Billy Corgan Approves This Halloween Message

As someone who has smashed more than his fair share of pumpkins (ah, pumpkin bowling, how thee are missed) in his day, this brings a tear of nostalgia to my eye.

Happy Halloween ...

"I Know It Was Just The Dolphins, But ..."

The Dolphins got clowned on "South Park." Perhaps the final step toward irrelevancy is now complete.

"Screw you guys ... I'm going home."

Limerick Friday LXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX: The Cover-Up Crumbling On Cheater Hill?, Plus Amerson Leads The Pick-Six-Pack

Black Santa loved barbecue and cake
Bought players and was on the take
Rep preceded him by a mile
Cheated with Butch with a smile
Ladies and gents, that’s John Blake

Colts, Rams and ‘Fins all suck
And look like they don’t give a f@$%
Painter is killing Indy
So Miami signed Losman, J.P.
To even the battle for one Andrew Luck

Countries leaderless and in hock
7 billion now on our spinning rock
Lack of resources but plenty of pain
How many can we sustain
If Mother Nature we continue to mock?

The NBA was once starry
Now driven itself into a quarry
Heard of a lockout from a stranger
Said the season is in danger
But haven’t really noticed, sorry

He’s covered a lot of D holes
Filling a lot of playmaker roles
The D.A. has ruled
Another quarterback fooled
Can he keep it up vs. the ‘Noles?

Last time …

Deep Thoughts By No-Look McFadden: Episode 47

#1
This video-game satire commercial for Gamewave is just freaking brilliant, including one of the best taglines of all-time: “Vaginas might not even exist, for all you know!”

#2
In 2005, David Foster Wallace gave a commencement speech at Kenyon College. And it was eye-opening and borderline genius, challenging default settings and the way you can choose—yes, choose—to look at the world. It rocked me. And that is a good thing.

#3
Just in case you were interested in a take on Occupy Wall Street from a decidedly British perspective.

#4
Only NC State would have a weekly interview with the team physician on the radio. I mean, seriously, that says it all about the injury situation seemingly every year in Raleigh.

#5
As someone who digs musical documentaries (or rock-you-mentaries), I have to say that the “From the Sky Down” documentary of U2 looks pretty freaking amazing.

#6
I’ll go ahead and say that this guy pretty much misses the boat on UNC, but all in all, this Pitt fan’s open letter to the ACC is hysterically accurate.

#7
Interested in uplifting news coming out of Africa as a change of pace? Then this positively mesmerizing photography of East African wildlife is for you.

#8
No one had really taken a shot at Bill “Rotten Tuna” Parcells since Jeremy Shockey called him ghey a few years back, so I’m glad somebody finally got around to eviscerating him. I just wish it was a writer who wasn’t quite as lazy and self-promotional as Jason Whitlock.

#9
A not-so-popular view of Steve Jobs here in the wake of the post-mortem Jobs jobs going on, but one that certainly deserves -- and needs -- to be considered as well.

#10
The disappearance of Borders has met with little fanfare in most quarters. Until this epic goodbye letter from a Borders employee hit the Intertubes.

Beauty, As Defined By The Feynman Series

Again, one of those things where I really have nothing to add. Just ... watch.

Beauty Rediscovered In A Sound

Saw this emotional video on BoingBoing of a 29-year-old deaf woman hearing herself for the first time, thanks to a hearing implant.

"You're Not My Father!"

Honestly, the truth about Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker is pretty heavy news for a 4-year-old to take.

Limerick Friday LXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXIX: Will Anybody Occupy The Government, Plus Last Call In The Bosox Dugout

We are the 99%, they say
Fed up with the Wall Street way
Lie, cheat and steal
Drink champagne with every meal
Will anything ever change in our day?

Always been a douchey prick
Just part of Harbaugh’s schtick
A ‘roids hand shake
A shove as icing on cake
Can’t wait ‘til he gets that ass kicked

56 wild beasts set free
Most killed in a shooting spree
The owner is to blame
Still such a downright shame
Used the right word: menagerie

Qaddafi has been killed, at last
Can’t make up for his tyrant past
In a more than 40-year reign
Inflicted terror and pain
Wish Libya democracy, and fast

As Bosox Nation sat in tears
The team sat back and drank beers
Choked on the field with a “gack”
Then choked Sam Adams back
Not giving a shit among drunken peers

Last time …

Halfway Home, The Scooters Claw Their Way To .500 Mark

After a litany of injuries to kick off the campaign, my squad underperformed early on, dropping its first three games. Instead of bailing out of the free-agency and transaction market at that point though, I stayed the course, confident that the Scooters would reward my faith—and they did just that, reeling off three consecutive victories to even its record at 3-3 at the halfway point.
Here’s a quick look at some of what has transpired thus far ...


What’s Worked:

Sure, Stephen Jackson has been solid when healthy, Steve Johnson has been about what I expected and the San Francisco defense/special teams has come through with some stellar performances.

But Jimmy Graham has absolutely carried the Scooters at times. He’s hasn’t been putting up touchdowns so much, but he is putting up insane yardage numbers (four straight 100-yard outings for a tight end?!). It’s too much to expect him to keep up his torrid pace, but if some of my other studs can finally get untracked, he’ll get the help he needs in my lineup.


What Hasn’t:

Injuries. Plus, injuries. Also, injuries.

Beyond that, Michael Vick has woefully underperformed, Desean Jackson has been spotty at best, Mike Tolbert has yielded to Ryan Mathews faster than expected, Lance Moore has struggled to find his role in the Saints offense, and kicker Matt Bryant has gotten fewer chances than expected from the Falcons offense.

In fact, it’s what hasn’t worked that well to date that gives me the most optimism about my second-half chances. I know what these guys—especially Vick and Jackson—are capable of, and if they can play up to even some of those expectations, the Scooters are poised for a nifty run.


Worst Move:

As I predicted at the time, the selection of Knowshon Moreno has hurt the Scooters badly. He got hurt almost immediately, then got stuck behind Willis McGahee and has rarely been heard from since.


Best Move:

Snaring Bernard Scott off waivers soon after the news broke of Cedric Benson’s three-game suspension hasn’t turned out to pay off yet, but it paved the way for some shrewd roster management for the Scooters. With Stephen Jackson coming off IR, I had to get rid of a running back, so instead of having to cut Moreno or Joseph Addai, I thought Addai had enough name recognition to still warrant something in trade. I wasn’t looking for much: an upgrade at D/ST and a competent backup quarterback.

I found a trade partner who sent me Kevin Kolb and the 49ers defense for Chad Henne, Joseph Addai and the Bengals D/ST (which wasn’t performing at the time). San Fran has been big-time for me, while he has lost Henne and Addai to injury, though Cincy has been playing strong defense this year. Anyway, it was a good example of getting something instead of just jettisoning someone with some value.


Outlook:

There’s no hiding the fact that the Scooters are going to need a lot more from Vick and D-Jax, including at least a couple of those long-distance connections that were so common a season ago. However, both guys are capable of exploding for huge games at any time, so if early standouts like Graham and the 49ers D/ST can just hold serve, this team has all the pieces necessary to make a lot of noise down the stretch in my 14-team league.

“Treme” Plays The Melody Of A City Searching For Itself Amidst The Rubble

“Truth doesn’t set them free sometimes; it’s just another burden they have to bear.”

The plight of musicians in post-Katrina New Orleans has long been a subject that’s fascinated me. So imagine my excitement when HBO elected to take on the premise in its tremendous series, “Treme,” named for a historical black neighborhood in the Big Easy. This journey takes folks on a powerful, emotional journey through a decimated city and a lost culture, through the eyes of those who are still trying to find a way to reclaim and preserve what it once was.

Created by David Simon (the genius behind “The Wire”) and Eric Overmyer (a part-time resident of New Orleans), “Treme” uses a neighborhood as an analogy for an entire city. Set three months after Hurricane Katrina, it sets its lens to take an unflinching look at racism, political corruption, police ineptitude (and worse), federal ignorance—and how all those variables conspired to result in the abandonment of one of the country’s most beloved places. The Indian chiefs’ preservation of its hard-earned tradition, the struggle to open housing to those in need, the fight to retain the smiling spirit that permeates the city, the quest for closure for loved ones lost, the pursuit of ways to right long-standing wrongs … “Treme” uses these storylines and more in a breathtaking first season.

Casting was inevitably going to play a huge role in the success or failure of “Treme,” and Simon and Overmyer made some unconventional decisions from the start. This series examines the healing nature of music, its transcendant quality to take people away to a different, better place. And in an effort to retain and highlight that singular importance of music, they elected to use a host of real-life musicians, most notably in the case of Lucia Micareli, who plays immensely talented but relationship-challenged Annie.

Elsewhere, Simon and Overmyer hit the nail on the head with the strong-willed bar owner Ladonna (Khandi Alexander), purposely isolated even inside her marriage; the musician Antoine Batiste (Wendell Pierce), a prideful but immoral hustler; the driven lawyer Toni Bernette (Melissa Leo), a champion of the people; the rising jazz star Delmon Landreaux (Rob Brown), conflicted about whether to embrace his future or honor his past; and the chef and restauranteur Janette Desautel (Kim Dickens), exasperated and questioning her way of life.

Yet for all of these vital characters, the story is driven by the trio of Creighton Bernette (John Goodmon), Albert Lambreaux (Clarke Peters) and Davis McAlary (Steve Zahn). Bernette is a regional mouthpiece with writer’s block, a professor and author with a voice that demands to be heard, yet is struggling with which medium to use. Lambreaux is an Indian chief with a solemn countenance and a refusal to accept the loss of culture and tradition that has stolen so much from the essence of the Ninth Ward. And McAlary (tremendously portrayed by a series-stealing Zahn) is part-activist, part-hustler, part-musician and part-comedian, who rebuffs his family’s money as he tries to find his own path by determining what role he can best play to save the city he holds so dear.

But the real gift “Treme” delivers is its unquestionable authenticity. And it is that authenticity that is the biggest gift this television show gives to the city of New Orleans.

Simon and Overmyer use a pre-storm flashback near the end of the season to lend context that had been missing throughout, then end the initial season the same way as the first episode ended—fittingly, with a second-line dance. There is a singular moment of loss, of giving up, that for many will dominate the overall impression of the first season. Yet the true message conveyed is that people are complicated; they’re not black or white, good or bad … they are blends of both. And no matter what, life goes on. The dance continues.

In a pivotal scene, Davis courts Janette and guides her through the city in an attempt to remind her of all the city still has to offer, even in the face of so much pain and failure. His effort to convince her not to move to New York serves to mirror the argument being made in the series at large. That New Orleans needs more of the people that comprise its soul to stay. That New Orleans needs to reverse the tide of its citizens heading away from the city and draw them back in. That New Orleans needs those willing to fight for it, to accept what has been lost and to embrace what might still be built.

When Janette tells him that a po’boy is just a sandwich, Davis appears both shocked and offended. “Po’boys aren’t sandwiches,” he says, seriously. “They’re a way of life.”

And it is that way of life that “Treme” depicts so acutely.

“That moment can’t happen in New York,” he tells her after a front-porch serenade by famous New Orleans musician John Boutte. “New Orleans needs you.”

Capturing those moments, and defining that need, are what makes “Treme” so extraordinary.

Limerick Friday LXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXVIII: Spurrier Puts Hypocrisy On Display, Plus It’s Outta-Town Time

Attacking the media, dope?
That’s quite a slippery slope
Spurrier is an a-hole, top-shelf
But he’ll likely hang himself
If you just give him enough rope

They were the team that everyone mocks
‘Til he created a douche nation of Red Sox
After a choke job and more
What’s Theo do for an encore?
End the Cubs curse and the Bartman knocks

GOP debates over, we’re glad
A stage full of the crazy and mad
Pizza makers and liars nefarious
It all would be quite hilarious
If it wasn’t so goddam sad

Less fat and more muscle
Should make State ready to tussle
C.J.’s got a new name
Calvin, how ‘bout a new game?
You know -- one where you hustle

Relaxation no longer outta reach
Thanks to a journey to the beach
A needed weekend trip
After a recent break-neck clip
A wedding in Beaufort should be a peach

Last time …

"Star Wars," As Described By A Japanese Girl

Nothing more and nothing less than forking epic.

Hitler Might Be Apple's "Little Bitch"

There are some who will say the Hitler-edited videos are played out (Hank Williams Jr. may come down on this side of the fence). There are some who will say that it's too early to crack on Apple (Steve Jobs fans may come down on this side of the fence).

I say this one works.

“The King’s Speech” Uses a Convention-Breaking Friendship to Help Find Its Voice

Lionel: “Why should I waste my time listening?”
King George VI: “Because I have a right to be heard. I have a voice!”
Lionel: [pause] “Yes, you do.
[long pause]
“You have such perseverance, Bertie … You’re the bravest man I know.”

Anytime you’re faced with the premise of watching a British period piece, words such as “interminable,” “insufferable,” “bad teeth,” “dear lord make it stop” and “longest movie ever” immediately leap to the forefront of your brain. And when that flick is also described as historically accurate, painstakingly recreated and brilliantly acted, those are interpreted as code words for “boring as shit.”

All of that being considered, imagine my surprise when I found that all of those descriptions could be loosely translated to “tremendous” when it comes to “The King’s Speech.”

Colin Firth did a stellar job handling the stutter, and he and Geoffrey Rush (Lionel Logue) had an incredible dynamic, finding a workable mesh between student-teacher contradicted with king-subject. Helena Bonham Carter was at her understated best as Queen Elizabeth, and even though one of the criticisms I had heard about “The King’s Speech” was that it ran too long, I felt the pacing was very good and it did not come across as excessively long at all.

Don’t get me wrong: All the variables were there for a snoozefest. In addition to the above, this film was littered with Aussies acting British and much of the plot revolved around a speech impediment. Revolving an entire movie around a stutter would seem to be a shaky premise for a movie at surface level, but as the plot progresses and context is provided, you see the extraordinary culled from that premise. Yet the sheer brilliance of Firth and Rush overcome all these obstacles to lift “The King’s Speech” to its rightful status as the movie of the year.

As the historical events high/lowlighted by Churchill and Hitler played out, and you were given glimpses of troubles in the royal family compounded with tragedy on the world stage, you couldn’t help but get a tremendous sense of the pressure that Bertie was placed under. It became difficult not to commiserate with and feel empathy for him, even when he acted like a giant-sized wanker. It became clear that Bertie’s lack of confidence stemmed from past slights, mistreatment in his early childhood, unfair criticism from his father and brother -- all of which contributed to his struggles with speech.

Amazingly, “The King’s Speech” was filmed in just 39 days, meaning that its 12 Oscar nominations and four wins represent a pretty good return on investment. And David Seidler, who wrote the screenplay (and won one of the Oscars), had a stammer as a child, bringing the project near and dear to his heart. When he was told that Queen Elizabeth II was “touched” by the depiction of her father in the film, Seidler told the Sun that it was the “highest honour” the film could receive.

On the negative side, not only did I find Guy Pearce to be miscast as King Edward VIII, but I also thought that he actually looked younger than Firth (King George VI), who was supposed to be the youngest son. But my biggest quibble—and it is a small one in the grand scheme of things -- was that I felt like the strength and depth of the friendship between Bertie and Lionel wasn’t explored or developed well enough. The two sort of went from an uneasy, awkward relationship to having a really strong bond by movie’s end.

However, any and all quibbles were overpowered and dwarfed by an incredibly emotional final scene -- even for someone with an admittedly loose grasp of the history behind the story, I was blown away. The triumph involved in Lionel helping Bertie to find his confidence, his identity -- and ultimately, yes, his voice -- befitted the triumph of a movie that was “The King’s Speech.”

Limerick Friday LXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXVII: World Laments A Communications Genius, Plus “Foxy Knoxy” Gets Off

The world has way too many knobs
Every politician cheats and robs
Tech ruled by copycats of every kind
So innovation is hard to find
And it just got harder -- RIP Steve Jobs

Wolves’ mouths starting to foam
Look out Cameron and Dean Dome
Pack Nation couldn’t help but be nervous
‘Bout the decision of one Rodney Purvis
One more hometown hero stays home

Just another embarrassing ‘neck
Coming off like a goddam train wreck
On his career he took a shit-ler
By comparing Obama to Hitler
Bocephus: German for “stupid fuck,” I expect

For Tony Sparano, the bell does ring
His Dolphins can’t win for anything
So his time is nearly done
At times it’s been pretty fun
Keep your head on a swivel at the Bada Bing

A mysterious murder in foreign lands
Amanda Knox had a problem on her hands
Never got her story straight
But she used PR pretty great
Now she can make reality-show demands

Last time …

Buddy Rich ... We Are Not Worthy

A jaw-dropping 1978 video of drum master Buddy Rich. Just ... wow.

“Why is Everybody F@#$%^&*g Here!?”

Yes, the venue is San Francisco, but there is a grand universality to this concept. I know that the times I find myself out and about at an odd time during the middle of the week, I am always shocked at how many people seem to be just sort of … you know … there.