La la la

[cleolinda]

You know how bad I didn't want to work today? I went and scrubbed the toilet instead. And then I went and worked on footnotes for The Prestige anyway.

(The bitchful part of it is having to go back through my books on stage magic--which, being print copies, don't have helpful search functions--to back up my vague claims that, uh, stage patter was... important, and... stuff. People died doing the bullet catch... somewhere. I mean, definitely. I'm pretty sure. The real attraction of a footnoted "Prestige in Fifteen Minutes," though, is that I've gone through it and theorized (spoiler) >>which brother is pretending to be "Alfred Borden" in each scene<<, and I think I can make a pretty compelling case. I'm working on a discussion of the differences between the POTO musical/movie and the book, with key excerpts from the latter--it's public domain, after all--and I already have huge amounts of My Thoughts on Dracula, Let Me Show You Them for that 15M. With any luck, this will be something people would actually be willing to pay for.)

So hopefully I'll have my little e-book (zip folder, really) done soon and can try to raise some money to pay off the air conditioner we had to replace, since I've been working on the footnotes for months and the no-interest period ends as of this month, and if we can't pay the rest off, we start having to pay 23% interest as well. And also, I want to move on with my life and get back to working on Black Ribbon. Particularly since October is such a great gothy little month.

(Hey, randomness! You know that's a really fun snack? A slice of bread with peanut butter spread over it and then covered in mini-marshmallows. Kind of an open-faced fluffernutter sandwich. The sad thing is that I don't even have the excuse that I liked to eat this as a child or anything. I just went downstairs to make myself a sandwich and went, "Huh, you know what might be fun...?" I think the bleach fumes from the toilet are starting to get to me.)

Linkspam!

Sheriff: Search teams find Fossett wreckage.

Pirates: $20 million ransom stands.

Bank Robber Uses Craigslist To Hire Unsuspecting Accomplices.

Is Romance Making Acceptance Inroads in the SF Community?

Random House Loses Big Authors; Charlaine Harris Dominates the Bestseller List.

Speaking of which: Can Canon Entertainment Do for Patricia Briggs what HBO Is Doing for Charlaine Harris? Okay, everyone hold on, because I noticed a ton of Mercy Thompson fans in the Twilight posts on Fandom Wank, but: apparently there's a movie deal now.

10 ways to waste time on the Web. Three thoughts: 1) People need more ways to waste time on the internet? 2) Y'all are just discovering Homestar Runner now? 3) TV Tropes: somehow not on this list. Probably for the good of humanity. No, I will not link to it. It is too dangerous. The last time I went over there, they had to send out a pack of bloodhounds to find me and bring me back.

Was 2006 The Golden Age Of Viral Videos?

A download of Paramore's "Decode," to be on the Twilight soundtrack. I'm just not going to really listen to the words, I think. I'd rather listen to it as a Paramore song than TEH LOVE THEME OF EDWARD AND BELLA. (It's really growing on me, though. I'm just singing wordlessly along with it.)

Kills tour bus and driver GONE MISSING ("This guy better hope he is dead or else he'll be going to jail for a long long time. All their luggage is missing too. They have really expensive clothes people").

'Seagull' fails to take flight on Broadway; Top indie star wants to be less liked.

Neil Gaiman's "Graveyard Book," chapter-a-day reading video from the tour; Master Storyteller Neil Gaiman Talks Steampunk And ‘Neverwhere’ Influence. Man, MTV's like a kid with a new toy with this steampunk thing.

RetroFuturistic Travel Posters for your Home.

Don’t Drink the Kool-Aid of These Science Fictional Cults [Triviagasm].

'Pushing Daisies' Now Doing Just That In The Ratings.

Jimmy Smits Stabs Stuntman For Real In TV Scene-Gone-Wrong. (Spoilers for 'Dexter,' apparently.)

Johnny Rotten sells out ... for butter.

Jessica Alba Muzzles Self For America's Sake; Come On -- Now Jessica Alba's Hannibal Lecter?!

What's the Buzz: New York Film Festival.

Should Jay Leno host next year's Oscars? NO. See, that was easy.

Foster leads flock of stars introducing films at AFI bash.

Sam Mendes Tells His Best Paul Newman Stories; Cruise Pays Essay Tribute To 'Idol' Newman.

Images: Exclusive: 'Pray the Devil Back to Hell' Poster Premiere; Is This the 'Angels and Demons' Teaser Poster?; Groovy Early Art from 'The Incredibles.'

Trailers and clips: Must Watch: Second Full US 'Let the Right One In' Trailer ('Let the Right One In' is Like a Horror 'My Girl'); Exclusive 'Haunting of Molly Hartley' Clip; Two New 'Saw V' TV Spots, MySpace Website Launched; Kevin James's 'Paul Blart: Mall Cop' Full Trailer; HQ 'Dragonball' Trailer (with audio). Yes, this whole enterprise is so ghetto that they have to specify "with audio."

Harry Potter: New HBP Cave Scene Image and More; HBP scans (WARNING: PICS ARE KIND OF HUGE. Wait, random waitress what?); More HBP scans (aw, tearful Lavender).

A sneak peak at the 'Watchmen' movie; Early Reaction: More Watchmen Footage Revealed and Updates!; description of the 25 minutes shown; No Watchmen 2, But Plenty Of Dr. Manhattan's Blue Junk To Go Round.

Zack Snyder Reveals Story Details for '300' Sequel.

Sherlock Holmes Begins Production in London (HEY LONDONERS IN THE HIZZY DO YOU HEAR THAT); Guy Ritchie’s ‘Sherlock Holmes’ Cast Confirmed, But More Surprises Likely; Downey Jr.’s Sherlock may become franchise; 'Sherlock Holmes' ET interview with RDJ and Rachel McAdams. Y'all, I am going to start chewing my fingernails over this. Please do not suck.

Revealed! One Banished Extra's Plan to Sabotage 'Transformers 2'; If Megatron Kills Shia LaBeouf On Set, Who Will Play All The Scifi Protagonists?

Martin Scorsese and Robert DeNiro 'Heard You Paint Houses'; Scorsese and De Niro Teaming Up in Typical Fashion.

Ben Whishaw Confirms his role in 'The Tempest' as... Ariel. Huh. Meanwhile, Geoffrey Rush will play Gonzalo.

Viggo Mortensen, Ed Harris gab about garb, camaraderie in 'Appaloosa.'

EXCLUSIVE: Julianne Moore Leads The Way In ‘Blindness’; 'Blindness' falls into darkness and doom.

Determined filmmaker Mike Leigh: 'Never compromise.'

'Infinite Playlist' strikes just the right note.

Focus Studio Chief Eager For Us To Drink In Sean Penn As ‘Milk.’

Pierre Morel Wants to Be a 'Hunter-Killer.'

Chuck Palahniuk's Sad 'Choke' Contest: " 'Want to go see Choke this weekend and have your name in Chuck's next book?' Um, as what? A snuff film victim? A gangbang participant?" Yeah... I think it'd be hilarious to get someone to name a character "Cleolinda Jones," in all my pen name's cartoonish retro-sploitation glory. Just... not Chuck Palahniuk.

Hayden Christensen Signed to Act Wooden in Three Movies.

Hitman Thriller 'Killshot' Gets Bumped (Again).

Yogi Bear Steals Picnic Baskets and the Big Screen For Live-Action/CGI Hybrid.

‘Die Hard’ Screenwriter Looks To John McClane’s Past & Future, Muses On ‘Live Free.’

12 Movie Sequels That Must Never Get Made.

Steven Seagal Looks Towards Outer Space For ‘Under Siege 3.’

Paul Walker on Why He Returned For ‘Fast and Furious:’ ‘Money,’ Actor Says.

Is The Starlost The Worst Science Fiction Series Ever Made?

Evil Needs A Sperm Donor [Found Footage].

Comments

[saralinda.livejournal.com]

I procrastinated by cleaning MY toilet TOO!!!

Coincidence?

Yes. That's what coincidence is. But the minty-fresh toilet is GOOD.

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

I even threw one of those bleach tablets or whatever into the tank afterwards. Maybe that means I'll have to clean it myself less often.

[arielchan.livejournal.com]

Wow. I JUST SAW The Kills at ACL in Austin this weekend.

(although, for the record, I didn't get a favorable impression. every artist playing in Texas between May and October complains of the heat, but The Kills are the only band I've seen that actually said they "don't do sun" and retreated to the back of the stage, away from the fans)

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

... what?

[redcoast.livejournal.com]

TVTropes cannot be unleashed on an unsuspecting public. (Aside from the time that would be wasted, they may begin demanding originality from their entertainment.)

[sabra-n.livejournal.com]

*sulks at the Seagull review* The only Broadway review that really counts is Brantley's, anyway. And possibly the AP's. (That's still Kuchwara, right?)

And "Dr. Manhattan's junk" is just a phrase I never, ever needed to read. Eugh.

[alliancesjr.livejournal.com]

totally would purchase ebook

The "Sequels that must never be made" article reminds me of a MovieFone radio commercial that aired last year that always cracked my shit up. It went through options of "Fake Movie Sequels That Will Never Be Made", and was like:

For "Romeo And Juliet 2: Back In Black", a story about angst-ridden teenagers in Italy, press 1

For "Titanic 2", a zombie-filled lovefest under the sea, press 2

And went all the way to

For "Groundhog Day 2: Groundhog Day", press 5. To hear this description again, press 5.

It cracked my shit up, yo.

[greyduck.livejournal.com]

For "Groundhog Day 2: Groundhog Day", press 5. To hear this description again, press 5.

Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. Somebody earned their pay, writing that one. The movie title alone is genius, the "again" is merely icing on the cake.

[laughingacademy.livejournal.com]

Re: the bullet catch, there’s a book by a magician named Ben Robinson, who has performed the trick and lived to write about it (http://magictricks.com/library/injury.htm). The title? Twelve Have Died. Among the fatalities is Chung Ling Soo (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chung_Ling_Soo), the old Chinese magician (*cough*) in the film version of The Prestige.

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

Oh, I know--I'm more summing up the things I'm having to recheck than asking the questions. I have a great bio of Chung Ling Soo that I'm actually (re-)skimming at the moment.

[schmoo999.livejournal.com]

Yay for Patricia Briggs!! I just finished reading Cry Wolf which is about Charles and has quite a bit about his father, somewhat minor characters in the Mercy Thompson books.
I really enjoy it and the other books.

I wonder if Laurell K Hamilton is cursing herself for all that insane sex she threw in her books now. Cause I don't think even HBO can film that without it being major X Rated porn.

[sweet-pessimism.livejournal.com]

Dude, I know. I am so very outraged by how downhill the series has gone, I haven't even read Blood Noir. And I don't think I will, ever. Whenever I see it in stores, I sigh, pick it up, and say, "Why, Laurell K., WHY?" [Yes, out loud. Yes, people sometimes give me funny looks.]

I think she just needs to STOP WRITING for a couple of years, get some intensive therapy and have some time to come up with new "witty quips". Because seriously, the last like five books, I can't even differentiate between them. They are all sex and the same recycled jokes. Where has my independent, ass-kicking Anita gone, and what is this Freudian nightmare doing on my bookshelf?

Because seriously, I can get on board with some hot vampire sex. In moderation. It's gotten to the point where I've begun wondering why Anita Blake is still filed in the Sci-Fi/Fantasy section, and not the Romance section with the other pointless dribble.

[cupcake-goth.livejournal.com]

I already have huge amounts of My Thoughts on Dracula, Let Me Show You Them for that 15M.

Yaaaay! That is the part I'm looking forward to the most, I think.

[cassildra.livejournal.com]

Do you want to know how badly TVTropes has invaded my brain?

I've given my new project a title ripped from the wiki. (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture)

I couldn't help it. IT FIT ALL TOO WELL.

[7tree-hugger.livejournal.com]

You made me go to TVTropes!
I got out - but it was a close run thing.

[flamingtoilet.livejournal.com]

Scary scary story about Jimmy Smits. Glad it all turned out ok.

[incogra.livejournal.com]

The videos of Neil reading keep crapping out on me and it's driving me nuts.

[greedyskunk.livejournal.com]

He mentioned on his blog that the servers had been overloaded. It should be fixed now or you can check out the embedded video on his blog. http://journal.neilgaiman.com

[sweet-pessimism.livejournal.com]

Re: HBP Scans

Wtf, random waitress? WTF, Harry flirting?!

I am so, so, so very concerned by how much Ginny still looks 12. Matched up next to the going-on-30-ness of DanRad.. I am fearful that I may end up blurting out in the theater, "Hey, where did my Harry Potter go and why is there a pedophile on the screen?!"

On the other hand, all the Draco shots are a good sign. And Luna's lion hat? AWESOME. I'm just praying that Luna's Quidditch commentary gets into the film. Do we already know the verdict on this? If we do, I clearly was dead at the time..

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

I don't have a citation at the moment, but I'm pretty sure the commentary is making it in.

[robinmc.livejournal.com]

Maybe we don't need History of the World Part 2, but I would totally go to see History of the World Part 3.

[all-ephemera.livejournal.com]

The Paul Blart: Mall Cop trailer is so surreal for me - it was filmed in the mall I worked in 2 years ago and lived 2 minutes from for 4 years.

[freyalorelei.livejournal.com]

Pushing Daisies Now Doing Just That In The Ratings.

Noooooo! I just discovered this show a few days ago!

Witchblade, Firefly, The Dresden Files, Pushing Daisies....

WHY MUST THEY TAKE AWAY EVERYTHING I LOVE? :(

[sarahjanet.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the epic NOOOOOOO was my reaction exactly. WHY is a show I love like kittens destined to fail?

[ravenofthejade.livejournal.com]

Y'know, I was just thinking I would totally buy an ebook of M15M. Defiinitely gonna get it.

[kirsdarke.livejournal.com]

"Yogi Bear Steals Picnic Baskets and the Big Screen For Live-Action/CGI Hybrid."

...

WHAT?

Really, Hollywood? Really?!?

[roxieluvs.livejournal.com]

NOOOOOO! Pushing daisies! It must not be!

Also, I am really enjoying the ghost background, very festive!

[bizarreoptimism.livejournal.com]

In other news, I <3 your icon. :)

And I really MUST watch "Pushing Daises." Now, before it goes away. :P

[rina2o6.livejournal.com]

Where did you get that icon? I love it!

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

I have no idea--feel free to take it, since it's not mine. I wish I knew who to credit.

[foresthouse.livejournal.com]

OT, but that may just be my absolutely favorite icon of yours. I've considered asking if I could use it too, but whenever I see it I just kind of see *you* saying it. Well, not *saying* it, but you know what I mean. :) I'm not sure I could actually use it even if I wanted to, because my brain would be like, "NO. It's CLEO'S panda!"

Oh, dear, I think I need sleep.

What you are theorizing re: the Prestige - I tried to do that too the second time I watched the movie, and I *think* I was probably right for key scenes, but man, it's hard to even guess on some.

...Don't worry, *I* will gleefully buy your annotations. :)

TV Tropes: somehow not on this list. Probably for the good of humanity. No, I will not link to it. It is too dangerous. The last time I went over there, they had to send out a pack of bloodhounds to find me and bring me back.

I KNOW, right? The last time I went over there, they had to knock me out with a ballpeen hammer and drag me away.

I was going to link a different MTV steampunk story for you, but I take it you've seen it?

BTW, did you see the article about Jacqueline Wilson's book being age banded (http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2008/oct/02/jacqueline.wilson.cookie.ageband)? I am SO, SO AGAINST THIS. There's a website you can put your name on if you're against it too, I linked it and some other articles from my journal.

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

MY panda? I don't even know who made it! Feel free to take. : )

And yeah, my theory with The Prestige--I won't give it away here, except that there's one scene that's pretty much the key to all the rest of them, in terms of who's who, and once you extrapolate from that and a couple of others, you can pretty much figure it out within a decent likelihood.

Oh, and the steampunk thing--yeah, people were fussing about it in the other day's linkspam. I mean, I'm glad MTV's interested, but... they don't quite seem to have the concept down.

[kosher-jenny.livejournal.com]

I haven't even clicked on the Yogi Bear link, I'm just giving it a disgusted look right now.

Btw, when did the little ghosty background go up? Is that new for this year? It's really cute.

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

Hee, I put it up yesterday morning. I've done it for a couple of years now--I used to use the black and white version on my old ghetto Geocities website every October. So I just adjusted the color to my scheme here and started putting it up a couple of years ago.

[yellowbread.livejournal.com]

The Paramore lyrics... aren't that bad, really. To be honest, I wouldn't have realised it was about Bella and Edward if I hadn't already known.

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the words are sinking in now, and they're really not too on the nose at all.

[dives.livejournal.com]

Dear MTV:

http://www.google.com/search?q=steampunk&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a


SERIOUSLY. IT IS NOT THAT HARD.

...in other, less shouty news, I just got back from Neil's reading in Downers Grove, IL and it was really good. Hooray Neil!

[discogravy.livejournal.com]

dracula, keanu-reeves-gary-oldman-so-stiff-you-can-iron-with-it dracula?

fuck, sign me up.

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

Sadly, no--1979 Frank Langella Dracula, the one I did back in the day. Although Gary Oldman Dracula does get discussed. I've always wanted to do that one, and yet somehow just never have.

[bizarreoptimism.livejournal.com]

Meanwhile, Geoffrey Rush will play Gonzalo.

I read this and was all, "Barbossa/Casanova Frankenstein in Shakespeare! I am so SEEING this!!"

Then I got to:

Hayden Christensen Signed to Act Wooden in Three Movies.</>

... and almost spewed a mouthful of Cheerios across the computer screen. Gawd, I love anything even remotely related to New-Star-Wars Riffing.

Although, here's the thing: DO we have any proof of Christensen's suckitude as an actor? I mean, maybe he CAN act un-woodenly when he's delivering lines of normal human speech in acceptably (movie)logical situations?? Even Geoffrey Rush woulda had a hard time pulling off a scene wherein three of his four limbs fall off and then he catches on fire. (Rush COULD pull it off; I'm just saying it would be, y'know. Hard.)

(... and why do I not have any Barbossa icons?? *is ashamed*)

[dives.livejournal.com]

I hear he was pretty good in Shattered Glass, which I actually wanted to see despite finding him asbland as a... bland thing.