CNN fallout. Sunny D and Rum. My new wife's name. Huge Guy. Enjoy the show!
AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION PORTION: (record this scene called "Huge Guy Reminisces" by either calling the GeekLine at 216.236.GEEK or recording it and sending it jawboneradio AT gmail dot com. The best reading done without laughing will get a prize pack featuring a pack of Geek A Week cards and a collection of books including a copy of "Silly Rhymes For Belligerent Children". This is what the huge guy actually said to Nora:)
"My breakup came out of left field. I went home because I live with my girlfriend. I took a shower. She took a shower. We made love. Which was awesome. Powerful. She even told me it was the most passionate lovemaking we've ever done. And now - it's all over."
Things have been really busy here at the Nobby Annex and it's been pretty tough to record a new show over the past few weeks. We are going to attempt to record a new show tonight, but in the meantime here are some places where you can hear (at the very least) my voice.
I've been doing a lot of press interviews for Trace Beaulieu and my new book "Silly Rhymes For Beligerent Children" (which is available now , BTW). You can hear Trace and I yammer on a radio show called "Spare The Rock, Spoil The Child" .
Trace are I are on a podcast called "Comics Are Go!" recorded right here in Cleveland. My part is being broken into two parts. So you can hear part one if you go to the link on iTunes.
And a nice little feather in my cap is that my Geek A Week project was just covered by CNN.com. I'm pretty humbled by the article and it's pretty amazing to have some of my geek heroes and heroines saying complimentary things about my art. Check that out here.
Like I said, with any luck, a new Jawbone tonight. Thanks for sticking with us!
This story starts back in San Diego during Comic-Con and w00tstock.
One of the drawbacks of being Len Peralta and performing at a w00tstock event is that you fail to hang out with all the cool people backstage because you are onstage for 80% of the night working. This was especially true when I drew in San Diego. I missed the banter between Rifftrax and Grant Imahara and Aaron Douglas and Phil Plait. Yes, it was a huge sacrifice but someone had to draw the poster.
Anyway, while I'm drawing, coloring and making pretty pictures, I get to listen to the performances. This is tough when there are slides to look at, but in the case of singer/songwriter Marian Call, it was perfect. The music was soothing. Her voice was angelic and as I was sitting there drawing, I was consciously making a mental note that I needed to become more acquainted with her music. Not only that, but I needed to download everything she has ever recorded as soon as I possibly could.
Fast forward to Atlanta and DragonCon. Marian and I were able to see each other again in the hotel bar. I asked Marian how her 50 state tour was going and when and if she was going to play in Cleveland. She told me that she hadn't booked a show yet, which shocked me. She also suggested that maybe I could host a house party to bring her to town.
At some point after I got back, I decided to host it - on one condition: It had to be totally anonymous for me as a host and that I had to have control over who was coming to my house. Marian said this was par for the course, but I wanted to be really safe about this and even though my celebrity (if you can call it that) is definitely spelled with a small "c", I didn't want this to become a Jawbone Radio party. Hence the reason the Cleveland show was not as heavily publicized as her other shows.
I decided if I was going to do this, that I was going to go all out - with an opening act and everything. So I called my good friend Mike Lombardo and asked if he would be willing to open up for Marian. I knew that they were trying to connect and play out with one another and I thought this was a perfect opportunity. Mike met my request with a heathy "HELL YEAH!" and the concert planning was underway.
Mike opened up the show on Friday with a quick, fun and quirky 30 minute set. I was able to videotape the whole thing, but because I am an idiot and I failed to figure out how to operate my video camera (coupled with the fact that I told Mike not to bring any lights) the video looks like it was shot by a blind person with enormous cataracts. The good news is that you don't need eyes to hear the wonderful music.
Marian took the "stage" a few minutes after Mike and she totally rocked it out. One of the issues I was having when I was inviting people I knew was that they had never heard Marian or Mike's music, plus people couldn't wrap their head around the fact that we were having a live concert in our home. So I was met with a lot of lukewarm reception and hemming and hawing. The good news is that the people who did decide to make it were completely blown away. And a survey of the people I talked to was completely positive. Thank you to all who came. You all understand what I've been trying to communicate about Marian and Mike's music for the past month or so.
Another cool thing about hosting the show was that my kids were able to play a few songs of their own and also backup Marian on a few songs. Now, before you start thinking that this was just a case of an over zealous dad trying to shoehorn his kids awkwardly into a situation, my kids do an awesome job playing out. I know I'm not being a dad loving everything his kids do, either. I've been posting some vids of my kids playing in the basement and they are no slouches. Check em out for yourself. They call themselves Lumpia, BTW, which is the name of a Fliipino eggroll in case you were wondering. (plus someone started a Facebook fan page for them.)
Here are my kids playing Marian's "punk" song called "We're Out For Blood". As far as I know, this is the only live punk band recording of this tune. The other versions of this song are either the slowed down Kumbayah version and the hard rocking version of this song which was recorded for Whole Wheat Radio featuring a mandolin and acoustic guitar accompaniment. The fact that the only live punk band version of the song is with my kids makes it even that more awesome. They played another song with Marian, but since that song is currently unreleased, I have to sit on it for a while. But trust me, it will be well worth the wait. Another reason why the live event was the place to be.
At some point during the night, I think it might have been during Marian's song "Got To Fly" (which is below) the night become something else for me entirely. I couldn't believe that I had actually pulled it off. I told Marian in an e-mail after the night was over that this was how I saw it:
A few years ago, a few of my close relatives rented out several houses at Virginia Beach and took a real Brady Bunch sort of vacation. It was huge. 4 or 5 families plus some friends sharing houses and a private beach and simply enjoying the time we had. During that vacation, I was sitting in the courtyard of one of the houses watching my children and their cousins and friends running around with sparklers, underneath the trees and against the yellow orange backdrop of the slowly setting sun. There was something very important about that time in the courtyard. I was witnessing a real, honest and cherished memory being created. A transcendent something that my whole family could look back on and remember for the rest of their lives.
This night was one of those nights.
I am so glad that I decided to take the risk and host the concert. It was one of the most amazing nights I've ever been involved in and what my family and friends were able to experience far outweighed the risk that Nora and I took.
I don't regret hosting this at all. In fact, I hope I get the chance to do it again. I'm humbled that I was able to share in some of the awesome that is being created by these wonderful performers. Part of me selfishly hopes I can stave off the inevitable rising stars of Mike and Marian and expect to, at some point, replicate the night. Impossible, sure. But I am glad to take with me the memories I have.
Thank you Marian and Mike for one unforgettable night.
We're back after our longest hiatus ever. Brought back from the depths with a brand new show featuring fascinating talk about Spider Solitaire and self-important talk of meeting celebs in Atlanta. Enjoy and if you like the show, please subscribe!
For those of you interested in seeing me at DragonCon in Atlanta, here's a quick rundown of where I will be. I hope to meet some/all of you!
Friday, September 4 1:00 PM Podcasting Track Kick Off Join us as we kick off our fifth year as a part of Dragon*Con I'm on this panel with Tom Merritt, Bobby Blackwolf, Veronica Belmont, Brian Ibbott and P.G. Holyfield Hilton 204
2:30 PM Silly Rhymes For Belligerent Children This is the one you don't want to miss. Trace Beaulieu and I will be talking about our new book, plus I'll be making some major announcements regarding Geek A Week. Be there! Marriott A-601-602
5:30 PM Tech News Today I will be guest hosting on TWiTs Tech News Today with Tom Merritt and others. I'll also be manning the TWiT table at various times during the weekend. Be sure you're following me on Twitter for updates. See the link to the right.
Saturday, September 5 1:00 PM Podcasts and Marketing to the Masses The trailblazers of podcast marketing discuss what has worked, what hasn’t, and what’s next. I'm on this panel with Scott Sigler, Brian Brushwood, Veronica Belmont, Brian Ibbott, Michael A. Stackpole and Grant Baciocco Hilton 204
I think that's it! I'll be around various places signing books and such. You never know where I'll be! Looking forward to meeting you all in Atlanta.
So, we took the month of August off. Hopefully no one missed us too badly. We'll be back in September with some new shows.
In the meantime, here are a couple of updates:
I'll be at DragonCon this weekend promoting my new book with MST3K and Cinematic Titanic's Trace Beaulieu entitled "Silly Rhymes for Belligerent Children". The panel for the book will be Friday afternoon at 2:30. If you're attending the con, I'll see you there!
I'll also be making some pretty cool/big announcements regarding my other project Geek A Week. So if you're a fan, be sure to be watching for those.
TOTALLY UNBELIEVABLE!I have two books coming out this week! The second book is entitled "WANTED UNDEAD OR ALIVE" by Jonathan Maberry and it hit store shelves tomorrow.
Lots going on. Really busy. Gotta run! See you in September!
On this show, it's all about the w00tstock wrap-up. I chat about the aftermath of my experience in Chicago and Minneapolis and what it was like drawing in front of 600 and 700 person crowds. Also, Nora chats about a mimicking neighbor.
I'll have a proper wrap-up via podcast later today, but I wanted to share a taste of the awesome experience I had at w00tstock Chicago and Minneapolis. Cue awesome video below.
Tonight, we welcome our son Patrick as he celebrates his 15th birthday. He regales us with tales of what makes him embarrassed and also plays some Coulton and "Bleatles" on his guitar for us.
At the risk of sounding like that British guy from those infomercials, I am bursting with excitement to share this big news with you. I will a special guest at W00tstock Chicago and Minneapolis on June 6 and 7th.
What will I be doing there? Good question. I will be drawing, live in front of the audience, the official poster for W00tStock Chicago and W00tstock Minneapolis. Then after the show, you'll be able to order the poster that you watched me draw live. Not only that, but for a few extra bucks, you'll be able to have yourself drawn into the poster. And I'm not saying this will be a big group shot. I mean, you will be drawn into the poster, essentially personalizing the poster for yourself. Imagine, your own personlized W00tstock poster. These will be only available for order ON THE NIGHT OF THE SHOW. These will not be available to buy after the show is done. So save your pennies for the event because I don't think anyone else has done anything like this before. It will be a lot of fun and certainly a challenge. But I think I'm up for it. I've been doing drawing calisthenics for the past six months and I think I'm going to be ready to go by June.
On tonight's show, we talk about ugly folk, freaks, Tod Browning and my night at Dr. Sketchy drawing hot models. Thanks for listening and if you like the show, please subscribe!
On this episode of Jawbone (first new one in two weeks!) we chat about a weird story from my travels, a beard of ants, Crystal Bowersox and more. Thanks for listening!
So sickness has overtaken the household, so unfortunately, we don't have a new show for you this week. (Plus, we're off next week for the holiday.) Luckily for you though, you still have something to listen to! For the first time in five years, I have started a new podcast. The show is called Geek A Week and it's the podcast component of my new art project of the same name, I'm making public my phone interviews with the different influential geeks I'm talking with. I thought it would appropriate to give you a chance to listen to it, and if you dig it, go ahead and subscribe!
The first episode of Geek A Week features the geeky lady we all know and love, Veronica Belmont.
Enjoy! And we'll see you with a new Jawbone in a few weeks.
On this episode, Nora and I talk about such diverse topics as powdered milk, problems with cable TV and our quest to interview Ke$ha. Thanks for listening!
A little late to the party here, (literally). Fans of Paul and Storm have probably seen this already, but I was fortunate to be asked to be in Paul's 40th birthday greeting video. You'll see me, along with some much more notable geeks in the video. And don't forget to stick around for the Kevin Murphy portion at the very end. (NSFW because of language, just letting you know). Enjoy!
On tonight's show, we record the show twice, something we haven't done in quite a while. But I think the show came out better the second time anyway. Thanks to all those in the chatroom who actually got two shows for the price of one. Tonight we talk about auto-tuning, geeks, and much, much more. If you like the show, subscribe!
For those of you who aren't following me on Twitter or Facebook, I have started a new art project called Geek A Week. Not only that, I started a brand new blog to document it! You can check it out here. Enjoy!
CNN fallout. Sunny D and Rum. My new wife's name. Huge Guy. Enjoy the show!
