Comic Con, Purple Rose, Gentle Giants, Lost, and Entertainment Weekly

Hello again everyone! It's me, your friendly neighborhood...wait, I'm not Spider-Man! Sorry for misleading you, I'm actually just a guy named Jeff (or the Jeffster to my imaginary friends). I hope all my readers have enjoyed my past couple of posts, I know the voices in my head did! I'm just joking of course, the voices in my head don't actually care much for my work. :-P

A couple of weeks ago I went to the Motor City Comic Con and had a very nice time. I got to meet Marina Sirtis who played Deanna Troi in "Star Trek: The Next Generation", "Star Trek: Generations", "Star Trek: First Contact", "Star Trek: Insurrection", and "Star Trek: Nemesis". She was very nice and extremely kind. I also got a chance to meet Byron Cherry who played the "replacement Duke" Coy Duke on "The Dukes of Hazzard". He was also very nice and seemed like a very down to Earth guy, which is always nice. Being the movie lover I am, I also picked up some free mini movie posters and other such things there at the con. I had a very nice time and I look forward to going there next year (short of something happening, which in my case, is always possible). lol The only disappointment I had was not being able to get an autograph from Adam West because he wanted $60 and I didn't have much money this year. I've met Burt Ward and Julie Newmar before. Burt Ward is a very caring and loving dog person. He runs a dog rescue, Gentle Giants Rescue and Adoption, which is aimed at helping and finding homes for giant breed dogs such as Great Danes, but it also handles some smaller breed dogs as well. If you love larger breed dogs, be sure to check out his website, which is http://gentlegiantsrescue.com/. If you ever have the pleasure of meeting him and you love dogs, be sure to let him know how much you appreciate what he and his wife do.

Also, like many of you out there in cyberspace, I got a chance to catch the final episode of the ABC hit show "Lost". Now, without going into spoilers, this is an episode that seems to have really divided people. People seem to love it or hate it. I personally liked the episode a great deal and I'm not ashamed to say that the ending had me in tears. I may be a man, but that was some mighty fine writing and acting! Yes, there were some questions that never got answered, and that did annoy me a bit, but "Lost" has always been more about the journey than the destination. I think, for better or worse, the writers may have wanted some questions left unanswered because that happens in life as well. It might have been nice if "Lost" had given us every single answer to every single question we had, but perhaps it is better this way. Some of the remaining mysteries are still left up to the fans and viewers to think about and interpret. Plus, in the case of "Lost", I watched the show more for the characters than for the mysteries anyway. The final episode was such a touching send off for the characters that I am not sure I would have wanted it any other way. So, while I admit the ending wasn't perfect, it's also hard to find an ending that is. That's all I have to say on that matter.

I would also like to take this time to address Michigan's Purple Rose Theater Company. If you live in or around Chelsea, Michigan (or if you go on a trip near there sometime soon), be sure to check out a show at the Purple Rose Theater. The Purple Rose Theater was founded in 1991 by Chelsea native Jeff Daniels and the Purple Rose Theater has become a second home to tons of local talent. Tickets range in price from $25-$38 a person. Also, if you can't afford the tickets (I know it's hard in this economy) or if you live too far away, you can rent or buy two films by Purple Rose Productions, "Escanaba in da Moonlight" and "Super Sucker" which are both available on DVD. Amazon has both films for $9.99 each.

Okay, I would also like to address something that has bothered me quite a bit over the last couple of days, the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly. Entertainment Weekly had a special double issue this week dedicated to the 100 greatest characters of the last 20 years. I could understand a lot of their choices. Dexter Morgan, Homer Simpson, Captain Jack Sparrow, John Locke, The Joker, Tony Stark/Iron Man, Gollum, Stewie Griffin, Borat, and Kara "Starbuck" Thrace are all great characters featured in movies, television, or books over the last 20 years, I have no bone to pick with them on those choices. What I am upset over is the characters they overlooked. Why no love for Indiana Jones? He was in "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull". Even the people who hated that movie still enjoyed seeing Harrison Ford again grace the screen as Indy. Why no Clark Kent/Superman? Superman has his own comic series for starters. Superman was also been the main character of the blockbuster film "Superman Returns" and the CW series "Smallville", not to mention the popular "Superman: The Animated Series". Do I even need to go into the hugely popular "Death of Superman" comic arc in 1992? Also, why can only one character from a series be one of the greatest characters ever? Why can't Bruce Wayne/Batman make the list just because The Joker made the list? Batman, like Superman, has his own comic book series. Also, like Superman, he has been featured in blockbuster films such as "Batman Returns", "Batman Forever", "Batman & Robin", "Batman Begins", and "The Dark Knight" in addition to "Batman: The Animated Series" television show. In addition to leaving characters such as Clark Kent/Superman, Bruce Wayne/Batman, and Indiana Jones off their list, the list also left out characters such as James T. Kirk, Peter Parker/Spider-Man, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Bruce Banner/The Hulk, Rocky Balboa, William Adama, Neo, Michael Scott, Yoda, Spock, Freddy Krueger, Jack Shepherd, Jean-Luc Picard, Optimus Prime, Rambo, Brisco County, Jr., Frodo Baggins, James "Sawyer" Ford, Aragorn, Data, Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader, Tommy Gavin, Al Bundy, Logan/Wolverine, President Josiah Bartlet, Crow T. Robot, Robin Hood, Speed Racer, James Bond, Tom Servo, Daisy Duke, Seven of Nine, Adrian Monk and many, many more. Only half of the characters deserved to be on that list.

I am also sad to see that both Gary Coleman and Dennis Hopper have passed away. I hope they find peace in the afterlife. At least their legacy will continue to live on and be enjoyed by future generations as well.

Well, I better call it a night soon. I have a big day of nothing tomorrow! :-P Take care everyone and have a great day! :)

Cough Drops

Okay, it's me again. I usually have a long introduction about now but I thought I should just cut to the chase with this blog post. And the chase that I am cutting to isn't Chevy (the actor, not the Chevrolet nickname), it's the fact that the makers of cough drops hate their customers.

Seriously folks, I freaking hate the taste of most cough drops. I think Halls is about the only brand that makes cough drops that taste alright. Okay, the problem here is that the other day I ran out of Halls cough drops and all I had around the house was Meijer brand "strawberry" cough drops. The problem is that those cough drops didn't even remotely taste like strawberries. No, it tasted more like raw old fish. Now, I understand that cough drops can't always taste good because if they tasted too good, they probably wouldn't be too effective. Still, why lie and say it is strawberry flavored when it is old fish flavored. You know, it might actually taste like sweaty arm pits now that I think about it. Talk about false advertising.

Well, I better get going so I get pop some more delicious cough drops. Take care everyone and be safe!

At the Movies...

Hello everyone out there in cyber space! That means you, me, and last but not least, Max Headroom. I am pretty sure Neo, Tamara Adama, Tron, and the Lawnmower Man (among others) will be reading this as well since they live in all of our computers. Maybe Pamela Anderson lives in a computer as well, that would explain all the computer viruses out there. Anyway, I am back and better than ever! NOTE: Results may vary in regards to me being "better".

Earlier this week I actually got a haircut. I no longer look like Cousin It's hairier brother, so that's a bummer. On the upside, I can actually see now so I think I made the right decision to get a haircut. :-P

I also went to see a couple of movies this week that I enjoyed a lot. I went to see "Clash of the Titans" (in 2D) and "Kick-Ass". Both movies were very good. I actually enjoyed "Kick-Ass" more but I've been a big fan of the comic since it came out. "Kick-Ass" lived up to the hype and more. I hope I can say the same thing about "Iron Man 2" soon, only time will tell.

I'm really looking forward to the last episode of "Lost" coming at the end of May. I will be sad when it ends as well, but after six years and more questions than answers, the resolution of the heroes and villains of "Lost" is something I have been looking forward to for quite some time. The last few seasons of "Lost" have been a great return to form. After an incredible first season, a good but not great second season, and a so-so third season, I was about to give up on the show (like a lot of people did). I never really loved the long story arc featuring the Others. Most of those characters were so unlikable that it made the show very hard to muscle through at times. Thankfully, season 4 was a vast improvement over season 3. The story went a different and more interesting direction. Season 5 actually topped season 4 as "Lost" successfully included a season long arc that was heavy on science fiction. Season 6, at least so far, looks to give the first season a run for it's money as the best season of the show. This season's success (and perhaps the shows overall success) will rest on the strength of the finale.

I also just saw the trailer of the upcoming J.J. Abrams and Steven Spielberg film "Super 8". The movie looks promising and I look forward to finding out more about this top secret movie. The trailer doesn't reveal much but perhaps that isn't such a bad thing. Plus, any movie that features a story by J.J. Abrams and the great Steven Spielberg is at least worth a watch.

For those of you who don't know me well, I am a movie memorabilia collector. I love movie posters and I own a lot of original movie posters, both new and vintage. I have been studying movie posters for a while now (I know, sounds funny, but I can now tell the differences between original movie posters and reprints and reproductions). I know what to look for and the differences that movie posters have went through over the ages. There are a couple of original movie posters I look for on E-Bay every now and then like "Superman: The Movie" in hopes that I can pick one up for a reasonable price. lol

On a fun note, I've had a sore throat this past week and I've been hardly able to speak for the past couple of days. It hasn't been fun for me, but I'm sure it's been fun for my family and my friends. lol I'm sure one of them has prayed for this day to happen. I hope my sore throat clears up shortly and allows me to talk for more than a minute without my voice fading. lol

Well, I better get going. It's getting late and I'm sure my life has bored you long enough. lol Take care everyone!