Geekdom

Hey it’s that guy from… (Beerfest)

Entertainment, TV

Beerfest!

There are a ton of times that I’m watching a commercial and I say “Hey it’s that guy from that movie!” and then everybody responds.

What? From where? What are you talking about? Why are you so excited?

I know actors have to work to make money, so I’m not looking down on them. It’s just that I identify them with one role in my head and then they come out selling car wax and I think it’s funny. Most of the time the role I know them from isn’t even their biggest role, some times the commercial becomes more famous than the movie role.

That is the case here. I know this guy as Mr. Schniedelwichsen, the German guy who leads the two brothers to Beerfest… and then subsequently gets killed. So then last year he showed up in a commercial that is probably more widely seen than Beerfest, as the “Think with your dipstick” Guy for Castrol Motor oil. But I first spotted him in a IBM ad for their medical imaging tech. I remember seeing him in that white lab coat and thinking… “Are they trying to pass off the guy from Beerfest as an actual doctor?”

More pictures and videos after the break…

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Into the Wild Digital Yonder. part 2.

Projects, Stuff and Things

I cant shake it. That need to buy new DVDs and products from movies. Even as I’m packing up the first shipment of DVDs to send off the that great disc buyer in the sky (buybackmadness.com) I still want new ones! I read an article about Matt Groening and the new Futurama movie coming out soon and I thought “Wouldn’t it be great to have all those movies sitting along with the series DVDs” That was my first thought, not “I hope this one is good” or “I can’t wait to see it” but “I want to have the whole set”

Is there some kind of pill that I can take that will make me slightly less OCD about this kind of thing. I still need to be a little bit obsessed in order to get all my projects done… but I just don’t want to keep collecting junk so that I can have the full set.

I’m not going to buy that dvd, mostly because I haven’t bought the others. But really because I have a plan for a cheaper, better, all-digital lifestyle.

Later!

Dr. Boxlove or how I learned to stop worrying and go digital. part one.

Entertainment, Movies, Projects, Stuff and Things

I’m pretty savvy in the digital world. I’ve had an mp3 player since 2001 and I haven’t bought a physical CD since High School. But I’ve just realized that there’s just something scary about getting rid of physical media. It might be that I’ve moved past the time in my life where I want to have all the movies I like out on display. That is a very geeky thing to do, be defined my our choices in movies. It’s the first time that I’ve ever really felt like I’m growing up… get off my lawn kids!

This project started a few months ago when I hooked up a modded Xbox running XBMC in the living room and networked it to a file server running Linux in the other room.  suddenly it was very easy to play all the media files that I had *cough* acquired *cough* in college.  This and the introduction and acceptance of the Blu-ray format caused me to question the value of the 100’s of DVDs that I had collected over the years. I suddenly felt like a guy who had closets full of VHS tapes that were now worthless.  Well, they’re not as worthless as VHS, they wont fade over time and they take up less room. But in the coming resolution wars (lazer 3d quad HD TVs) what good is something that’s only 480p? Suddenly the “Ultimate Collectors Edition” has become no better than a Chinatown bootleg.  Couple that with the news that a co-worker at the office got rid of all of his DVDs online and made about $140 bucks and I was sold on the idea of going digital.

I’ve decided to keep some of the discs, I cannot get rid of any signed Kevin Smith movie and I think the people who design the boxes for Futurama should get some kind of award. So I developed an informal ranking system based on my love for the movie, the quality of the box, and the price I can sell it for. I have 4 ranks…

  1. Keep the DVD.
  2. Copy the DVD to DVD-R and sell the DVD.
  3. Rip the DVD to 700mb file and sell the DVD.
  4. Just Sell it.

I’m in the middle of this process now and I’ve noticed something, I really like physical media. I mean I haven’t watched some of these movies in years but I like being able to pick up the box and look through the materials.  I’m sure it’s not just me, I think it’s a geeky thing, but I appreciate a well designed box.  I’ve found myself setting aside some of the movies that I was going to sell because they had great packaging.  I never thought I’d be the guy to hang on to the media he grew up with. My brother in law has literally hundreds of cassette tapes and I thought he was crazy for keeping them.  I’ve told people before that I was going to sit out this round of media (Blu-ray) and wait for the digital revolution to come and based on the size of the Blu-ray market, I’m not the only one.  But I’m here to tell you that it is going to be hard to transition.

Also you should know that the three disc “Ace Ventura” collection has a lovely box.

Later!

I am become death of tv shows.

Entertainment, TV

I always thought that people who whined about their shows being canceled were annoying. My feeling was that if the show was really that good then it would still be on the air. But now it seems like a lot of the shows that I think are really good are getting canceled in the first season or soon after. It seems like if a show has any kind of style or a unique voice then the networks can’t get an audience to turn in.

It could be because the audience for those kind of shows have so many other things to do. I would guess that they’re more literate and active than the audiece of say “Dancing with the Stars” or “NCIS” or god forbid “JAG”. Also I’m going to bet that they know how to work a Tivo so they don’t have to stay glued to the TV every night. Yes that’s right, I’m saying it, we’re too smart for the good of our favorite TV shows.

But I think you have to look at it in a positive light. As long as the producers and writers know that the end is coming and have a chance to give the characters a proper send off then I think it’s alright. You can think of these shows as really long movies or a tv miniseries. Just don’t get too into them… I’m looking at you “[W:Browncoats]”

My Favorite Canceled Shows.

  • [W:Arrested Development] – the show did survive 3 years, but it was too funny. (movie version coming soon!)
  • [W:The Loop] – only the first season, when they got rid of the roomates the show suffered.
  • [W:Freaks and Geeks] – Now that Judd Apatow is famous I’ll bet that they would love to have this show back.
  • [W:Undeclared] – see above.
  • [W:Invader Zim] – I have no idea who green lighted this show for a Nickelodeon Audience, but it is a great show for college kids.
  • [W:Pushing Daisies] – Style to spare in this show and funny writing (but i’m almost glad it’s going to wrap up soon, it needs an ending)
  • [W:Eli Stone] – I’m putting this on here, but I really think it will work better for them if they have an ending in sight.
  • [W:Amazing Screw-On Head] – It never even had a chance!
  • [W:Firefly]- The best combination of sci-fi, comedy, and characters ever. At least we got a movie out of it.

honorable mention (probably canceled soon or on Hiatus)

Chappelle’s Show, Flight of the Conchords, Californication, Gary Unmarried