Happy (I)B-Day, Star Wars!

Star Wars, wow.  You’re how old now?  Oh yeah – the older you are, the older I am.  Nevermind.

A few people knew I had to write something today.  Especially since I did make reference to it on the “unofficial” Star Wars Day, as I deemed it.

Some wondered what amazing thing I could bring to the table which would blow the minds of fans, geeks, G-to-the-L haters, and even film or tech aficionados.  I know the last thing(s) to blow me away were the “home movies” inside an Academy Award-winning commune the dirty couches, poor lighting, and plethrora of facial hair which went on to become the ILM we all know and love [or as I would say, they put the ILM in film™].  For those who never saw this footage, here’s some love.

Star Wars has a lot of names, abbreviations, and in-the-know jargon.  Today I’m talking about SW:ANH, I mean A New Hope – er, episode IV, um… 4 four.  Old school 1977 Star Wars (which I shall further call “Star Wars” to ease confusion).

I’m not going to call myself a hater, a purist, a convert.  I loved Star Wars as a whole and I still do.  I choose what I like and often my opinion can change.  Let’s set out to have an open mind – possibly unlearning, and rethinking spoon(s).

People have been complaining about Star Wars being changed and different.  Sure you have a laserdisc copy which is this and that, or you have this or that remix and you know what the original was.  Do you?  What if I was too tell you there there is another.  One which actually gets hunted down by the real-life version of Emo Anakin Vader’s posse of Force-user extinguishers?  It’s out there.  And its initials are IB.  Still curious?  Keep reading…

Licensed to 3: Yauch Concluded

(click image for full size)

part 1, part 2

When I was a kid and the Beastie Boys first got play for their music video, I had a hard time figuring out what the word Ill was, but I did know what a Roman Numeral three looked like. So I often wondered if these Brooklyn guys really had two other records out there and people were just saying Ill because they didn’t know. What could I say? I was a goofy kid.

Before I go on, Ch-Check THIS out. Neal Brennan (now know as awesome in my book) knows the pain we’re feeling. Co-creator of Chapelle’s Show, he unleashed an appearance of the Bea-stie-Boys LIVE outdoors in 2004 – never seen until now. Already erased by Viacom at least once, it’s back! I’ll make a dupe of this just to make sure it’ll be harder to kill than a certain Holiday Special. Hurry and watch the clip below – and get more blown away since I won’t say what song it is. [I’d say to watch out for language, but even work should let you blast this. You’re mourning, yo!]

This post was intended as a conglomerate of links and images. Since I came across some great articles and stories which I mostly hid in the other two posts, I figured why not make this subject a trilogy and make it a hodgepodge of links and images amongst additional material. To tease a taste, here’s someone’s tribute to MCA/Nathan Wind – delivering pizza dressed as Cochese.

New York officially mourns the death of Adam Yauch.  Don’t believe me?  Here’s the document for proof, or watch the video below.

Screenwriting Crash Course

To all of the Nanowrimo brethren unsure of Script Frenzy or the people who always wanted to write a screenplay – hopefully this post can help a little bit.

If you’re even the smallest bit hesitant about writing a screenplay, give this a read. The following link is an article I’ve been using since the second screenplay I ever completed. Entitled The Three-Week Screenplay and written by Dov S-S Simens, it originally appeared in a 1998 issue of the magazine MovieMaker. The article is six steps, but I diverge halfway through. The simplistic and sometimes humorous article can be a quick confidence builder.

http://www.moviemaker.com/directing/article/the_threeweek_screenplay_321…

I don’t follow it exactly as written, so I wouldn’t expect anyone else to either. This can be a map you glance at before deciding to trudge into the desert alone…or you can use it as a guide until you meet a fellow traveler.  Keep reading to learn the rest.

Pencils Down: Ralph McQuarrie (1929–2012)

Any kid (or kid at heart) who passing through the eighties had some sort of indelible impression made by Ralph McQuarrie.  He influenced so many decades before and after, but the obvious is any walking out of a theater during blockbuster season and spending all week trying to keep the imagery from flooding their heads.  If you randomly chuckle when saying you need to phone home, imitate breathing behind a black helmet, or mention something about an object among ‘top men’…then indirectly you have this guy to thank.  Anyone worth their lore knows the tale of this guy’s concept work being the only reason Lucas got a green light concerning a space opera.

If you read this and you agree with the statement(s) above at all, doodle something on a napkin and say thanks to McQ. Even post it as a comment.  Maybe I will too.

One of the cool things about Mr. McQuarrie was turning down doing the prequel Star Wars episodes because he felt it should be passed to a new artist for the next generation.  Very classy (even if I can’t remember when/where I read it).

To read a little more, check this great writeup from tor.com by Irene Gallo:
http://www.tor.com/blogs/2012/03/ralph-mcquarrie-19292012

The comments at the bottom are fantastic as well, so do a favor and scroll down if you peek there.

(Hit the jump to see familiar imagery.)

Another Television Cancelation

Hello friends and lovers.  Today I am here to talk to you about yet another show canceled on me.  If the pic was familiar, you understood why I chose my first sentence.

This isn’t breaking news – like discovering the shows Bored to Death and Terriers canceled within hours of the decision.  I had my suspicions on this one, but it took stumbling upon an article by Brad Pike to discover the disheartening realization.  His article Food Party: Requiem for the Best TV Show Ever Made was not only rocking proper capitalization, but pretty much nailed how I felt about this television program (formerly on IFC).

“The show presented some profoundly surreal storytelling with plots that gleefully bent logic to the breaking point—giant talking rats, magic strawberry spitting, and floating pandas.”

You won’t hear me say the show is the best ever, but it certainly outclasses most newer shows on Adult Swim.  Those [AS] folks should pull a “Futurama” and figure out a way to put Food Party on their lineup. With a host/star like Thu Tran, what’s not to like?

A female-fronted shows on Adult Swim is still a minority.  She MORE than has the chops for it.  Take heed, Williams Street!

Food Party sounds like a cooking show, but delves into absurdity through each episode.  The sheer amount of creativity is boggling.  It’s silly humor isn’t for everyone…but anyone can say there is an insane amount of artistic endeavor behind every shot.  Or at least insanity in general. See?

I could put up another dozen pics since there’s much for me to love.  The

You know what?  While I write this, I’m thinking I should talk all about this show at a different time.  Maybe a bloggy-series of stuff I like that didn’t get much of a tv life.  I’ll think about it…and weigh the options versus the procrastination factor of my novel.  That thing kind of does have a deadline.

Michael “Parks” Dorsey: 1978-2012

There’s no good way to put this news, so I’ll rely on others to speak for me…

The Daisy Mountain Fire Department is mourning the loss of Engineer Paramedic Michael David Dorsey, 33, who passed away in his home the morning of January 16th 2012.  He leaves behind his wife Felisha, who is five months pregnant with their first child together.

Mike, formerly Michael Parks, was a 15 year veteran of the fire service.  He has served as a member of the Daisy Mountain Fire Department for the last five years.

Mike’s death has come as a shock to the whole department.  “It is difficult to put into words the sadness and emptiness that our organization is going through with the loss of our friend and colleague Michael Dorsey” said Daisy Mountain Fire Chief Mark Nichols. “He was a valued member and will be greatly missed. I know our organization is a better place for having had him here.”

An account has been established to help the Dorsey family.
Donations can be made at Chase Bank, account 2997857764, in the name of
“Daisy Mountain Firefighters Charities Association.”

Did ‘Star Wars’ become a toy story? Producer Gary Kurtz looks back

In case you haven’t heard, the title was from an article in the LA Times; ran August 12th 2010.  Not many hear how Gary Kurtz looks at the trilogy he left…and the prequels.

Most interestingly to me?  How Kurtz described the original ended.   I think the Special Edition Jedi ending was the best…but I wonder how much closure there would have been back in the day if the originally-devised ending was the counterweight to Empire.

Read it all here:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/herocomplex/2010/08/star-wars-was-born-a-long-time-ago-but-not-all-that-far-far-away-in-1972-filmmakers-george-lucas-and-gary-kurtz-wer.html

R.I.P. Jeff Freeman: 1968-2008

I happened upon this and knew many people would take interest.  Some of you may want to know, and many are aware he was a developer for Star Wars Galaxies.  At times he was also the figurehead/scapegoat for some of the game’s modification: unfair as those accusations were.

http://forums.station.sony.com/swg/posts/list.m?topic_id=756313

[link since defunct]

His brother got word out via a variety of MMO forums:

“Some of you know who Jeff Freeman was; he was the lead designer at Sony when the major changes were made to SWG that left so many upset. Although it was not his fault he took the brunt of the criticisms, attacks, and even death threats.

Some of you may have even known him back in the UO days as Dundee, Guild Master of the Nameless Ones on Lake Superior and later the administrator of the private UO server World of Dreams.

I am not sure why I have chosen this forum to share this news; it may be that I would have loved to see Jeff build the game that he really wanted to, if he was running a private server. You see I am his brother. On September 24th Jeff took his own life. I am not angry at him or anyone else, sad yes, like so many others I feel a bit of guilt but I love my brother and I am thankful that he is no longer suffering.”

Obituary:

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/news-journal/obituary.aspx?n=jeff-freeman&pid=118224322

Some additional links and places to find food for thought…

Tribute/eulogy by Raph Koster:

http://www.raphkoster.com/2008/09/30/jeff-dundee-freeman

Article via Escape Magazine:

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/86552-Jeff-Freeman-Former-SWG-Lead-Gameplay-Designer-Dies

EDIT:
Sadly, it seems his blog has gone defunct since his death. I was
hoping someone tried to preserve it somehow, but alas. Maybe his
brother was able to archive some of this, but I have no clue as of now.
Let me know if there’s info.

On a related note, his “memory book” has expired as well.  It takes paltry amount to keep it open forever: as is $80US.  That is less than most people spend to play the average MMO for a year.

Soon(tm) – Defined

Did you know “Soon” was actually trademarked by Sony Online Entertainment?  Tongue-and-cheek as it was written (to goof on/with gamers who need[n't] to be given satisfactory answers), here is a quote from the SOE Knowledge Database:

Question:When, exactly, is soon? Answer: When will <whatever> be back/available/up/open/updated/fixed/installed/removed/nerfed/un-nerfed/patched/rolled back/instituted/upgraded/borked/published/resolved/ and/or generally Made Better™? Soon™: A broadly generic description of a length of time between now and the fruition of a promise made by the developers of computer software, especially online gaming software. Before being trademarked, the term ‘Soon’ was much more meaningful, indicating that the event to which the adverb is applied is to happen in the near future. After the trademark was applied to the term, however, any sense of urgency or immediacy that the term ‘Soon’ once carried was tossed aside in favor of a term that would serve only to torture the readers of the term, usually subscribers to online gaming forums, hence Soon™. An enhancement to the term Soon™ was made shortly after, and became known as Very Soon™, also trademarked. Very Soon™ is generally first used by game developers when they realize that they can no longer get away with using the term Soon™ while maintaining a straight face. Very Soon™, however, is not accepted by the gaming public much more favorably than its root, Soon™,as neither term means much at all to gamers who have been waiting patiently for the promised event to arrive. There is also the recent addition of “Soonish™” which is generally only used by GM’s in chat channels on patch days after being asked 498 times “When will the servers be up?”.

http://help.station.sony.com/cgi-bin…N2PSZwX3NlYXJj

[Link down - possibly due to SWG closing or losing a sense of humor.]