You know, I thought my blog was powerful.
But it seems my buddy Todd’s blog has actually upset Dontrelle Willis, a pitcher on the Florida Marlins.
Really.
In an article in the Press-Enterprise, a paper out in Los Angeles, Todd’s blog is actually mentioned by name. (And the story was picked up by the Scripps-McClatchy Western Service and also ran in the Knoxville News Sentinel.)
I’m totally impressed by this so I thought I’d post a link.
I don’t read books. People ask me all the time, “What’s the last book you read?” And my response is always “I don’t read books.” It’s not that I don’t read. In fact, I devour magazines on a weekly basis — Entertainment Weekly, Rolling Stone, Esquire, Improper Bostonian, etc. But I’ve never had much patience for or time to devote to books. Of course, this hasn’t stopped me from accumulating quite a library of books that I hope one day to read. So every time I go on vacation, I bring one with me, but I never get that far (it’s happened recently with Franz Wisner’s Honeymoon with My Brother and Steve Almond and Julianna Baggott’s Which Brings Me to You). I think the last book I read from start to finish was Dave Egger’s A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, and that was, like, six years ago.
So why am I mentioning all this now? Well, I don’t want to jinx it or anything, but I may just be on the verge of finishing another book: Rob Sheffield’s Love Is a Mix Tape. Rob is a contributing editor at Rolling Stone (he writes the “Pop Life” column) and he’s been a commentator on MTV and VH1. The book is Rob’s memoir about he and his late wife, Renee, who had nothing in common but a love of music, and Rob tells the story by using the various mixes he made for her (or she for him) as a uniting theme. As he writes, “Every mix tape tells a story. Put them together and they add up to the story of a life.” I’m sure years from now I’ll be able to remember certain times of my own life based on mixes I’ve made (and not just Xmas ones). That’s the idea behind the book, and given that it takes place in the early 90s, the lists of artists on the tapes gives the book a definite sense of time and place. There’s even a chapter devoted to the weekend Kurt Cobain died.
Basically, Mix Tape is a love letter to Renee and to music, and whether you’re a romantic, a music lover, or just like good memoirs, the book is great. It’s written in a conversational tone, making it fast-moving and, at times, hard to put down. At the end of each chapter, I found myself eager to read just one more. Usually I struggle to finish chapters and can’t wait to put down the books. I found out about Mix Tape when it was excerpted in GQ in the January 07 issue. I don’t usually get affected by books or magazine articles (other than those that make me laugh), but I found myself tearing up a bit reading the excerpt.
It’s been less than a week since I picked up Mix Tape, and I’m more than halfway through. I’d be surprised if I wasn’t done with it in another week or two (not being on vacation anymore and all). I wish I could write a more convincing recommendation than this is. But suffice it to say, any book that gets me from start to finish has to be good. If you go to the book’s web site you can read an excerpt and decide for yourself if it’s worth picking up.
Update, 6/8: I’ve finished the book.
Just a quick question: Why aren’t Boston cabs equipped with Fast Lane transponders?
I know the drivers are trying to make money, and a longer ride equals a higher tab, but considering how often they go through the toll booths, and considering the passenger isn’t paying the toll (at least not directly), wouldn’t it make sense for the cabs to have a Fast Lane transponder so they can zip right through and don’t have to sit in traffic?
On my list of all-time favorite movies, The Lion King ranks up there somewhere around number 5 (right after Rushmore, Singin’ in the Rain, North by Northwest, Good Will Hunting, and sometimes What’s Eating Gilbert Grape). So it’s always puzzled me why I never got around to seeing the theatrical adaptation of The Lion King, even though it’s been on Broadway for 10 years. Well, seeing the show is no longer on my to-do list because I saw it Tuesday night at the Broward Center in South Florida.
Unfortunately, Lion King will not be on my top-5 list of musicals (like, say, Company). I liked the show overall, thought it was a very creative adaptation of the movie, but I found some of it corny like a show at Disney World, didn’t like a lot of the individual performances, found the transition between some scenes choppy because they were trying to replicate every scene of the film, and thought the way the story was padded (especially in the second act) just slowed the whole thing down. In fact, the first act is much better than the second, but maybe that’s because that’s when all the good stuff in the movie is. On the other hand, the “He Lives in You” reprise is a really nice addition. I also loved how colorful some scenes were (though not “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King”). But I think the movie is really ingrained in my head, because scenes that always get me when I watch the movie totally got me here too. It’s almost a Pavlovian reaction that I get chills when I see “Circle of Life,” for example, and here, with the animals coming from everywhere in the theater, it had a similar effect on me. The wildebeast stampede scene, too, was an emotional experience seeing it in the theater. It’s hard to watch those scenes play out on stage without thinking of how they look in the movie. I have to say, though, that if there was something I really sorta didn’t like, it’s how Timon and Pumba were portrayed. It’s totally pandering in an attempt to mimic Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella’s performances. I also thought “Hakuna Matata” didn’t end the first act effectively.
So am I happy I finally saw the show? Of course. But when I think of The Lion King, I’ll think more fondly of the movie. To me, that’s a perfect animated movie, and it just can’t be replicated in live action.
I guess I’ll cut right to the chase: Spider-Man 3 is the worst film in the series.
There’s just too much going on.
There’s too much hokey dialogue and stiff acting (even for a comic book movie).
There are too many attempts at easy laughs.
It’s too long.
And the finale just doesn’t have the same power as those in the other two films did.
But that’s not all. Continue reading
It’s probably better if I didn’t post anything about what happened during Andrew’s bachelor party in Miami this weekend. After all, it was a bachelor party … in Miami Beach … with 15 guys. Make your own assumptions about what kinds of activities we did.
But if I let it pass without making some kind of comment, then what kind of service would I be offering you, oh dear readers of mine? So let me at least say that a good time was had and yes, it involved all the necessary elements of debauchery. Continue reading
You already know I’m a big fan of Kate Walsh’s Addison Montgomery character on Grey’s Anatomy. So I was looking forward to the big two-hour episode Thursday night that would serve as a pilot for an Addison-centric show. But if it’s going to be anything like this, I hope she’ll decide to stay in Seattle. The episode played out sort of like how the second season of Ally McBeal did: all of Grey’s quirks became more pronounced and were the feature attraction of the L.A. part of the show, not the characters themselves. Actually, there were so many big names in the cast that it almost seemed like an all-star medical show, which was a real distraction for me. And it was all too, I dunno, perfect at times and it almost became a total cliche (the three women oogling the surfer dude receptionist? Puh-leeze). The contrast with the action back at Seattle Grace made it so clear which would be the better show of the two. Frankly, the best part of the episode for me was seeing Merrin Dungey and David Anders (both former stars of Alias) back on TV again. So while I’d continue to watch Addison transition to L.A. where she’d (hopefully) be much happier (I like Addison and Merrin Dungey that much and I like that guy Paul Adelstein, who was in one of my favorite movies, Intolerable Cruelty), I hope she’ll stay in Seattle come the fall TV season.
I hate to sound like a broken record, but … I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Dice-K sucks.
In the game tonight, he gave up seven runs, five hits, and five walks in just five innings.
To date, he has a 5.45 ERA and has walked 15 in 38 innings.
That’s no ace, ladies and gentlemen.
That’s not even average. Continue reading
Chances are good that you haven’t heard much (if anything) about Jon McLaughlin, or his album, Indiana, which drops today. I first learned about Jon back in February when Ali’s Blog linked to two songs off the album. I especially liked “Industry,” so I’ve been waiting to hear more. And now today is the day. Jon’s one of those piano-playing singer-songwriters who sing catchy melodies. I suppose he’s not unlike Gavin DeGraw, though I’ll admit Jon’s got a somewhat generic and not terribly unique sound. Still, I like what I’ve heard enough to recommend it. So if you like this sort of thing, check out the two tracks at that blog. And if you like them, give Jon’s entire CD a chance, as I’ll be doing (via iTunes for $7.99). And as extra incentive, here’s the video for his other single, “Beautiful Disaster.”
Thought I’d put up a link to my story in the new issue of Continental magazine. As you can see, it’s the cover story and it’s about Laura Bell Bundy, who plays Elle Woods in the new Broadway adaptation of Legally Blonde.
Reviews of the show (which opened Sunday night) have been mixed, but some critics (like the ones at Variety and The New York Times) say it’s a lot of fun and that Bundy gives a very good performance. Continue reading
Martin's Musings 