'Music Man' of all seasons

Buzz Halsing prefers the complexity of modern musicals to the chestnuts of American theater, and there's no denying that "The Music Man" falls into the latter category.

Indeed, Meredith Willson's tale of Professor Harold Hill and his efforts to swindle the good people of River City, Iowa, is marking its 50th anniversary in 2007. The musical is regularly staged by everyone from professional companies to high schools and certainly qualifies as an unabashed warhorse.

In the main picture for this story you can see the intricacy of the backdrops. In the secondary picture (above) you can see me on the right.

Eddie and Megan Simpsonized

As part of the promotional blitz for The Simpsons Movie, there is a Simpsonize Me site (sponsored by Burger King) where you can upload a photo of yourself and have it transformed into a Simpsons version of yourself (tweaking is required). Megan created versions of both of us, which I think are pretty impressive.

Graphic novel captures 'Heroes'

The hit NBC series Heroes is full of characters that could be torn from the pages of a graphic novel. The odd thing is, except for artwork on the show and a series of online adaptations, there has never been a Heroes graphic novel.

That changes this fall, when DC Comics offers a hardcover collection based on a series of 43 comic-book vignettes that appeared on the Heroes website last season.

You might remember that I mentioned the online comics back in October. The weekly series is up to Chapter 43, since they keep publishing them even when the show isn't airing.

'The Simpsons Movie' Hometown Premiere Contest

Cast your vote for the Springfield video that best represents "Simpson Spirit" and is most-deserving of hosting the hometown premiere of The Simpsons Movie, which hits theaters July 27. Voting ends July 9 at 11:59 pm PT. Please note that to view this presentation, you need a broadband Internet connection and the latest Flash plug-in (version 8 or higher).

The Springfield, Oregon video is pretty entertaining. Watch the credits, too.

Taco Bell using ripoff of Eels song?

I'm a fan of Eels (the band), and a recent Taco Bell commercial for "Fourth Meal" caught my attention because it uses music that sounds suspiciously like the song "Souljacker, Pt. 1" from the Eels album Souljacker.

First, listen to the song.


Next, listen to the commercial. It took me a while to track it down online, but you can see it if you follow these directions. Go to FourthMeal.com, then click on the "Theatre" link on the bottom. After the Theatre has loaded, click and drag off the "World Stops" ticket and it will begin playing the commercial.

You might be thinking that this is no big deal because musicians routinely license their songs or re-workings of their songs for advertisements. But the singular force behind Eels (Mark Oliver Everett, or "E") absolutely refuses to license his work for commercials (see FAQ). So either E has changed his stance or Taco Bell is doing something untoward. Because their commercial's music is way too similar for it to be an accident.

Marriage of Convenience: 7-Eleven, 'Simpsons'

After months of speculation, the convenience chain has revealed details of its "most massive and complex" monthlong promotion for the July 27 release of "The Simpsons Movie." Starting today, the marketer will remodel overnight a dozen stores in the U.S. and Canada into the Kwik-E-Marts of the cartoon family's fictional Springfield, USA hometown.

Check out this Flickr photo set of a converted store in Burbank, CA.

Big bats back dominant Lincecum

SAN FRANCISCO -- There were a lot of zeros in Sunday's game, mostly under the Diamondbacks' run column, but the biggest zero of all for starting pitcher Tim Lincecum was the one next to the number of walks issued.

We saw this game today and it was exciting despite the fact Barry Bonds didn't hit any homers. Really, how often do you see a 13-0 game? Plus, after it was over, the All-Star lineup was announced.

Guitar Riff

It's been noted by some that the central guitar riff in Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is very similar to that of Boston's "More Than A Feeling." But there are actually a couple of other songs I've noticed that use a similar riff (though it took me a long time to make the connection). Play the file below (requires QuickTime) to hear them and tell me if I'm just crazy (or if there are others I'm unaware of.

Update: It appears that due to Apple's DRM restrictions, that 23-second sound clip cannot be played by anyone else than myself. Good job protecting us all from my pirating ways, record labels!

So try this one instead:

Half Moon Bay photos

Follow the linked image below to see some photos of our weekend visit to Half Moon Bay. As an added bonus, they're the first pictures of me with my new glasses.

Half Moon Bay

London, How do I Hate Thee? Let me Count the Ways, 1, 2… 2012

The London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games ... unveiled the identity of their 2012 games ...

Designed by Wolff Olins at an expenditure of £400,000 (almost $800,000) the logo has been met with expected ambivalence, and, in some unavoidable cases, hatred — actually, so far, in 11,550 cases.

Regal Guest Response System Offered in 114 Theatres

Regal Entertainment Group theatres participating in the Guest Response System invite selected patrons to carry a paging device with them into the auditorium. One patron may participate for each of the theatre’s auditoriums and for each movie showtime. The Guest Response device is a hand-held pager with four buttons. Each button alerts local management of a different problem such as: sound, picture, piracy or other disturbance. When the patron pushes a button, a message goes to a pager worn by a manager which tells them the nature of the concern, and in which auditorium.

I SO want to be a movie narc. Check out the list of participating theatres to see if one's near you (there are five in the Portland area). The HACIENDA CROSSINGS STADIUM 20 in Dublin is one we visit pretty regularly, although the IMAX crowds there are usually quite well-behaved.

Mo. man burns books as act of protest

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Tom Wayne has amassed thousands of books in a warehouse during the 10 years he has run his used book store, Prospero's Books.

But when he wanted to thin out the collection, he found he couldn't even give away books to libraries or thrift shops; they said they were full.

In the future world of Fahrenheit 451, no one was allowed to have books because the government burned them. But in the true world of 2007, books are being burned simply because no one is reading them.

Nation's Springfields vie for 'Simpsons Movie' premiere

"The Simpsons," the television cartoon satire that inspired cult-like loyalty among millions of viewers worldwide over its 18 years, is set in a never clearly defined but incredibly dysfunctional place called Springfield. That has led to a raging debate about which of the more than 30 U.S. towns named Springfield is the model.

Wow, there's a real Shelbyville, Ill., not far off from the real Springfield, Ill. But what about North Haverbrook?

China's Tech Generation Finds a New Chairman to Venerate

Since the passing of Chairman Mao Zedong, a new chairman has come to represent the aims and aspirations of millions of Chinese youth -- the chairman of Microsoft, Bill Gates.

This is a very surreal story. And this quote is maybe the most surreal of all:

"Bill Gates deserves to win the Nobel Peace Prize," said the Chinese propaganda officer.

Could Linkin Park, Green Day, Nine Inch Nails Be The Next U2?

Everyone's heard the saying A&R guys have been kicking around for decades to describe the hottest up-and-comers: "the next Beatles." While this title has been liberally conferred upon many acts since the Beatles' prime, no artist has really been as big a hit or had as profound an influence on pop culture as the Fab Four. But U2 have come pretty damn close.

So forget the Beatles — we're more interested in who's poised to become the next U2. Here are some notable candidates.

I've never liked the oft-asked question 'Is so-and-so the next so-and-so?' Why can't the former just be themselves? Why does the latter need to be replaced? The more accurate question that headlines this interesting story is: "Are some of today's rockers modeling themselves after Bono's band of Irish lads?" There are certainly worse people to emulate.

10 Biggest Apple Rumors (that never came true)

With Apple rumors getting spread further around than ever (and regular coverage from national news media), it’s important to remember that many (most?) tend to be either completely untrue or so premature they never come true. So here’s a look back at 10 of the worst offenders.

This is my latest feature-length post for The Apple Blog. I wrote it before I left for Chicago and it published this week.

HOWEVER... I did not give them numbers. The list was never intended to be in any kind of ranking order; they're not even in the order I wrote them.

After reading some comments, I would agree that the PowerBook G5 should have been on the list. I considered it a more realistic expectation and hadn't truly examined the depth of the rumors of its existence. I also smiled when I read "Dugg for pleasantly surprising me by putting the whole list on one page."

Will the third time be the charm with Disney's Muppet revival project?

Jim Hill walks us through the recent history of the Muppet Holding Company / Muppet Studios LLC. Which has blown through a trio of seasoned Disney VPs in the past three years. So now the question is: Does Lylle Breier really have what it takes to restore Jim Henson's once-beloved set of characters to their former glory?

I've seen the Muppets sporadically over the last few years (I wasn't aware of the French language show, though) and wondered exactly what was going on (Pizza Hut commercials?). Thanks to another inside dish from Jim Hill, more fully understand the behind-the-scenes politics.

If you've seen Spider-Man 3, you will probably find this interview interesting. I think it explains why the film was a little more crammed than it should've been. But even with all the new characters and villains, I don't think it suffered as much as the Batman franchise from packing in too much: starting with Batman Returns (3 villains), continuing the trend with Batman Forever (2 villains, 1 sidekick) and ultimately wrecking with Batman and Robin (3 villains, 2 sidekicks)
Talking (Spider) Sense with 'Spider-Man 3' Director Sam Raimi

Primarily, it was a story that featured the Sandman. It was really about Peter, Mary Jane, Harry and that new character. When we were done, Avi Arad, my partner and president of Marvel at the time, came to me and said "Sam, you're not paying attention to the fans enough. You need to think about them. You've made two movies now with your favorite villains and now you're about to make another one with your favorite villains. The fans love Venom. He is the fan-favorite. All Spider-Man readers love Venom. Even though you came from '70s Spider-Man, this is what the kids are thinking about. Please incorporate Venom. Listen to the fans now."

As much as I like the story of the black suit and Venom, I don't think he should've altered things based on Arad's perception of fan desires.

Chicago & Internet Access

I'm currently attending the American Association of Museums Annual Meeting in Chicago. Internet access from the conference costs $10 per day. Internet access from the hotel I'm staying at costs $13 per day. This is why I haven't been online since Friday evening. I'm writing this from a cafe one block from the hotel that offers free wireless access.

So to recap: the two places that require a payment of hundreds of dollars to attend ask for an additional fee for Internet access. The one place that you don't have to pay a single cent to is giving it away for free. Hmmm.

The Electric Co. Spider-Man

See, this is the Spider-Man I got to enjoy watching as a kid. And nowadays people are complaining about Spider-Man 3 being not so great?