Wednesday, April 30, 2014

30 April 2014

 Birthdays
Dianna Agron b. 1986 (I am Number Four, Heroes)
Gal Gadot b. 1985 (Justice League, Wonder Woman, Batman vs. Superman)
Kirsten Dunst b. 1982 (Melancholia, Spider-Man, The Crow: Salvation, Small Soldiers, Jumanji, Star Trek: The Next Generation)
Kunal Nayyar b. 1981 (The Big Bang Theory)
Johnny Galecki b. 1975 (The Big Bang Theory, In Time, Vanilla Sky)
Michael Chaturantabut (Charmed, The Time Machine, Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue)
Kevin Sizemore b. 1972 (Resurrection, Under the Dome, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Dollhouse, Supernova)
Adrian Pasdar b. 1965 (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Heroes, Near Dark)
Perry King b. 1948 (The Day After Tomorrow, Slaughterhouse-Five)
Lars von Trier b. 1956 (Melancholia, Kingdom Hospital)
Gary Collins b. 1938 died 13 October 2012 (Watcher Reborn, The Fantastic Journey, The Bionic Woman, The Six Million Dollar Man, The Sixth Sense [TV], King Kong vs. Godzilla)
Larry Niven b. 1938 (winner of 1971 Hugo and Nebula for Ringworld)
Cloris Leachman b. 1926 (Lake Placid 2, My Boyfriend’s Back, Hansel and Gretel [1987], Wonder Woman [1975], Young Frankenstein, Twilight Zone)
Al Lewis b. 1923 died 3 February 2006 (The Munsters, Lost in Space)
Phil Brown b. 1916 died 9 February 2006 (Superman, Star Wars: A New Hope, Twilight’s Last Gleaming, Journey to the Unknown)
David Manners b. 1901 died 23 December 1998 (The Mummy [1932], Dracula [1931])

Last year I had the guys from The Big Bang Theory in the Picture Slot and there's a good chance they'll be in the slot a year from now. Other iconic choices would be Kirsten Dunst as Mary Jane Watson, Al Lewis as Grandpa Munster and Phil Brown as Uncle Owen in the original Star Wars. But instead, I went with Pretty Girl = Picture Slot and a little controversy, showing this picture of Gal Gadot, who will play Wonder Woman in a series of upcoming films. Ms. Gadot is 5'9" (175 cm), which is certainly tall enough, but fans are quick to point out:

1. She is not blue eyed.
2. To put it politely, she's not Lynda Carter.

As Spike Lee said a few years back, being an actor is not an easy gig. Both the fans and the people who hire you are constantly judging you by your looks, and the situation is more pronounced for women than for men.

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

Predictor: T. Baron Russell in his 1905 book A Hundred Years Hence

Prediction: In the next century all that will be necessary in order to multiply type-matter and illustrations in any number of colours will be to place the original on a pile of paper and expose it to the rays of some source of energy, when the whole matter will be impressed upon every sheet, and this not by any mere contact of type and process-blocks with paper (which involves serious difficulties, owing to the interference of the paper-surface with the grain of the etched " screen ") but by direct action of light, or of some influence taking the place of light, so that perfectly clear pictures will be produced. And news of all sorts will be the subject of this kind of illustration.

Reality: The printing process has gone through a lot of improvement since 1905, but putting an image on paper still requires ink in the vast majority of cases.


Never to be forgotten: Bob Hoskins 1942-2014

The British actor Bob Hoskins has died at the age of 71. I remember seeing him first in The Long Good Friday, a gangster film. I can't recall now if it was Siskel or Ebert who said he looked like a suit filled with bowling balls. He was short and stocky and in a lot of his roles, he was a guy you did not want to mess with. Among his roles in genre productions are Snow White and the Huntsman, Neverland, Doomsday, Wind in the Willows, Son of the Mask, The Lost World, Super Mario Bros., Hook, Brazil and of course Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Even when he played a complete heel, I found myself always wanting to like him.

Best wishes to the family and friends of Bob Hoskins, from a fan. He is never to be forgotten.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

Another visit from Lee de Forest view of 2000 from his 1960 vantage point.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!
 

4 comments:

  1. Kirsten Dunst was also the main character in Melancholia, a weird, somewhat depressing, but beautiful and unforgettable film. Best work I've seen of hers. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1527186/

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    1. Thanks for the info, Lockwood. That also means the director Lars von Trier deserves a nod, because it's his birthday too, as luck would have it.

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  2. First of all, Godspeed to Bob Hoskins.

    Russell clearly didn't think through today's prediction. Trying his idea with a stack of sheets is like trying to see what's on the other side of a wall that doesn't have any windows.

    Finally, George Pérez's iconic 1986 version of Wonder Woman had brown eyes; so eye color shouldn't be an issue for modern fans. Gal Gadot's slim build might cause greater concern, but until shooting begins, it's too early to tell how valid that worry is.

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    1. Yeah, we will see what she looks like in costume. I've seen several pictures of her and her body changes somewhat from shoot to shoot, but 'buxom' is not a word I would use in any case I've seen so far.

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