24 March 2014

 Birthdays
Keisha Castle-Hughes b. 1990 (Vampire, Legend of the Seeker, Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith)
Philip Winchester b. 1981 (Camelot, Fringe, Warehouse 13, Solomon Kane, Thunderbirds [2004])
Alison MacInnis b. 1980 (Power Rangers, Bewitched [movie], Tremors [TV])
Lake Bell b. 1979 (Surface)
Jessica Chastain b. 1977 (Interstellar, Journeyman, Dark Shadows [2004])
Michelle Harrison b. 1975 (The Flash, Continuum, SGU Stargate Universe, Supernatural, Eureka, V, Fringe, The Invisible, Andromeda, Paycheck, Stephen King’s Dead Zone, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show, Poltergeist: The Legacy)
Alyson Hannigan b. 1974 (Buffy, Angel, Dead Man on Campus, My Stepmother is an Alien)
Jim Parsons b. 1973 (The Big Bang Theory, Eureka, iCarly)
Lara Flynn Boyle b. 1970 (Men in Black II, Amerika)
Kelly LeBrock b. 1960 (The Sorceror’s Apprentice [2002], Weird Science)
Robert Carradine b. 1954 (The Terror Experiment, Attack of the Sabertooth, Ghosts of Mars, Lycanthrope, Scorpio One, Humanoids from the Deep, Escape from L.A., Lois & Clark, The Tommyknockers, The Twilight Zone [1986])
Kim Johnston Ulrich b. 1955 (Supernatural, 3rd Rock from the Sun, Rumplestiltskin, Highlander [TV], Lois and Clark, Werewolf [TV], The Charmings)
Patrick Malahide b. 1945 (Game of Thrones)
R. Lee Ermey b. 1944 (The Watch, Megiddo: The Omega Code 2, Starship Troopers, The Frighteners, The X-Files, Body Snatchers [1993], Toy Soldiers, The Terror Within II, Deathstone, The Rift, Up from the Depths)
William Smith b. 1933 (The Ghost of Frankenstein, The Boy with Green Hair, Atlantis the Lost Continent, Batman, I Dream of Jeannie, Piranha, Invasion of the Bee Girls, The Six Million Dollar Man, Planet of the Apes [TV], Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Twilight’s Last Gleaming, Logan’s Run [TV], Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Conan the Barbarian, Hell Comes to Frogtown… and more third rate crap than you can shake a stick at)
Steve McQueen b. 1930 died 7 November 1980 (The Blob)
Murray Hamilton b. 1923 died 1 September 1986 (The Amityville Horror, The Invaders, Twilight Zone)
Gene Nelson b. 1920 died 16 September 1996 (director, Star Trek, I Dream of Jeannie)

Okay. There's one movie star on this list, Steve McQueen, and he made one genre movie, The Blob. Steve McQueen was so cool, people didn't give him crap about making The Blob.

Last year's Picture Slot was Alyson Hannigan because I'm a Buffy nerd. This year it's Jim Parsons. In terms of iconic, they are hard to beat. But I should say a word about William Smith. He did a few uncredited roles in movies as a kid, became a regular on a couple TV shows in the 1960s, and then he followed the John Carradine algorithm.

1. Take a role.
2. Pay the rent.
3. Dead yet? If not, back to step 1.

If I put in all his genre roles, I would have been typing for an hour. His list of movies has some stuff so bad, Invasion of the Bee Girls and Hell Comes to Frogtown look like Merchant-Ivory productions in comparison.

Many happy returns to all the living on the list and to the dead, thanks for the memories.

Predictor: The OMNI Future Almanac, published in 1982

Prediction: Fashions for men

1990s
At home: old, loose clothes; jeans, t-shirts
At the office: pin-stripe suits, ties, jackets
On the town: Tuxedos; suits in pastel colors

2000s
At home: one piece body suits
At the office: body suits with ties; sports jackets
On the town: Tight-fitting body suits revealing male body; make-up

2010s
At home: temperature controlled body suits
At the office: body suits with special packs for job (i.e. intercom, tools, pen)
On the town: Body paints; handbags; make-up

Reality: I admit I am not doing my part to consume conspicuously. Being a broke-ass mofo may have something to do with this. But reading this, I feel a little bad I have not been doing my part buying enough body suits.

This prediction gets partial credit for jeans and t-shirts at home. The suits in pastel colors did have their moment in the 1980s when Miami Vice came out, but we got over it before the 1990s. As for the body suits and make-up, hmm... not that common.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

Can Ray Kurzweil get something right looking a mere ten years forward? Signs point to...

No spoiler alerts! Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!