the brain that wouldn’t die

First airing on this day in 1993 during the series’ fifth season, the lampoon of the Rex Carlton and Joseph Green 1962 collaboration from the crew of Mystery Science Theater 3000 helped elevate this film about a mad scientist who is working on methods of preserving dismembered bodily organs to allow for future viability who experiments on the his decapitated girlfriend whilst keeping a Frankenstein’s monster captive in a broom closet to the status of a cult classic. Because of an imperfect copyright notice, it entered into public domain upon theatrical release and was in 2018 the subject of one of the first fully machine produced movies. The episode was long-time writer Michael J. Nelson’s second appearance as host and features a segment with Mary Jo Pehl as Jan in the Pan, the actor to later replace Dr. Clayton Forrester in their secret underground lair, Deep 13.

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in the stacks: museum curators uncover what may be the oldest depiction of a ghost on an ancient Mesopotamian tablet 

1928 porter: a look at the 1965 short-lived sitcom (see also) My Mother the Car 

this climate does not exist: visualisations of one’s neighbourhood under the climate crisis from Nag on the Lake  

ev: more outstandingly odd electric vehicles from the on-line market Alibaba—via Things Magazine  

reasonable person: “a moron in a hurry” is codified in Anglophone legal statute—via the New Shelton wet/dry 

graphics processing unit: glitch art in medical imaging—via Waxy  

don’t go wasting your emotion: the ABBA classic, as performed by a vampire—via Everlasting Blört

the saga of the viking women and their voyage to the waters of the great sea serpent

The 1958 Roger Corman film with the ridiculously long title (see previously) about a group of women from a land called Stannjøld embark on an adventure in search of their lost men, are shipwrecked by a sea monster and are imprisoned by the Grimaults and made to toil in their mines, reunited with themishing male companions in captivity was revived as a cult cult classic when it was lampooned by Mystery Science Theater 3000, first broadcast on this day in 1991. Starring Abby Dalton as Desír and June Kenney as Asmild, the film was apparently cheap-looking even by Corman’s standards, reviews were mixed and the director wasn’t enough studio-time in Paradise Cove for such an ambitious epic, going against his instincts and letting special effects carry the story forward. The feature is preceded by the educational short The Home Economics Story.

lying awake intent at tuning in on you

Originally recorded by songwriter Bruce Woolley and the Camera Club—featuring Thomas Dolby on keyboard, the follow-on version performed by the synth-pop group the Buggles, released a month prior as the debut single from their first studio album The Age of Plastic, the foundational, nostalgic hit, influenced by the music of Kraftwerk and inspired by memories of covertly listening to Radio Luxembourg late at night, topped the UK charts this week in 1979. The accompanying music video, first aired on Top of the Pops, went on, just after midnight on the first day of August 1981, to mark the beginning of MTV’s broadcasting run.

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pour homme, femme, et grenouille: Amphíbīa, Kermit the Frog’s signature scent from 1995  

hampsternomics: a look at how the attention economy has matured through the lens of a quarter-century old meme—see previously 

a day without rain: Endless Enya (previously) from Mischief Magazine—via Web Curios  

memento mori: a treasury of macabre reminders of death’s inevitability  

corvid catalogue: counting crows of literature  

sneakernet: non-existent virtual trainers dreamed up by artificial intelligence (see also)—via ibīdem  

pietra per pizza: a deep-dive into the history of the cooking accessory convinces one individual it isn’t just a trendy gimmick

development hell

The Maximum Fun podcasting network (previously) has been hosting a block party this week to introduce the neighbours—that is, new programming adjacent to the shows that one already listens to discover new content and expand one’s listenership, helpfully recommending crossing-over points and places with easy egress for those unfamiliar with the programme’s content and approach. Already feeling over-subscribed, I am reluctant to add more shows but was always about Dead Pilots’ Society—see also here and here—whose premise is to unearth spec scripts for sit-coms and procedurals that were never produced and give them a proper table-read with a cast of professional actors and stand-ups. One stellar point of entry is episode twenty from 2017 that covers the bizarre pitch from writer Rob Schrab for Jetpackula performed with the talents of Patton Oswalt, Sujatat Day and Constance Wu about a has-been graphic novel illustrator whom befriends a vampire from the future, which was ultimately deemed too expensive to create. Check it out at the link above.

upstairs, downstairs

Tracking the gradual decline of the British aristocracy through the lens of a wealthy family living at a posh address in Belgravia, a countess who entered into a morganatic marriage with the son of a county parson, and their domestics, over a span of twenty-seven years, from the turn of the century through the Great War, the Roaring Twenties and the Great Depression in the 1930s during the regencies of Edward VII, George V and Edward VIII, the ITV series debuted on this day in 1971, running for five seasons. The introductory credits of each episode featured a cartoon from Punch magazine over the opening theme The Edwardians—performed as a the mildly bawdy, music hall piece “What Are We Going to Do with Uncle Arthur?” with an instrumental version also used as a wedding march (see also) for a marriage ceremony in the show.

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pov: more superlative drone photography 

true facts: Ze Frank (previously) assays the mosquito 

awesome mix, vol 1 & 2: the video game adaption of Guardians of the Galaxy has a stellar soundtrack  

baby, you are so money and you don’t even known it: a quarter of a century on, in defence of Swingers, the Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau vehicle that has more heart than one might have remembered  

social justice kittens: a 2022 calendar from Liartown, USA (previously)—via Web Curios  

the montauk project: spelunking in the mothballed secretive military base, Camp Hero, that inspired Stranger Things 

hop on, hop off: in honour of the Year of the European Rail, photographer Albert Dros documents his ten-day train journey across the continent

queen of wands

Brilliantly, artist Juanjo Cristiani (a.k.a. enjoy.mycake) transformed contestants, guests and hosts from RuPaul’s Drag Race into a divine and divining tarot deck, which on close inspection reveal a wealth of detail and character development in each card, patterned off of the iconic Rider-Waite-Smith template. Here’s Lil’ Poundcake / Alaska as The Hermit, signalling the need for introspection and slow, deliberative steps going forward since the lantern does not afford much of a preview of terrain ahead, but it was too tough to pick just one representative card. Much more at It’s Nice That at the link up top and the artist’s website and boutique.

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the boy on the bike: a trip down Golden Hill in Shaftesbury, Dorset with a beloved bread advert directed by Ridley Scott with music by Dvořák  

dedication—devotion, turning all the night time into the day: more on the hypothesis (see previously) that the Dire Straits song can improve any movie ending 

the hauntening: various AIs try their hand at spookifying, exorcising Victorian mansions—previously

outbreak: a timelapse of COVID-19 cases in the United States over the past eighteen months 

just the punctation: what text without words reveals to authors about their style—via Waxy  

abecedarium: a 1968 Alphabet (previously) of the Dada movement hosted by Hans Richter (caution, some rapid, flashing images) 

rašínovo embankment: revitalised Prague riverfront features vaulted arches for cafes and gallery spaces

shock theatre

With the debut of the syndicated package of made-for-television monster movies after a few minor roles in a Western series—one being an undertaker—on this day in 1957 in the Philadelphia market, John Zacherle (*1918 - †2016) began a decades’ long career as a horror host, editing a pair of anthologies of ghost stories plus penning a few monster novelty songs. Often filling in for his colleague and fellow Philadelphian broadcaster Dick Clark when touring, Zacherle was the substitute MC for American Bandstand. As a promotional stunt to mark his move to New York, Zacherle staged a presidential campaign in 1960, running as a “cool ghoul” but failing to meet the threshold to get on the ballot in any state. Continuing the same format as Shock Theatre, the interstitial breaks became more and more elaborate with a cast of monstrous characters and branched out into a few motion picture parts as well as hosting a cartoon variety hour and adolescent dance show in New Jersey called Disc-O-Teen. Through the seventies and eighties, Zacherle was a Prog Rock disk-jockey and in an array of b-movies. His success and notoriety helped his niece Bonnie Zacherle develop and successfully pitch her 1982 toy line, My Little Pony—the horror.

a creature unknown to science

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cultured: beautiful Petri dish art (see also) from Dasha Plesen  

tax centinels: protesting college students conspired to create “penny famines” across the US in the late 1930s 

rediffusion: the Thames Television archives—via Things magazine  

fat bear bracket: follow the celebration of survival and success with Katmai’s nature preserve ursine residents—via Hyperalleric’s Required Reading 

the thing on the fourble board: a 1948 episode of the radio programme Quiet, Please! is considered to be one of the scariest broadcasts ever 

bisection: the spiralling figural sculpture of Isabel Miramontes  

frustule: the rich diversity of diatoms illustrated in an 1890 volume

heil honey, i'm home!

Mercifully cancelled after the pilot with seven episodes remaining unaired, the titular situational comedy spoofing conventions of the American format and conventions of the fifties, sixties and seventies and the perceived willingness to capitalise on any premise, no matter how dumb, was aired for the first and the last time by the Galaxy network, an affiliate of British Satellite Broadcasting on this day in 1990. Set in 1938 Berlin, Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun live next door to a Jewish couple, the Goldensteins. The intent of the creators was not to shock or sensationalise but rather broach the policy of appeasement through parody but the subject matter was too grave for audiences and programming directors.

tracking

Via Laughing Squid, having a fond appreciation for the aesthetic of superannuated media packaging and lining (previously), we quite enjoyed these sneakers from Moonlambo with retro detailing inspired by classic VHS sleeves. More apparel at their shop at the link above.

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ppe: an enigmatic update to COVID guidelines 

i don’t want to live on this planet anymore: a supercut of Futurama gags that have endured  

norm macdonald has a show: an appreciation of the comedian’s (†) early standup  

ernie and the emperors: a Giant Crab discography (1969) 

grandmaster: the mental and physical tolls of chess  

appareil: gorgeous French brick patterns from a 1878 catalogue 

 tireless research: Ruben Bolling showcases great scientists of the twenty-first century

the woodcutter

Faithfully conserved by Kicks Condor by making an archival backup of the interactive artistic exploration that relies on the sunset rich web application Flash protocol by comic milieu pioneer and author of the early web classic (with cul-de-sacs and hidden corners to poke and prod) launched in 1997 by Josh Kimberg, utilising preservation projects that matured sufficiently for the task at hand which would otherwise see large swaths of the foundational and essentially experimental internet lost to the ages. Aside from the impression that The Woodcutter made for contemporary discoverers, Kimberg’s creative collective Bullseye Art created many early web cartoons as well as the opening title sequence for The Rosie O’Donnell Show, twice Emmy-nominated and the first Flash work to air on television.

watery fowls

Despite airing for only two series of six episodes each, the BBC2 sitcom written and starring then-couple Connie Booth and John Cleese looms large in the pop cultural conscience of British and American audiences, and was first broadcast on this day in 1975 with the pilot, “A Touch of Class.”

Set in the fictional town of Torquay on the English Riviera, the show’s couch gag was having the letters of the hotel’s sign rearranged in rude anagrams by the paperboy as an establishing shot. The co-creators’ decision not to produce a third-series despite drafts for later stories was precedent-setting for British television with other successful and iconic shows bowing out after a short-run. 

 

citation needed

Though many go beyond pettiness and pedantry and grow rather partisan in championing one authoritative version over another competing editor, we enjoyed a selection from Web Curios of what’s been deemed the most trivial debates when it comes to framing, contextualising and disambiguating topics in the Wikipedia community of devoted feuding (see previously) and upholding free knowledge. Topics of no consequence include matters on canonicity or fandom, the nobility of micronations and appropriateness of redirect. Not a style-guide, this Wikipedia page (see a sortable version here) of protracted disputes is meant to be humorous and a look at the tenacity of academic convictions, no matter the height of the hill one decides to die on.

the persuaders!

Last in the line of a spy, crime adventure syndicate that began in 1960 with Danger Man, The Prisoner, The Avengers and The Saint, the charismatic action-comedy vehicle of Tony Curtis and Roger Moore was first simulcast on ITV and ABC to UK and US audiences on this day in 1971. Though considered a crowning, ambitious and concluding series and played well in foreign franchises, dubbed as Dos Tipos Audaces (Two Bold Characters in South American markets), Minden Lében Két Kanál (Two Spoons in Every Soup in Hungary), Snobbar som Jobbar (Snobs on the Job in Sweden), Amicalement Vôtre in French-speaking areas (Amicably Yours) and Die Zwei in the Deutschsprachräume (one of the best titled cinematic adaptations The Sum of All Fears is plaintively called simply Der Anschlag, The Attack in German) the production of Baron Lew Grade (also behind the series of Supermarionation shows) about two individuals from starkly different backgrounds that have been reluctantly teamed together to solve international cases that the authorities cannot disappointed domestic viewers and was cancelled after one albeit complete season. The opening title sequence (see also) features music by John Berry.