Tonight, Neil joins us for a show. We talk about body sizes, Underoos, weddings and dreams, once again. If you are reading this, this blog has obviously been unlocked and we're back up and running again. So yahoo! Enjoy the show.

BTW, for those interested, here is the link to that UK Body Survey.

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Labels: podcast

Here's an interesting list: 20 Nightmarish Baby Products. My favorite? The baby mop:

"Inventors in Japan are fed up with babies constantly making messes and never cleaning up after themselves. Introducing the baby mop, this leverages the all natural cleaning power of drool to buff your floors to a high shine. Please note that extended wear on carpet may build a static charge equivalent to licking a car battery."

See the whole chilling list here.

Labels: funny

Very clever. I didn't register. If anyone does, let me know what happens. Thanks to Art for the link.

Labels: zombies

I missed linking the teaser for Pixar's next film (due out Summer 2009) called "Up" -- the video had been removed by the time I got a chance to link it. But luckily, the list of upcoming films through 2012 (including synopsis') is still out there. Toy Story 3 in 3-D?! How can one resist? Check out the list here.

Labels: animation, cool

'Cuz here's an unofficial list of "Sexiest Stormtroopers". I have my own list of "Sexist Stormtroopers", but that one's not as popular. Thanks for the link, Art!

Labels: star wars

Try this out. I didn''t think it would work, but it does. Thanks BB.

Labels: cool

In case you were wondering, this is a pig-faced monkey. So there ya go. Enjoy captioning this one! Thanks to Monica for the link.

Labels: caption

Labels: weird

Based on an original idea by Apelad AKA Adam Koford, the book Moby Dick will be posted on the social microblogging site, Twitter. Every week day, there will be 13 paragraphs of Moby Dick posted on the hour, starting at 8AM CST. Check it out here. It should take about 5 weeks.

BTW, the programmer behind this is none other than Whiz Kid Dan Coulter, programming genius behind the 700 Hoboes Project, E-Zombie and Monster By Mail.

Labels: cool

Feedback on last week's show. Lots of voicemails and adulations for our kids. Plus, a drum kit in our house? Listen in and enjoy, damnit!

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Labels: podcast

This was the caption written for the photo of my kids taken by Subspace (AKA Sunday) during her and fellow Hobo, Mike's visit this past weekend:

"These guys knew The Who forwards and backwards. It was like meeting aliens who are much, much smarter than you who have been monitoring Earth transmissions for the last 30 years. "

We had a ton of fun during their visit. We ate at local famed eatery, Sokolowski's. We played Zombies and Rock Band. And generally had a jovial, shin-kicking good time. More photos of this momentous meeting can be viewed here.

Labels: funny

Thanks to Chad once again for this week's Caption This.

Labels: caption

The title says it all. Pretty awesome stuff here. Check it out.

Labels: cool, star wars

Ok, so I just got back from the 9:30 AM showing of the most anticipated summer blockbuster in years "The Dark Knight". Yes, you read that right. 9:30 AM. I could have opted for the 9:00 AM showing or even the 12:01 AM showing, but I wanted my older boys to be able to have a good night's sleep before the big proceedings. I may be a fanboy, but I'm a sensible fanboy.

I had mentioned to Nora last night that I planned to go into the theatre with open eyes. That is, not to be clouded by all the incredible hype this film has been getting the past few weeks. It was tough to find a bad review of this film. But I know a lot of that hype was generated from people who really WANTED this film to be good. One of the things that I liked so much about the other heralded comic book film this season, "Iron Man" was that I didn't go into it with any preconceived notions. I didn't know Tony Stark's origin story. I had no connection to the comic at all. So I was able to view the film as a movie goer. I wanted the same experience with this film. I wanted to see the film as Average Joe Movie and not as someone who has been dying to see it since the Joker makeup was revealed last spring. A daunting challenge to say the least. She didn't think I was up to it. But I held my ground.

That being said, this is what In have to say about the film, from the eyes of a casual moviegoer. And let me add a caveat here: about an hour and a half into the film, the sound cut out in the theatre we were in. I lost about 10 minutes of film during the debacle, all of which I was able to see at another showing. Although nothing can really repair a movie experience being marred by something like that, I was able to piece the film together.

I thought the story was well-plotted, although Chris Nolan seems to want to pack as much into the front end as possible. It seemed a bit top-heavy to me in the first hour, trying to explain the situation Batman, Dent and Gordon and the rest of Gotham find themselves in. Lots of characters and situations to keep track of make you take your eye off the action to try to digest what's happening. I'm usually pretty good at following the action and plot, but wish I had a rewind button next to me to get some lines of dialogue that I felt ran past you too quickly.

The film was shot entirely in Chicago, and it shows. The dark landscape of Gotham and The Narrows from "Batman Begins" has been replaced with the grittiness of real-world Chicago. Which in some way, added to my issues with how serious the film was trying to take itself. This is the crux of my criticism of the film. Nolan and his team are trying so very hard to ground these characters in reality, but in the end, you still have a crazy guy running around in a rubber costume.

Don't get me wrong. I think that Nolan is able to find that balance within the film and is able to sustain it for the most part. But not without a few awkward moments to jolt you back into remembering that this is just one big graphic novel comic book.

Ok now to the elephant in the room: Heath Ledger's performance. Make no mistake, he does a very good job as The Joker. Contrary to Nicholson's Joker, Ledger's Joker literally is nuts. Nicholson's performance seems very comic-booky next to this performance. Ledger's Joker is both calculated and brutal and you can't not be riveted by his portrayal. Had he lived, it would have been the performance that would have demented er -- CEMENTED -- his place on the A List.. The Joker made me laugh and cringe. Moreso on the cringe. And it seemed like when Ledger wasn't on screen, the movie lost some of it's stamina.

Conversely, (and I know I'll take some heat for this) I felt that Christian Bale's performance was a bit wooden. And I LIKE Christian Bale! I feel he is the best Batman to don the cowl that there ever has been. But the effect they put on his voice when he is The Batman gets distracting after a while. Once again, though, put toe to toe against Burton's Keaton, this is stellar and pretty much spot on from Miller's Caped Crusader reboot of the 80's.

The supporting cast including Eric Roberts, Aaron Eckhart, Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, and Maggie Gyllenhall are all in top form and enjoyable to watch. But I have to give the film a 9, only for some of the small flaws I felt that kept it from all time greatness. Is it a Best Picture? Meh, probably not. But then again, when a film like The Departed can win for Best Picture, this wouldn't be much of a surprise. Does Ledger deserve a posthumous Oscar? I feel he should be nominated for his role, it is that good. Will it happen? We'll have to wait.

One last note: this was probably the most intense film I have ever watched with my kids. It's certainly the darkest film they have ever seen. So let this be a warning. This IS NOT a film for kids. My 11 year old says he liked it, but I could tell he was disturbed by some of the Joker's antics. So please let that be a warning. If you're wondering, do yourself a favor and keep the kids at home.

And finally, Three Words: NEW WATCHMEN TRAILER. And it's looking FINE.

Bring on 3/6/09.

Labels: movies

Tonight's show is a midsummer show with the kids. We discuss, among other things, World of Warcraft, Rock Band 2, Lego's, video games, birthday cakes, tea, and of course, The Dark Knight. Thanks for joining us for this audio archive. And please, tell a friend.

Music:
Live | Paul and Storm

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Labels: podcast

Just want to let everyone know that Monster By Mail is still happening and you can order a monster (with or without video) from me today! Here is today's latest entry: The Marriage of Queen Kamayhemayhem and Her King

Labels: art, monsters

Thanks to Dan the Man for this link.

Labels: funny

Just a quick note...we are a finalist in the Podcast Peer awards in the category of Best Couplecast. We need your vote to win, so please do us a favor and head on over to the Podcast Peer Award Site and give us a vote. You'll have to register, but it's a pretty painless process. Your vote is much appreciated!

Labels: site news

Thanks Chad for this week's Caption photo.

Labels: caption

Thanks to Neil for the linkage.

Labels: funny, video

Over the past week, and on our latest podcast, I was a bit harsh on the city of Cleveland. I may have used words that could be construed as offensive to those Clevelanders with a more sensitive constitution. The words "lame" and "loser" -- maybe even "homosexual" -- could have been used to describe the denizens of this fine city.

But I must issue a retraction due to the overwhelming support that the city of Cleveland showed last night at the Jonathan Coulton/Paul and Storm concert at the Beachland Ballroom. Over two hundred thousand Clevelanders packed the small, over air-conditioned venue making it the most lucrative and sweaty Coulton concert to date. Apparently, the crowd could be seen from space with the naked eye.

All kidding aside, the show was great last night. Lots of people came. Merch was sold and more importantly, it demonstrated that Clevelanders can be cool and support cool things, with or without my berating.

I love you, Cleveland. Stay gold. And accept my apologies.

NOTE: Photo evidence of above stated good time can be viewed at this Internet Slideshow Creator.

And adding more proof of a great show, here is my video version of Paul and Storm's song "Live" in the style of Jonathan Coulton:

Labels: jonathan coulton, music, paul and storm

Ask her. She's lucky to be alive, dabnabbit.

Labels: weird

Proof. We put a ball and an Xbox controller side by side to see which one my daughter would crawl toward. Three out of three, she want for the controller. What does that say?

Labels: videogames

Tonight only! Barbershop vinidication. Bad at video games. Getting ready for the Weed and Feed. Cleveland = Bad. Voicemails. Katie's Toyota. And more stuff you're dying to hear. Thanks for listening and please subscribe.

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Labels: podcast

I know, it sounds like a spammer has taken over the posts of this blog, but really, there isn't another way to bring this cool Joss Whedon project up. I think it's a musical...maybe? Or a campfire sing-along, audience particpation type thing? I'm not sure and I know I'm coming late to the table on this, but it seems pretty darn cool and I'll be watching it next week. Won't you?

Labels: cool

Here's a pretty neat bit of information. Daniel Wilson, one time Jawbone Radio guest and author of the book, "How to Survive A Robot Uprising" will be hosting a new History Channel show called "The Works" starting tomorrow. Check it out if you and your friends are male and between age 25 and 55!

Labels: TV

Dave Devries of The Monster Engine brought this up in the comments. There seems to be a connection between Internet rock star, Jonathan Coulton and Lost in Space alum, Billy Mumy. He also submits some photographic evidence. What say you? And do you think Coulton should be tapped to play Mumy in the upcoming Mumography. (not really happening.) More importantly, did Coulton really write Fishheads?

Labels: jonathan coulton, weird

Got this link from Nephew Mark today. Can this possibly be a real sport? According to this source, it is:

"Stripped to the waist, wearing towels around their shoulders and headphones playing the lulling sound of a moving train to drown out the baying crowd, the men played for four minutes.
Then off came their reading glasses and on went the gloves and the mouthguards.

For three minutes they beat each other and then, when the bell went, the chess board was back in the ring and they picked up the gentlemanly game where they had left off.

"This is the hard part, you are out of breath but you have to keep your wits about you,'' said David Steppeler, a 33-year-old instructor at the local chess boxing club."

Personally, I want to see this on a new version of Wide World of Sports (rest your soul. Mr.Mckay) along with full-blown competitive eating and of course, World Champion foxy boxing.

Labels: weird

I'll let you say it all. Have fun!

Labels: caption

Public Service Announcement for Clevelanders only: You know how people in this town are always saying that Cleveland is a hole and nothing is good here and all the good stuff is somewhere else in the world and we're all going die fire-y horrible deaths at the hands of our inept city management? Maybe that's just me, but I hear stuff like that a lot. So, in order to combat this general malaise with our fine city, I would encourage all of you in the Cleveland area to go and buy your tickets now to the Paul and Storm/Jonathan Coulton show this Friday, July 11th at the Beachland Ballroom. This is only the second time Coulton has been to our city. I was at the last show, and the attendance was weak at best. If no one shows at this performance, we have no one else to blame but ourselves for this city's lameness. Here's your chance to be at the kind of show that years from now, you'll look back and say "Man! I remember seeing these guys when they are the Beachland Ballroom." You get what I'm saying?

While, I'm on the subject of supporting cool things in Cleveland, you may also want to check out the Mercury Project this summer when they play out at the Ingenuity Festival. Editor's comment: I think the Ingenuity Festival is a great showcase and has a lot of potential to push Cleveland's tech scene into the forefront. But I personally feel a little bit better organization would do that event a world of good.

Anyway, end of rant. See you at the show. If not, you fail. Big time.

Labels: jonathan coulton, paul and storm

"Tonight, on this very special episode of Jawbone Radio..."

Tonight's show is very special. In fact, I would call this UBERSPECIAL! Our guest is none other than Bill Corbett of one of our favorite TV Shows of all time, Mystery Science Theatre 3000. Bill talks a lot of his days with MST, Rifftrax and the movie "Meet Dave" starring Eddie Murphy that comes out July 11, which he co-wrote with Rob Greenberg.

A huge heapin' of thanks go out to Paul Sabourin who was able to secure this interview for us and who brought us that much closer to hitting the trifecta of speaking to all three hosts of Rifftrax. Kevin Murphy, we're gunning for ya! Enjoy the show and enjoy your Fourth, you Americans you!

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Labels: podcast

For those interested, I have left my former lobster self in the dust and I have started to Twitter as myself. You may follow me if you get into those type of things.

Labels: site news

So, there are some perks to being friends with Jonathan Coulton and Paul and Storm. One of the perks is that I sometimes get to hear songs before the general public does. As is the case with the Song Fu Challenge that is happening over at Quick Stop Entertainment. These guys are the Masters in the challenge and for Round 2, they upped the ante for the creative. Each Master was to write a song in the style of their competitor. So, essentially, Coulton would cover P and S and vice versa.

I was a bit afraid that that the competition would turn ugly. It's a very thin line between paying homage via parody and mocking someone's creative style. I, for one, didn't want to see my friends come to fisticuffs over a silly little contest. However, I felt torn to honor both their songs without favoring either.

So, I've heard both songs ( and you can too!) and I have to say, they are both brilliant in their own ways. Earlier this week, I posted the image I created for the "Super Secret Song" by Paul and Storm. The song is called ""Live" and it is a syrupy-sweet take on a Dr. Frankenstein type who builds his girlfriend/monster out of spare parts. Out of all the Visual Things A Week I have ever done, this has to be one of my faves. It comes pretty darn close to exactly what I saw in my head while concepting. That's a rare thing for me. So I'm especially proud of this one.

Coulton's take on Paul and Storm is so very over the top, I felt that it needed a equally over-the-top image to go along with it. I'll let you hear the song on your own, suffice the say, it's pretty sophomoric and full of intestinal distress humor. The art was inspired by Mad Maddest Artist, Don Martin, (whose treasury I just read through a few weeks ago and which I highly recommend) and the original Ren and Stimpy Art by John Kricfalusi. I had a lot of fun drawing this one and this too came pretty close to my vision - minus some female fans who were to be placed near BDF's rear end. I think it's better without them.

Overall, the songs are wonderful, completely different and fun. And I think it's pretty neat that I was able to create two distinctly different visual images that match each song pretty well. I feel that fans will have a hard time deciding who they will be voting for in the Master Round of this challenge. In any event, I want - scratch that - I NEED to hear both artists do their own versions of the songs. That would rock.

Labels: art, jonathan coulton, paul and storm