years-old Us Weekly rather than watch if they were playing in the waiting room of the plasma donation center that is currently my only source of income, but Family Ties? That's fracking Michael J. Fox right there. And though Allison didn't work on Ties during its first season, that kind of golden casting genius clearly rubbed off on her.
Ms. Jones worked in casting steadily through the eighties and nineties, nothing really that notable (some Fresh Prince episodes, the Roswell pilot, mostly NBC stuff), and then, in 1999, she hit awesome. She worked as the casting director for the pilot on the network-axed but now-cult-classic Freaks and Geeks. Yes, the writing and directing of this show float above us at uncommonly high levels of astounding, but would this show's box-set be in my DVD collection if it were not for the actors portraying these beloved characters? Maybe, but a person can hardly imagine Bill Haverchuck without Martin Starr, or Ken Miller without Seth Rogen. And essentially everyone on this program went on to do other mind-bendingly fantastic work. Even Stephen Lea Shepphard (Harris Trinsky) went on to be in The Royal Tenenbaums. Or just think about all the guest stars in Freaks and Geeks -- Jason Schwartzman, Ben Foster, Rashida Jones, Lizzy Caplan -- who after F&G went on to prove they were all kinds of wonderful. In 2000, Allison Jones and casting executives Coreen Mayrs and Jill Greenberg won an Emmy for "Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series" on Freaks and Geeks, and they deserved that hunk of metal.
Since Freaks and Geeks, Allison has continued her television track-record of casting bad-assery, being Emmy-nominated for "Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series" for the epic likes of Curb Your Enthusiasm (2004, 2006, 2008), Arrested Development (2005), United States of Tara (2009, cast the pilot), and The Office (2009). She is well-known for her ability to help put together realistic ensembles with phenomenally good chemistry. A frequent collaborator with Judd Apatow and others, Allison Jones has also worked on Undeclared and Parks & Recreation, and the movies Superbad, Borat, Knocked Up, Hot Rod, and The 40 Year Old Virgin, among many more. If you haven't seen all of this shit, then... shame on you and your family, man.
People want to be on The Office
But awards aside, Allison Jones has a fantastic eye. And not just, you know, for the spectacular leads she's scrounged up for pilot season, but for the little parts, too.
In an interview about her trek to stardom, Jenna Fischer (Pam on The Office) mentions that it was Allison who really propelled her career into existence:
So, how did I get The Office? Spin City was cast by Allison Jones... She became a fan of mine through a series of auditions. I kept going into her office year after year auditioning for different things. I got some and not others but she kept bringing me back... Allison remembered me when it was time to cast The Office. She called me to audition and I finally got the part.
Loyalty. Appreciation. Allison Jones seems to like the talented actors she casts as much as we do. When she finds someone good for a role, even just a tiny one, she'll bring them back if they're deserving. Jenna Fischer is on The Office and was on Spin City, but remember how she was also on Undeclared as that sorority girl? Or how Rashida Jones was Karen Scarfolli on Freaks and Geeks, and Karen Filippelli on The Office, and Ann Perkins on Parks & Recreation? Dude, whenever Allison Jones casts someone, you kind of know that their autograph will be worth hundreds on eBay in a couple of years.
So the next time you're considering a TV show or a movie with unfamiliar stars, maybe look further than the director when deciding whether to watch it. Allison Jones just may have cast it into excellence.
Do you watch television, or movies? Do you have good taste in the aforementioned media? If so, then you've probably seen something cast by Allison Jones. She's kind of amazing.
Allison has been in the casting industry since at least 1985, that year working in the casting department of Golden Girls and as the casting director for a comedy horror movie, Hard Rock Zombies, and on the show Family Ties.
Yeah, yeah, those are things I'd probably choose to read a years-old Us Weekly rather than watch if they were playing in the waiting room of the plasma donation center that is currently my only source of income, but Family Ties? That's fracking Michael J. Fox right there. And though Allison didn't work on Ties during its first season, that kind of golden casting genius clearly rubbed off on her.
Ms. Jones worked in casting steadily through the eighties and nineties, nothing really that notable (some Fresh Prince episodes, the Roswell pilot, mostly NBC stuff), and then, in 1999, she hit awesome. She worked as the casting director for the pilot on the network-axed but now-cult-classic Freaks and Geeks. Yes, the writing and directing of this show float above us at uncommonly high levels of astounding, but would this show's box-set be in my DVD collection if it were not for the actors portraying these beloved characters? Maybe, but a person can hardly imagine Bill Haverchuck without Martin Starr, or Ken Miller without Seth Rogen. And essentially everyone on this program went on to do other mind-bendingly fantastic work. Even Stephen Lea Shepphard (Harris Trinsky) went on to be in The Royal Tenenbaums. Or just think about all the guest stars in Freaks and Geeks -- Jason Schwartzman, Ben Foster, Rashida Jones, Lizzy Caplan -- who after F&G went on to prove they were all kinds of wonderful. In 2000, Allison Jones and casting executives Coreen Mayrs and Jill Greenberg won an Emmy for "Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series" on Freaks and Geeks, and they deserved that hunk of metal.
Since Freaks and Geeks, Allison has continued her television track-record of casting bad-assery, being Emmy-nominated for "Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series" for the epic likes of Curb Your Enthusiasm (2004, 2006, 2008), Arrested Development (2005), United States of Tara (2009, cast the pilot), and The Office (2009). She is well-known for her ability to help put together realistic ensembles with phenomenally good chemistry. A frequent collaborator with Judd Apatow and others, Allison Jones has also worked on Undeclared and Parks & Recreation, and the movies Superbad, Borat, Knocked Up, Hot Rod, and The 40 Year Old Virgin, among many more. If you haven't seen all of this shit, then... shame on you and your family, man.
People want to be on The Office
But awards aside, Allison Jones has a fantastic eye. And not just, you know, for the spectacular leads she's scrounged up for pilot season, but for the little parts, too.
In an interview about her trek to stardom, Jenna Fischer (Pam on The Office) mentions that it was Allison who really propelled her career into existence:
So, how did I get The Office? Spin City was cast by Allison Jones... She became a fan of mine through a series of auditions. I kept going into her office year after year auditioning for different things. I got some and not others but she kept bringing me back... Allison remembered me when it was time to cast The Office. She called me to audition and I finally got the part.
Loyalty. Appreciation. Allison Jones seems to like the talented actors she casts as much as we do. When she finds someone good for a role, even just a tiny one, she'll bring them back if they're deserving. Jenna Fischer is on The Office and was on Spin City, but remember how she was also on Undeclared as that sorority girl? Or how Rashida Jones was Karen Scarfolli on Freaks and Geeks, and Karen Filippelli on The Office, and Ann Perkins on Parks & Recreation? Dude, whenever Allison Jones casts someone, you kind of know that their autograph will be worth hundreds on eBay in a couple of years.
So the next time you're considering a TV show or a movie with unfamiliar stars, maybe look further than the director when deciding whether to watch it. Allison Jones just may have cast it into excellence.
21 April 2010
THE LITTLE THINGS: Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle (the french subtitles)
(Can a post really even get more pretentious than this?)
THE LITTLE THINGS: Agents of Cracked, S01E12
Women of Classic Literature We Want to Bone
UPDATE:
also spotted in S01E13:
couldn't find an eraser? already had another whiteboard?
17 April 2010
WATCH THIS: Party Down
Remember Party Down?
No?
Oh, you must. It's that fantastically funny show about wanna-be-actors-turned-caterers that premiered last year... it was created by, among others, Paul Rudd and Rob Thomas (the other one, the Veronica Mars one) and stars Adam Scott (the male nurse in Knocked Up... you've probably seen him in something), Ken Marino (The State!), Lizzy Caplan (Janis Ian from Mean Girls, Sara from Freaks and Geeks), Martin Starr (Bill from Freaks and Geeks), Ryan Hansen (Dick Casablancas from Veronica Mars), and Jane Lynch.
Just look at this compelling picture of beloved actors you probably recognize.
Yeah... she is on Glee now, and yeah, she is funny on it, I guess... that's (one of the reasons) why I hate Glee so much, cos it took her away from Party Down...
No, no, Party Down wasn't canceled. The second season premiers on April 23rd! And you totally must remember it! It's so good! The writing is consistently hil-ar-ious (and wonderfully wry), there's continuity and story-arcs between episodes, the characters are relatable for anyone who's ever thought they could succeed in the arts (and of course learned they couldn't) or anyone who's ever had to have a shitty job just to get by... It's the best! And it has lots of amazing guest stars, too... so many people from Veronica Mars, Freaks and Geeks, and The State... Are you sure you've never heard anything about it?
No? Well... watch this clip:
See! It's so good! You should totally start watching it. Each episode takes place during the course of a catering gig... kind of like The Office in that you really only see these characters in the context of their workplace (and in uniform!), but you still really get to know them. Hurry and watch so you have time to catch up before the second season.
Oh, it airs Fridays at 10 pm on Starz.
Yeah, I don't get Starz either.
No?
Oh, you must. It's that fantastically funny show about wanna-be-actors-turned-caterers that premiered last year... it was created by, among others, Paul Rudd and Rob Thomas (the other one, the Veronica Mars one) and stars Adam Scott (the male nurse in Knocked Up... you've probably seen him in something), Ken Marino (The State!), Lizzy Caplan (Janis Ian from Mean Girls, Sara from Freaks and Geeks), Martin Starr (Bill from Freaks and Geeks), Ryan Hansen (Dick Casablancas from Veronica Mars), and Jane Lynch.
Just look at this compelling picture of beloved actors you probably recognize.
Yeah... she is on Glee now, and yeah, she is funny on it, I guess... that's (one of the reasons) why I hate Glee so much, cos it took her away from Party Down...
No, no, Party Down wasn't canceled. The second season premiers on April 23rd! And you totally must remember it! It's so good! The writing is consistently hil-ar-ious (and wonderfully wry), there's continuity and story-arcs between episodes, the characters are relatable for anyone who's ever thought they could succeed in the arts (and of course learned they couldn't) or anyone who's ever had to have a shitty job just to get by... It's the best! And it has lots of amazing guest stars, too... so many people from Veronica Mars, Freaks and Geeks, and The State... Are you sure you've never heard anything about it?
No? Well... watch this clip:
See! It's so good! You should totally start watching it. Each episode takes place during the course of a catering gig... kind of like The Office in that you really only see these characters in the context of their workplace (and in uniform!), but you still really get to know them. Hurry and watch so you have time to catch up before the second season.
Oh, it airs Fridays at 10 pm on Starz.
Yeah, I don't get Starz either.
15 April 2010
THE LITTLE THINGS: Clerks (the credits)
Like everyone else who had a young adulthood, I love Clerks.
But additionally, only like those fortunately-less-numerous others who too lead a bleak and terribly depressing existence, I love also the credits for Clerks:
But additionally, only like those fortunately-less-numerous others who too lead a bleak and terribly depressing existence, I love also the credits for Clerks:
03 April 2010
WATCH THIS: The Life & Times of Tim
The Life & Times of Tim, created by Steve Dildarian, is another show about a twenty-something New Yorker working at a monolithic corporation and just trying to get by without totally embarrassing himself.
Except this show is totally hilarious.
Tim is sort of like an animated version of those The Most Awkward Boy in the World comedy sketches (starring Zach Woods, now of The Office fame)... somehow, no matter what Tim does (or doesn't do), it's gonna get pretty uncomfortable. And rip-roaringly funny. Just in the first season Tim somehow gets cornered into fighting an old man, and taking his boss's daughter to her senior prom.
WATCH THIS SHOW.
The animation is a little... simple, like something you might come across on Newgrounds, but don't let that dissuade you. This is a cartoon in which the characters wear different outfits (but still have a consistent wardrobe/style), and one that has many little background details never mentioned, but that are sincerely pause-worthy:
There is also continuity between episodes, recurring characters, notable guest stars (Tony Hale, Trevor Moore, Lizzy Caplan, Cheri Oteri, Jeff Garlin, Bob Saget...), references to Wes Anderson and Felicity, and many, many hilarious jokes.
Tim could be criticized for its use of vulgar situations (and language), but none of it is used gratuitously, or without creativity and originality. Vulgar? Yes. Tasteless, lewd, or uncouth? Hell no. A prime example is an alcoholic priest, a recurring character, and in the age of parish sex scandals, a skewed version of a new kind of archetype. Yet Tim does not use this character as a chance for a cheap shot at religious institutions. No, the priest's "wild" antics instead just lead to more opportunities for Tim to have to deal with awkwardness and embarrassment - what the show is about.
Watch The Life & Times of Tim or else live with the knowledge that you're missing out on something wonderful.
Each thirty-minute episode consists of two fifteen-minute segments.
The Life & Times of Tim airs on HBO at 9:30 pm Fridays.
It is currently half-way through its second season, which has a snazzy new opening-sequence, but is not lacking in any of the goodness mentioned above.
Except this show is totally hilarious.
Tim is sort of like an animated version of those The Most Awkward Boy in the World comedy sketches (starring Zach Woods, now of The Office fame)... somehow, no matter what Tim does (or doesn't do), it's gonna get pretty uncomfortable. And rip-roaringly funny. Just in the first season Tim somehow gets cornered into fighting an old man, and taking his boss's daughter to her senior prom.
WATCH THIS SHOW.
The animation is a little... simple, like something you might come across on Newgrounds, but don't let that dissuade you. This is a cartoon in which the characters wear different outfits (but still have a consistent wardrobe/style), and one that has many little background details never mentioned, but that are sincerely pause-worthy:
There is also continuity between episodes, recurring characters, notable guest stars (Tony Hale, Trevor Moore, Lizzy Caplan, Cheri Oteri, Jeff Garlin, Bob Saget...), references to Wes Anderson and Felicity, and many, many hilarious jokes.
Tim could be criticized for its use of vulgar situations (and language), but none of it is used gratuitously, or without creativity and originality. Vulgar? Yes. Tasteless, lewd, or uncouth? Hell no. A prime example is an alcoholic priest, a recurring character, and in the age of parish sex scandals, a skewed version of a new kind of archetype. Yet Tim does not use this character as a chance for a cheap shot at religious institutions. No, the priest's "wild" antics instead just lead to more opportunities for Tim to have to deal with awkwardness and embarrassment - what the show is about.
Watch The Life & Times of Tim or else live with the knowledge that you're missing out on something wonderful.
Each thirty-minute episode consists of two fifteen-minute segments.
The Life & Times of Tim airs on HBO at 9:30 pm Fridays.
It is currently half-way through its second season, which has a snazzy new opening-sequence, but is not lacking in any of the goodness mentioned above.
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