The 1930s Culture Blog
Art, photography, fashion, music and films during the 1930sThe "Star Wars" stories by Moore and Gibbons
16 March 2009 05:20:51
Article about the "Star Wars" stories by "Watchmen" creators Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons.
And the reviews are in... again.
08 March 2009 15:49:27
Oh well. Apparently I sing like Borat!Youtube Commentary for this clip: Superhelter said: "lol, i found this hilariously rubbish at first but i like how obscure this is! It paints a picture of Borat being blown away by the talents of The Magnetic Fields . He then decides to buy a piano and BANG! This is the result... Well done!"Yeah, being 'obscure'... at least I know how to do that! :-)THE DEATH OF FERDINAND DE SAUSSUREI met Ferdinand de SaussureOn a night like thisOn love he said"I'm not so sureI even know what it isNo understandingNo closureIt is a nemesisYou can't use a bulldozerTo study orchids"He said...So we don't know anythingYou don't know anythingI don't know anythingabout loveBut we are nothingYou are nothingI am nothingWithout loveI'm just a great composerAnd not a violent manBut I lost my composureAnd I shot FerdinandCrying "it's well and kosherto say you don't understandbut this is for Holland-Dozier-Holland"His last words wereWe don't know anything [etc]And the original version, in case you need to get my voice out of your system:
Dr. Manhattan Condom
07 March 2009 16:52:57
"Watchmen" movie promotion goes into bizarre overdrive and gives us... the Dr. Manhattan condom! Sad and funny at the same time.
"Blueberry Girl"
28 February 2009 02:49:12
Blueberry Girl is a poem originally written for Tori Amos' Daughter. It has now been released as a book. Also available for free on youtube, as an animated video:"Hello.You're probably wondering what kind of book this is.This is the kind of book that comes about when a friend phones you and says, "I'll be having a baby in a month. Would you write her a poem? A sort of prayer, maybe? We call her the Blueberry. . . ." And you think, Yes, actually. I would.I wrote the poem. When the baby was born, they stopped calling her the Blueberry and started calling her Natashya, but they pinned up the handwritten Blueberry girl poem beside her bed.I kept a copy at my house, taped to a filing cabinet. And when friends read it, they said things like "Please, can I have a copy for my friend who is going to be giving birth to a daughter?" and I wound up copying it out for people, over and over.I wasn't going to let it be published, not ever. It was private, and written for one person, even if I did seem to be spending more and more of my time handwriting or printing out nice copies for mothers-to-be and for babies.Then artist Charles Vess (whom I had collaborated with on Stardust) read it.And somehow, it all became simple. I made a few phone calls. We decided to make some donations to some charities. And Charles began to draw, and then to paint, taking the poem as a starting point and then making something universal and beautiful.On his blog he said, "Taking Neil's lovely poetic meditation on the inherent joys of a mother-daughter relationship and developing a compelling narrative impulse without robbing the poem of its highly symbolic nature was an interesting conceptual journey." Which I think is Charles for "It wasn't easy to make that poem into a picture book.” He did an astonishing job, but I still worried. I stopped worrying the day the assistant editor at HarperChildrens, who was herself pregnant, called me to let me know that she'd got the artwork in, and read it, and then started crying in the office.It's a book for mothers and for mothers-to-be. It's a book for anyone who has, or is, a daughter. It's a prayer and a poem, and now it's a beautiful book.I hope you enjoy it. I'm really proud of it. And I hope this means I don't have to copy it out any longer….Neil"
Francis Ford Coppola introduces "Tetro"
26 February 2009 15:41:50
This youtube video of Francis Ford Coppola intruducing his new film is pretty cool, it makes a living legend seem quite human:
New "Watchmen" book covers.
25 February 2009 10:29:12
Look at the cover above. That's the best and most startling of the original covers for the "Watchmen" graphic novel edition. Now look at the two covers below - these are the covers Dave Gibbons have created - 20 years after the book was orignally published - for the new mass market editions of the book that tie in with the movie.Well, I think it's a bit depressing. I really don't mind Dave Gibbons making money off the Watchmen movie, but I'm upset that he ruins the original book in this way. "It's just the cover of the book", some people might say - "It doesn't matter". Yes, but Watchmen was always a special case. Back from the days when "Watchmen" was published as 12 seperate issues, the cover design was always a part of the story inside. The story would actually start with the image on the cover and then zoom out.These new covers ruins the original concept for the book. Also, they're just plain ugly. They look like ugly third rate school reunion photos from Facebook. "Hey people... nice to be back together. Let's put costumes on and have a photo session shall we? Oh, and the end of the world is nigh, right, so just for fun let's stand below a doomsdays clock."Well, I hate to sound like a 19 year old fan of an obscure band that has just signed to a major label... but man, Dave Gibbons is a bit of a sellout these days. :-(Oh well, at least Alan Moore is 100% uncompromising, and refusing all money from the movie. Ha!Edit: after writing this post it occurs to me that Gibbons might actually be completely innocent - that these two sub-par images might be used on the cover against his will. Well, shame on DC then. Watchmen's covers were always some of the best looking out there.... well, no more.
New Alan Moore interview
25 February 2009 07:45:30
And a new Alan Moore interview, one of the most illuminating in a while. Interesting! The Future's looking bright.edit: oh, and another one here, from Wired.
The Vienna Vegetable Orchestra
21 February 2009 05:08:40
'Das erste Wiener Gemüseorchester' - The First Vienna Vegetable Orchestra - is a group that make its instruments out of fresh vegetables immediately before concerts.Here's a clip:From Wikipedia:"The group, founded in February 1998, consists of ten musicians, one cook, and one sound technician. The members of the ensemble are all active in various artistic areas (for example trained musicians, sound poets, sculptors, media artists, designers, and architects) and have worked together on conceptualizing and carrying out their project. The interdisciplinary approach is a crucial factor in researching and further developing the vegetable music. The intention is to create a sonorous experience which can be perceived with all senses. Musical concepts of the Fluxus movement, for example compositions from John Cage (Branches, 1976) could be considered as a source of inspiration for this unique orchestra. Their distinctive repertoire also seems to be deeply rooted in sound art and experimental and electronic music because they play unheard-of interpretations of Igor Stravinsky, the German electronic pioneers Kraftwerk or the Austrian band Radian as well as their own compositions. All the pieces feature various forms of graphical notation and are exclusively composed for live performance. Their instruments, which are all of their own invention, include carrot recorders, clappers made from eggplant, trumpets made from zucchini, and numerous others, which are amplified with the use of special microphones. The instruments are made from scratch just one hour prior to each performance using the freshest vegetables available, then all ninety pounds of vegetables are cooked into a soup following the performance."Official homepage
New Pet Shop Boys single, "Love Etc"
20 February 2009 02:12:37
Me like, very much. Quite original song. I like the red/purpple colors on the youtube clip.... the song sounds very warm, almost like red and purple colors coming out of the loudspeakers.You need more (9x)Well it's tough getting on in the worldWhen the sun doesn't shineAnd a boy needs a girlIt's about getting out of a rutYou need luckBut you're stuck and you don't know how(Don't have to be)A big bucks Hollywood star(Don't have to drive)A super car to go far(Don't have to live)A life of power and wealth(Don't have to be)Beautiful but it helps(Don't have to buy)A house in Beverly Hills(Don't have to have)Your daddy paying the bills(Don't have to live)A life of power and wealth(Don't have to be)Beautiful but it helpsYou need moreThan a big blank check to be a lover, orA gulf stream jet to fly you door to doorSomewhere chic on another shoreYou need more (6x)You need loveYou need loveYou need loveToo much of anything is never enoughToo much of everything is never enoughWell it's tough getting on in the worldWhen the sun doesn't shineAnd a boy needs a girlIt's about getting out of a rutYou need luck but you're stuckand you don't know how(Don't have to be)A big bucks Hollywood star(Don't have to drive)A super car to get far(Don't have to wear)A smile much colder than ice(Don't have to be)Beautiful, but it's niceYou need moreThan the Gerhard Richter hanging on your wallA chauffeur driven limousine encoreTo drive your wife and lover to a whiter ballYou need more (6x)You need loveI believe that we can achieve the love that we needI believe, call me naive, but love is for free(Don't have to be)A big bucks Hollywood star(Don't have to drive)A super car to go far(Don't have to live)A life of power and wealth(Don't have to be)Beautiful but it helpsBeautiful but it helpsBeautiful but it helps
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