I'm still not sure how I feel about this, but then again, I said the same thing about the Fargo reboot

Galaxy Quest TV reboot progressing.

And I loved the first two seasons of Fargo. The third, not so much, but they can't all be winners.

So I'm trying to be positive and hope that, if done right, this could work. It will be interesting how they explain the absence of Alexander Dane, who was played by the late Alan Rickman. That's gonna be tough to take.

Kitteh pie crust

There are so many jokes I could make about this...

Paw Print Pie?

From Diply.

This is just too cute to pass up

It's a video of a cockatiel singing to a baby. And it's adorbs. Enjoy!

What I want to know is what happens to the 20th Century Fox fanfare if the sale goes through

Most of Fox may be sold to Disney.

This thing has always given me goosebumps. I'd hate to see it lost to history.

Best. Critique partner. Ever.

So a few days ago Malice Domestic released the list of submissions accepted for its upcoming anthology Mystery Most Geographical. Both my critique partner and I had submitted stories and sadly, neither were selected. I was quite bummed and sent her this email:

On the downside, Malice announced the stories for Mystery Most Geographical and neither of us made it. BOO!!! I want to be published again! Malice anthology

I expected her to commiserate. What I was not expecting was this response:

Yes, I was amazed what poor judgment they displayed :))

Okay, that made me laugh. A lot. And then yesterday, it made my Mom laugh. A lot.

For the record, there were ninety-nine stories submitted and thirty made the cut. It will be interesting to read the stories and see how they stack up against ours. Or it might be frustrating. I'll let you know.

MLB trolls the NFL

I'm not a Dodgers fan, so I didn't tune in for Game 7 (or any of the rest of them, for that matter). Based on the results I didn't miss much, but I did miss this:

"In a display that would inspire anyone..." Except, apparently, the Dodgers.

The national anthem was sung by four very talented members of the Los Angeles Police Department and everyone seemed to love it.

Some people consider the choice to be "a silent jab to the NFL" and if so, well played Major League Baseball. I wonder if the packed stadium is also trolling pro football, whose attendance has been plummeting all season due to the controversy generated by a lot of players refusing to stand for the national anthem prior to their games.

Too bad for Dodgers fans that this was the high point of the evening for them. More importantly, the Kings are 10-2-1 in their first 13 games and tied for second most points in the league at 21 as I type this (St. Louis also has 21, Tampa Bay has 22). So L.A. sports fans still have a great season to look forward to!

Seriously though, check out the whole interview. It's terrific and these officers are such wonderful representatives of LAPD and the City of Los Angeles. Just really impressive.

More Kevin Spacey fallout and the state of Hollywood...for now (some observations)

We all know I'm a big fan of MasterClass, so this was one of the first things I thought about when the Spacey sex scandal blew up: Kevin Spacey MasterClass dropped.

And right after that, he was also dropped from tonight's episode of This is Us. Earlier today, Netflix shut down production of the sixth (and final) season of House of Cards. The ripple effect of lost jobs and contracts is hard to fathom, especially for the people behind the scenes. Having worked in post production those are the people I worry about the most. A lot of people just had their personal lives and bank accounts disrupted through no fault of their own.

Spacey has also been stripped of an upcoming honorary Emmy and now the historic Old Vic, where he spent a decade as artistic director, has weighed in.

This "movement" to hold sexual predators in Hollywood liable for their behavior also claimed Andy Dick, who was fired from a movie today, and now Jeremy Piven is under investigation.

The boggling thing about this is how fast it happened. Sunday night I was poking around social media when Anthony Rapp's announcement sent shockwaves through Twitter, and within just a couple hours Spacey's response/non-apology/coming out announcement hit the internet and all hell broke loose. And less than 48 hours later, here we are.

Last week (after Harvey, before Spacey) I was thinking that if this zero-tolerance policy continues it could seriously alter the power structure in the entertainment industry, both onscreen and off. If nothing else, it will be interesting to see who falls and who doesn't. Spacey was a major player - wildly successful as both an actor and producer in film, television, and theatre. He has to be one of the most honored actors around: two Oscars, four Screen Actors Guild Awards, a BAFTA, multiple Emmy nominations, a Tony, two Oliviers and a Drama Desk award, countless critics association awards, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He would have gone down as one of the greatest actors of his generation, if not all time. And now that's all trashed, or at least badly tarnished.

I've read a few things about Harvey Weinstein telling people he'll be back, that this is only a temporary setback. I think that's delusional. I don't know how either Weinstein or Spacey - two of the biggest figures in entertainment - come back from this. Anyone who tries to help refurbishing their careers and images will be deemed as sympathetic to predators and unsympathetic to their victims. In both cases their behaviors seemed to be common knowledge in the industry, but ignored, presumably because of the success they brought with them. I've always loved Spacey as an actor, but I've also heard a lot of rumors over the years that he wasn't the nicest, most decent guy you'd meet in Hollywood (although obviously nothing as horrible as assault on a minor) but I also considered that to be typical of the industry. It's a moral cesspool. But if I've heard that much, I don't buy that active major players in the biz were oblivious to his behavior.

If industry giants like Weinstein and Spacey can be toppled within a couple weeks of each other, I'm not sure anyone is safe. And if their behavior is comparable, I don't think they should be. Personally, I think this is just the tip of the iceberg. With social media and 24/7 news (online and off), Hollywood can't shield their bad behavior from the world like they could in the past. I guess we'll see who's next.

Updated: More shit just got real: Beverly Hills PD investigating sexual assault allegations against Harvey Weinstein and James Toback. Buckle up.

Bah Humbug - Halloween edition

Sure, I laugh now, but back in my trick-or-treating days this would have been most unwelcome.

With all the unsavory news coming out of Hollywood recently, this made me very happy

Gary Sinise named Grand Marshal of the 2018 Tournament of Roses Parade.

Great choice. Can't wait to tune in this year.

October Words of Wisdom

When you stop worrying about what others think about you and are more concerned with what you think about yourself, you will discover an unimaginable sense of freedom. --Sheri Bessi Eckert

Some books you read. Some books you enjoy. But some books just swallow you up, heart and soul. --Joanne Harris

The art of knowing is knowing what to ignore. --Rumi

One of the most important things I've learned in life is to ignore what people say. I watch what they do instead. --Amanda Patterson

Patriotism is not short, frenzied outbursts of emotion, but the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime. --Adlai Stevenson

After a shooting spree, they always want to take the guns away from the people who didn't do it. --William Burroughs

Peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek but a means by which we arrive at that goal. --Martin Luther King, Jr.

The voice of the sea speaks to the soul. The touch of the sea is sensuous, enfolding the body in its soft, close embrace. --Kate Chopin

Honesty has a power that makes a lot of people very uncomfortable. --Unknown

Beautiful things are everywhere, but sometimes, sometimes we look at them every day and we get to where we don't see them. --Bob Ross

May all your blues be the ocean and the sky. --Unknown

Always remember that where you are is a result of who you were, but where you go depends entirely on who you choose to be, from this moment on. --Hal Elrod

Provencal cooking is based on garlic. The air in Provence is impregnated with the aroma of garlic, which makes it very healthful to breathe. --Alexandre Dumas

I must be a mermaid. I have no fear of depths and a great fear of shallow living. --Anais Nin

Blessed are they who see beautiful things in humble places where others see nothing.
--Camille Pissaro

The essential joy of being with horses is that it brings us in contact with the rare elements of grace, beauty, spirit, and fire. --Sharon Ralls Lemon

Some people's idea of free speech is that they are free to say what they like, but if anyone says anything back, that is an outrage. --Sir Winston Churchill

Just because some people are fueled by drama doesn't mean you have to attend the performance. --Cheryl Richardson

Your face will change. Your body will change. The only kind of beauty that endures is the kind that lives in your heart. --Lori Deschene

Being alone has a power that very few people can handle. --Steve Atchison

Spam alert: Email from DomainOrderExpiring.com

So earlier this month I received an unsolicited email from a company called DomainOrderExpiring.com, with an offer to renew a domain name that I own through GoDaddy but haven't actively used. Today I was going through emails that had gotten buried and took a really good look at it, hence this public service announcement.

Their "offer" is that for a cool $75, I can renew the domain name for one year with them, rather than with GoDaddy, which charges me a whopping $16 each year. In fact, DomainOrderExpiring.com is so sure I won't want to pass up this golden opportunity that the email itself is an invoice complete with due date and payment terms.

Pardon the slopping editing. They had my home address on it, which didn't make me happy at all.

Oh, and another thing: This domain name doesn't actually expire until next April. So in addition to paying way more than GoDaddy charges, if I was gullible enough to take this offer, I'd be double-paying for the domain name for almost six months. Or so I initially thought.

Because as it turns out, the email only looks like a domain renewal. Check out the fine print:

So I decided to go to their website to check out DomainOrderExpiring.com and see what their deal is. Maybe their site will clarify their "services" and explain why they're soliciting me as a customer. So I typed in the URL and this is what I got:

This is literally the only thing on the screen.

Well that's not terribly helpful. But I think that's the point.

The sad thing is that they've probably ripped off countless people with this scam. Here's some links I was able to find about these and similar schemes from GigaLaw, Scam Detector, SangFroid Web Design, Hen's Teeth Network, and Domain Name Wire. A quick search will doubtless turn up many more.

This is a recording: MasterClass hits another home run

Hey there, aspiring actors, want to study acting with Samuel L. Jackson? Of course you do. And now you can, and as a bonus, it won't even cost you $100:

More info can be found here.

Other notables sharing their areas of expertise on MasterClass include Martin Scorsese, David Mamet, Serena Williams, Shonda Rhimes, Steve Martin, Reba McIntire, Dr. Jane Goodall, Gordon Ramsey, Garry Kasparov and Herbie Hancock. Do check it out.