The Yuck

Yeah I've had it for over 3 weeks. I feel like death warmed over. That awful sore throat with the stuffy head and Headache. The stuff that comes out of your lungs in that nasty color. The body ache and general malaise. Yes I have them all and it won't go away. I'm probably on the fed watch list for pseudophedrine after all I've purchased. Please make it go away. This is what I get for hanging around all the kids on the travel hockey team and taking an active role this year. The 2 hour trips to Cleveland every weekend are already beginning to get old. WHAT WAS I THINKING????????????? Oh well he leads the team in all categories-shots, goals, hits, points. Everything but playing time. He's getting less than the other 2 centers on the team , yet still the numbers are good. 10 goals after 11 games and he's averaging 6 hits per game. Great fun to watch, but at this point i'd rather feel 100%.

Top Gear USA...Can it Live up to The Real Top Gear?

I'm a fan of the BBC program Top Gear. In fact my whole family watches including my kids who are now 10 and 12 and my wife who...shall we say does not watch much television devoted to automobiles. My kids have watched for more than 5 years and while at times the content is a bit inappropriate for them I think it flies over their heads. For years the only way to catch the show was in clip form on youtube or 'pirate' web sites that were quickly shut down. Thankfully BBC America started showing it several years ago here in the USA. I have always disliked the fact that we were several YEARS behind in what we were able to see here, but hey at least we had it. A couple years ago I discovered sites on the web devoted to web streaming and of course Top Gear was one of the shows that always had a stream. I finally was able to see complete episodes of all the years and frankly Top Gear has come a long long way. The hosts, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May have a way of interacting that is so seamless that you know at some level they don't actually have to act like they dislike each other. Sure they get along, but May is so weird that at times I can't stand to listen to him. Then there is The Stig. Will we have a version on TGU? I'm sure in some way we will, but to outright copy the original show will be...unoriginal? The producers have branched out with Top Gear Australia and now we finally see the oft promised Top Gear USA. I'll admit I don't like the idea of it. Not one bit. However, filming has begun and the first 'clip' has hit the web and for this 2 minutes it looks how should I say this....watchable. So my advice is if you really like Top Gear as I do you might want to check it out.

Now if we could get Speed Channel to bring back episode of England's "other" car show First Gear then my car fix would be complete.

Michael J Fox was not always Marty McFly....

I'm sure many of you know that Michael J Fox was not the original choice to play Marty McFly in Back To The Future. Eric Stolz was the original choice and he actually shot for 5 weeks. However the footage has never been seen outside of the studio. As the 25th anniversary approaches for BTTF a new DVD release is planned (big surprise) and in the extras is some of that footage. You could go out and buy the DVD or just watch it here...
Beware that this is kinda freaky. Stolz really does look alot like Fox in this clip. Hollywood....

The Inside Job; Movie Trailers on HDNet

I'm not a big "indie" movie fan, but over the past few years with the help of HDNet and their 3 movie preview shows Nothing But Trailers, The Ultimate Trailer Show, and Trailerama I've seen quite a few trailers for small films that have for about 2 minutes captured my attention. While its rare that I will go to the theater itself and see a movie I have tracked down several of these films on DVD and also HBO/Shotime/Starz/The Movie Channel/Cinemax/Sundance and enjoyed them greatly. The trailer above is for a film called The Inside Job and I saw the trailer on HDNet (of course). The film opens this week in New York and next week in Los Angeles. While its doubtful it will come to good ole Columbus there is a great chance I'll catch it on DVD. From the trailer it looks good and while I am not going to get into a political discussion here the subject matter is interesting. The one caution I have is the media is a large part of the problem in our country and now we are to believe that the answers come from a film produced and distributed by a media conglomerate.... Perhaps a discussion for another day.

One sad point is last week on The Ultimate Trailer show the host, Robert Wilonsky announced that he is moving along. This saddens me as despite his obvious difference in political agendas from mine I trusted his film choices. While he repeatedly pointed out he had a face for print journalism and not TV, he managed to capture my attention for several years and I will miss his suggestions. High Definition TV was in its infancy when he came to the first full time HD channel and filled a niche with several hosting gigs. While so many people complain about the trailers at the start of a film he developed a television show dedicated to clips--2 minutes at a time. In fact HDNet now has 3 shows.... While I never met him I considered him a friend. I even sent a few emails for suggestions of old trailers and a few of them even showed up. Thanks Robert!