Archive | September, 2005

Let’s Go Red Sox !

30 Sep


Even the youngest fans know who to root for this weekend …

(And no, I don’t know who these kids are. I just found the picture on the web.)

People Are Stupid

30 Sep

Alternate Headline: Thank God I Wore Sneakers Today

The Red Line wasn’t working this morning when I got to Park Street at 8:45. Apparently, someone had jumped on the tracks, though the official word from the MBTA was that there was a “medical emergency.”

Park Street station, for those who don’t know, is the nexus of the Green Line and the Red Line, and one of the busiest stations during rush hour for that very reason.

Add in some overly zealous tourists and you have a real mess on your hands in Downtown Crossing when the Red Line is out. Continue reading →

They’ve Got It Covered

29 Sep

So this is a bit dorky (at least in comparison to some of my more recent postings), but the American Society of Magazine Editors is sponsoring a contest to pick the 40 Greatest Magazine Covers of the Last 40 Years. According to a story on the Media Industry Newsletter, the competition has attracted more than 400 entries — apparently, many of them are 9/11- or Kennedy-related.

As both an avid magazine reader and a professional in the magazine industry, I’m quite interested in this. I mean, what makes a good cover? Is it a great photo? An eye-catching cover line? An attractive subject (male or female)? A memorable/different/unusual image, such as a caricature? A fun type treatment? A combination of all this? Probably. It’s all part and parcel of the magazine reading experience that I enjoy so much. A cover is how the magazine announces itself. You see the issue on the newsstand or in your mailbox and just know you want to dig in.

Sometimes I’ll buy a magazine only for its cover and then not even read the contents. I’ve saved magazines simply because of their covers. Vanity Fair, GQ, and Esquire, for example, tend to have great covers. And I still have the Friends cover of Rolling Stone from May 1995 framed in my apartment. I’m sure if I looked for it, I’d even find the blown up poster-sized version of the Friends cover that I talked Sid Holt, the former managing editor of RS, into giving me that summer when I was an ASME intern.

So yeah, I find this contest kind of cool. And I’ll be looking forward to seeing who and what is chosen when the winners are announced during the annual American Magazine Conference, which takes place in Puerto Rico October 16–19.

I have no idea which 400-plus covers have been submitted to the contest, but as you’ve no doubt noticed, peppered throughout this posting are some of my favorites. Actually, they’re not necessarily even the best ones I could remember, but they are some fun ones I easily found while doing a quick Google search. And, with the exception of the Friends cover, I still have each one of these issues sitting in my apartment right now.

Perhaps as a way of encouraging some “audience participation” I’ll ask this: Do you have a favorite magazine cover, or remember any particularly good ones? If so, click on the link and post a comment. (Go ahead. You know you want to.)

A Picture Is Worth …

28 Sep

Alright, since I’ve already posted something about Jennifer Garner today, why not get it all out of the way and show you the picture I mentioned on Sunday of Kristin from MTV’s Laguna Beach. I’ve become a bit of a fan of the show in recent weeks, despite my best attempts to avoid it, and now this photo from the latest issue of Rolling Stone, taken by Matthew Rolston, clinches it. (It’s on page 80 of the print edition.) Enjoy. And yes, she is legal — 18 years old.

Tomorrow I’ll go back to less pervy postings. Promise.

I Broke My Silence for This?

28 Sep


Is it possible for me to like Jennifer Garner any more? Before last night I didn’t think so.

Could You Smell the Wood Burning?

26 Sep

It’s been three days since I’ve posted something here, but nothing’s been all that posting-worthy, so here are a couple of days’ worth of random thoughts …

* I stayed in the office late on Friday night (until 9 p.m.), mostly to square some stuff away, clean up my desk, and get organized after a couple of crazy days. One facet of getting organized was coming up with a to-do list for Monday. Of course, by doing that, I now know all the work I have waiting for me. Talk about a catch-22. So maybe getting organized wasn’t such a good idea …

* Saturday was one of those impulsive shopping days at Newbury Comics. Walked in to get a free pint glass and the new Maroon 5 live CD, walked out a half hour later with those things and five other CDs. I shouldn’t tell you which ones, but maybe by confessing it’ll make me feel better: The 40-Year-Old Virgin soundtrack; Genius and Friends, a sub-par “sequel” to Ray Charles’ Genius Loves Company; All-Time Top 100 TV Themes, a 2-CD set of stuff from Six Feet Under to The Lone Ranger; the Desperate Housewives soundtrack (no comments, please); and the Elizabethtown soundtrack.

* Went to an ice cream tasting get-together for Marie’s birthday on Sunday. We all had to bring a favorite flavor so of course, I brought Hydrox (i.e.: Cookies and Cream) from Rancatore’s. (mmmm…Ranc’s.) But when tasted alongside Ben & Jerry’s Fossil Fuel or Caramel Sutra, somehow the Hydrox just couldn’t compare. Does Ben & Jerry’s make bad flavors? Because I’ve never had one …

* Got caught up on some TV this weekend. Thought the Martha Stewart version of The Apprentice wasn’t all that bad. I’ll probably continue to watch it, since it comes on right before Lost and doesn’t compete with anything else. Everybody Hates Chris, on the other hand, was not as good as the hype would imply. (Good thing, since it’s on opposite Alias and The OC.) Didn’t really enjoy How I Met Your Mother either. Neil Patrick Harris was just trying too hard, and the show seemed like it couldn’t sustain itself for very long unless new women are introduced every week. Wanted to get back into Prison Break, but I’m three episodes behind now (four including the one that’ll be on tomorrow), so at this point, I think I just have to call it and say I won’t be watching that show. I know it’s great, but I can’t watch ’em all. The second episode of Reunion was alright. Nothing great, but not awful either. I feel like by not telling you who’s dead yet, the show is just being an annoying tease and frankly, I don’t like any of the characters enough to care. It is, however, fun to figure out just what Bedford, NY the show is taking place in. Not the one I grew up in, that’s for sure.

* I don’t know about the rest of the country, but here in Boston — as I’m sure it does in New York — it feels like the baseball playoffs have already begun. If things remain this close, it’s going to be a long week. (And bummer I’m leaving town early for Rosh Hashannah.) My prediction? The Sox will end up 2 games ahead of the Yankees, who won’t make the playoffs. (Thank you, Cleveland.)

* One bad thing about Blogger is that it doesn’t allow you to track the traffic your blog is getting. (Or at least if it does, I don’t know how to do it.) But it seems like I have a lot of readers. And it seems like friends are telling old friends who I haven’t heard from in years to read the site. Case in point: got two emails from people last week who had heard about the blog from other people. Hadn’t heard from one of them in, oh, I don’t know, 14 years. Small world this Internet is …

* As much as I’ve tried, Laguna Beach has drawn me in. Big Time. And I tried to resist, really I did. But now I can sit and watch the same episodes over and over for hours. So here’s a PSA for any other straight male Laguna Beach fans (and I know I’m not the only one): go check out the new issue of Rolling Stone, the one with Evangeline Lilly on the cover. Turn to page 80. Nice.

* What happened to summer? All of a sudden it’s chilly again.

Phew! Maybe I am better off being in the office, where I’ll have plenty of work to keep me busy …

Hitting the Links

22 Sep

So maybe my more adventurous readers have clicked on the links to the right of this web site to see the other blogs I’ve pointed folks to. Thought I’d take a second to mention the new site I’ve listed there. Thanks to a tip by my old friend Doug, whose Planet Gordon site I’m a regular reader of, I have added the site TVgasm. Basically, the site’s what it may sound like: an orgasm of TV stuff: episode recaps written with a healthy dose of attitude, plus industry news and gossip.

But wait — there’s more. In the “Hotties” section, you can critique the attractiveness of various TV personalities (a mix of actual actors and reality cast members and other folks), and in the “Snark” section, you can put in someone’s name and get a, well, snarky comment about them. It’s good for a laugh.

Today the site’s full of info about The Apprentice: Martha Stewart, America’s Next Top Model, and of course, Lost, which the site’s writers call “the best hour of TV ever.” (Maybe not ever, but it was a pretty damn good show last night.) I’m sure there’ll be a great recap of The O.C. tomorrow if the recap of Laguna Beach is any indication.

While I’m at it, maybe I should plug some of the other sites if any of y’all have yet to check them out:

* Anna Rubin is my friend Anna’s blog. She and her husband are moving to Australia (actually, he’s already there) and the site serves as a primer on the country and a journal of the moving experience.
* Doug Gordon is an old friend from summer camp who gained notoriety (and all kinds of press mentions) for documenting the experience of being the male in an engaged couple on his site. Now he’s turning much of the content, and other wisdom he learned from the experience, into a book, due out in January. (Color me jealous.) But he posts daily about other stuff too if you’re like me and not even close to being married.
* David Poland is the blog of a film writer I like. I read his other site, The Hot Button, daily.
* I’m not exactly sure what my friend Dan Friedell‘s blog is all about, but it covers fantasy sports and other miscellaneous topics. Personally, I loved his “I have feet” posting.
* Jeff Wells is another film writer that I like. He posts new columns every Wednesday and Friday.
* My old college roommate Seth Rosen started his blog to document his training for a triathalon this summer, and now that the race is over his postings have become less frequent. But, if running and athletic training is your thing, his site was a good read, and I’m hoping he starts posting more frequently real soon.
* Finally, if you like kids, then read Simon Ezra, which documents the “fun” that a friend of a friend has being the mother of a young son.

Those are the other blogs. As I say above, if you’ve got a blog or you know of a good one I should be reading, please let me know and I’ll put up a link. Apparently I have a loyal group of readers and I’m happy to spread the word.

George Clooney Is the Man

22 Sep

I wouldn’t go so far as to say he’s a role model or even someone I idolize. He’s not even a man-crush. But George Clooney is someone I respect and admire.

It all started for me on September 2, 1997, a few days after Princess Diana died. Clooney held a press conference to call the paparazzi to task, saying it was their fault she was dead, that they were reckless, and not just in this case. The way he delivered his remarks that night — in a forceful and passionate manner, his words clearly thought-out — so impressed me that I was instantly made a fan, and I’ve never forgotten that night.

From that moment on, George Clooney was my hero. Continue reading →

Vanity, Thy Name Is Earl?

20 Sep

I hope you’ve seen some of the ads or the great reviews for My Name Is Earl. The show debuts tonight on NBC at 9pm. I saw the pilot episode a month and a half ago because I was lucky enough to interview Jason Lee for one of the magazines I work on, and it’s really funny.

I mean, just look at the guy! As Jason has said in multiple interviews, he looks like a porn star from the ’80s. Based on appearances alone, this is the funniest show on TV this season.

But there’s more to it than a sweet ‘stache. Basically, here’s the premise: Jason Lee plays Earl, a dim-witted low-life thief who wins the lottery one day, and when he runs into the street to celebrate — SLAM! he’s hit by a car. Of course, he loses the ticket.

While he’s laid up in the hospital, Earl hears Carson Daly (of all people) explain the concept of karma and he realizes, maybe if I was nicer to people, good things will happen to me, too. So … Earl sets out to correct all the things he’s done wrong over the course of his life. Hilarity ensues. Continue reading →

Ahoy There, Mateys!

19 Sep

About 10 years ago, a bunch of guys playing racquetball discovered that speaking in pirate slang made playing the game more fun. They decided that as long as there is a holiday for everything else, there needed to be a holiday to celebrate this kind of thing too, and began calling September 19 “Talk Like a Pirate Day.” Writer Dave Barry heard about it some years later, and in 2002 he wrote a column about the guys. Well, the rest is history. So today I bring you this special announcement …

Today is the 11th annual International Talk Like a Pirate Day!

In the spirit of the day, and with thanks to talklikeapirate.com, here are some key words that will help you to talk like a pirate:

Ahoy! — “Hello!”

Avast! — Stop and give attention. It can be used in a sense of surprise, “Whoa! Get a load of that!” which today makes it more of a “Check it out” or “No way!” or “Get off!”

Aye! — “Why yes, I agree most heartily with everything you just said or did.”

Aye aye! — “I’ll get right on that sir, as soon as my break is over.”

Arrr! — This one is often confused with arrrgh, which is of course the sound you make when you sit on a belaying pin. “Arrr!” can mean, variously, “yes,” “I agree,” “I’m happy,” “I’m enjoying this beer,” “My team is going to win it all,” “I saw that television show, it sucked!” and “That was a clever remark you or I just made.” And those are just a few of the myriad possibilities of Arrr!

… Really, it’s just that simple. (I guess pirate vocabulary doesn’t go much past the A’s.) But if you need help translating your common English to pirate-speak, here’s a handy translator that will do it for you. Just click on “ahoy!” And if you want even more fun, try speaking — I mean, talking like a German pirate. (These guys clearly have too much time on their hands.

But remember one thing: it’s Talk Like a Pirate Day, not Dress Like a Pirate Day. So you can participate without calling too much attention to yourself.

Consider this the most valuable PSA you’ll read today.

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