Think you are a Tough Guy?

I saw this today, linked from a site I frequent. There are a lot of videos from several different years, including one set to "Eye Of The Tiger," but this one really gives the best over view. It also really makes me want to try this:



Anybody with me?

Another stint at Sundance

I covered, sort of, another Sundance Film Festival for the Deseret News. I made several blog entries that I thought were worthwhile but I only turned in one full story which wasn't about a movie at all but about a musician. On the plus side, when I saw her in Park City and when I saw her previously in New York, I left convinced both times that she is a future star. I do mean that.



I had terrible luck with Sundance this year, including transportation. One day my passenger side window refused to go down and my driver side window refused to go up. Driving to Park City in the snow pretty much makes this a car I just couldn't use anymore. Better, the catalytic converter on my other car (the one that didn't give out on the way to Mexico last summer) bit the dust.

When our refrigerator went out we remodeled our kitchen and when my 1996 Honda with 160,000 miles was just one repair beyond acceptable, we bought a new car. Pimped out Accord. Nice car.

Anyway the point was, I saw fewer films and wrote fewer stories than ever before and it makes me a bit sad. I did manage to see some films though.

Wow, "District 9" just got a "Best Picture" nomination from the Academy Awards. It was one of my best pictures to be sure.

I can't quite choke down Hollywood

A reporter I know was on a chartered flight with the Utah Jazz one year near Christmas when the NBA players took up a collection to give the airplane staff a Christmas tip for all their efforts to serve the team. A worthy cause for sure.

But the reporter wasn't just asked to donate, he was asked to donate a specific sum of money by an all-time great NBA player that isn't known for being subtle. The amount was uncomfortably large for the reporter who made at the most $80,000 (but likely less) a year. Meanwhile the poorest rookie on the plane made at least ten times that amount and received a daily per-diem that covered the asked-for tip three times while the reporter's daily travel expenses would barely cover the demanded donation. Other veteran players made more than 100 times the reporter's annual salary but were clueless of the inequality. The reporter, who counted to some degree on the goodwill of players for interviews, paid up.

The Golden Globes celebrated television and film Sunday night and I watched a portion of the program. I am a bit of a story-telling junkie and film especially interests me so I like to see what wins.

Ricky Gervais hosted and was funny because he didn't take Hollywood's stars or the awards too seriously, realizing the ceremony is rich, famous people getting together to congratulate each other. Still film and television is sometimes more than entertainment and stretches into art that can move the soul and enlighten the mind. Ideally, award shows publicize such films to the masses.

The stars gathered Sunday wore ribbons as a symbol of those in devastated Haiti and during the broadcast they took opportunities to remind viewers to donate at NBC.com at a special Golden Globes link to get relief money to the needy.

I can't argue with the sentiment. Apparently George Clooney, according to a few who spoke on television, didn't even want to be at the Globes and will soon be organizing a phone bank and a telethon to raise money. Again, nice sentiment. But I would like to know the combined income of all the producers, writers, directors and actors in the Golden Globe audience and I would like to know how much money they have donated to the cause. I want to know if say, 10 percent of the money made by 'Avatar' has been sent to Haiti. I would sleep better knowing one percent of its $1 billion at the box office is on its way, sent by the studios, actors and talent assembled to take kudos on television.

How about the giant sponsoring companies of the telecast pitch in a percentage of what they paid in advertising last night trying to get people to buy mascara? Maybe NBC could send five percent of its money made on the telecast to Haitians. I don't fault Clooney for setting up phone banks. I congratulate him for it but I would like to know that he, like viewers were urged to do, dug deep and gave what he could.

Maybe instead of spending money on limos last night all the stars could have taken taxies or carpooled and sent the difference to Haitians and made a dramatic statement by doing so. Such actions would carry a lot more weight than looking in the camera and telling me to look into my heart. Or, they could show up in jeans and send the red-carpet dress money they didn't spend to Haiti or donate the rental expenses of costume jewelry. If they did that and then asked me to dig deep and give what I could I would feel a lot better about it. (Yes, I realize this would hurt dress designers, jewelry folks and limo companies and I don't want an economic boycott, it is just that these things seem especially overboard.)

My favorite idea is that movie studios all get together with the support of stars and television networks (often owned by the same conglomerates) and pick a day as "Haiti movie day" when they promote and then donate all the proceeds of one day's box office to Haiti. I bet the public would support this in a big way, knowing the $10 movie ticket would help victims of the earthquake.

To be clear, we should all donate time and money and the Hollywood stars are doing the right thing by promoting help but I would feel a lot better knowing they are donating a proportional amount - or perhaps a greater proportion - than the average middle-class donor.

And, so as not to be thought of as a hypocrite, I have given time this week to helping stock and supply food for the hungry and I will be making Haiti donations as well but none of that had anything to do with prompting of stars. Incidentally, I hope I am dead wrong and would love to learn that all those big-income stars with big-expense lifestyles have already done the right thing.

Here are some stories about what citizens of Utah (none of them rich or famous) are doing for Haitians:
Out of Haiti comes relief and sorrow
Utahns assemble kits for Haitians
Salt Lake couple working to help Haitian orphans
Family's prayers answered by loved ones — safe and sound
LDS medical team arrives in Haiti
Dispersing LDS aid challenging

Fictional Frontiers

From time-to-time I am invited on a radio program that airs live in Philly called "Fictional Frontiers." The host is Sohaib, who uses the program to have a serious discussion about popular culture.

Often the discussions are live, which was difficult for me when they were Sunday mornings but recently they moved to Monday afternoons in the City of Brotherly Love, which is great for my schedule. Once I called him from Mexico on a family vacation which was pretty fun actually.

Monday the 11th of January he will air a recorded segment we did almost a month ago where we look back on the impact of Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings," movies had on the world of movies and fantasy. I can't lie, I find the whole radio-guest concept pretty fun. I can't say why exactly but I guess I like to air my views in the same way I like to blog or write for TheOneRing.net.

Since I edit and do other things for a living, having a writing outlet really helps tremendously for the comfort of my soul. I am not sure the radio doesn't do the same thing. I am told once a month, usually on the phone, that I have a great radio voice and should "do" radio for a living. It sounds fun actually but I am confident that in reality such a career might actually pay worse than journalism and would definitely be far less glamorous than it seems at first blush.

Anyway, being slightly self promotional, if you care to listen live Monday you can do so here or here. After about a week or so you can pick up the program on a podcast here where a lot of great past shows are archived, some with me, many more without. It airs live from 5 - 6 p.m. EST.

A nomination for TheOneRing.net

I spend a fair amount of energy and time building and supporting TheOneRing.net. Long story short: I had some passion, accidentally crossed paths with others who were passionate about shared interests and made some dear friends who had started TORn, a site I used and admired.

For a few years now I have presented for the site at conventions, written, photographed and helped with events around the country including San Diego, Atlanta, Orlando and New York. I have had some spectacular, memorable times. I serve as senior staff and consider it an honor to work on something great for the J.R.R. Tolkien community with people I respect.

The site has been nominated by Total Film Magazine, which I have read here and there over the years, as "Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy Blog". It is a magazine and a Website I happen to think is respectable and cool, so the nomination and possible award means something.

Voting for the winner however, will pretty much pit the audience of the other nominations against the fanbase of the franchises they service. It will end up being Harry Potter fans vs. Twilight fans vs. Tolkien fans and clearly (at least to me) one group is less prone to enthusiastic voting and swamping the poll. It is challenging to match the enthusiasm of a largely teen audience who perhaps isn't widely read and may lack some perspective of where their favorite books fit (if at all) in the literature landscape. I don't mean that as an insult either. I love passionate fans.

I shouldn't care who wins, especially since the voting is done by fans and to outsiders all the sites probably look the same.

But I do care.

Can't help it.

I don't have proof but I actually don't think some of the other Websites would exist, or at least not as they do, if not for TORn. "Our" site (I have no actual ownership) owes a debt to TheForce.net. TORn came along in 1999 and helped put fans websites on the map. Anyway, I am really pulling for TORn despite knowing better.

In related news, a segment I recorded for radio show Fictional Frontiers will air soon and then be available as podcast. Details are on the site but this was in behalf of TheOneRing and I quite enjoyed the chat.