Showbiz roundup

In no particular order:

 

Dear Harry and Meghan: It's not an Emmy "snub" if your program was trash, a chunk of the viewership only subjected themselves to it to rip it in YouTube videos, and you're going broke because you really have nothing to offer to the world other than an accident of birth and shameless (albeit admittedly impressive) gold-digging/social climbing skills. The podcast sucked too, oh, and the word you were looking for was stereotypes, not archetypes. Maybe you shouldn't have tried to make a career out of trashing your families. Neither of you are special. Now go away. Also, future Queen Catherine is a goddess.

 

How to not read the room: After losing hundreds of millions of dollars and millions of viewers on woke flicks like Lightyear, Elemental, The Little Mermaid, and Indiana Jones 5 you would think Disney might have learned something about what audiences want and even more importantly, don't want. Nope! YellowFlash 2 on YouTube breaks it down.

As seen on DailyMail.com:

Snow Something.

1 Dwarf and 6 Somethings.

"The Multi-ethnic Portland Hipsters" (at 1:15). 🤣

The actors are on strike too!!! Where oh where will we get our crappy reboots/reimaginings? I'm not saying the studios aren't making ridiculous amounts of money off writers and actors and I'm also not saying that as co-creators they (especially writers) don't deserve a significant piece of that pie. In fact, even with its huge box office losses, Disney has extended Bob Iger's tenure as CEO (WHY???), so studios clearly have money to burn. But these things never seem to go well for the people put out of work for an extended period of time. I guess we'll see, but I think this is just going to be really ugly.
 

How about some good news for a change? It appears Oppenheimer, which opens July 21, is every bit as great as I was hoping. I've been eagerly awaiting this film since the first trailer dropped. To get an idea of just what amazing filmmaking this is, check out this video, which explains not only some of the technical aspects, but also the one hundred day theatrical window that director Christopher Nolan demanded - and got - from Universal. I hadn't heard about this and think it's fantastic. Things need to change in Hollywood and hopefully this will be the start of it.

I wondered where this came from...

So this turned up in my email yesterday:

I didn't know who "AIscreenplaycompetition.com" was or how they got my email address, but I found out this morning: it's good old Scriptapalooza. And boy oh boy, was the blowback quick: Artificial Intelligence Screenplay Competition Opens & Quickly Closes. They've also already taken their website down.

That didn't take long.

With the WGA embroiled in a lengthy strike where one of the key issues is AI, I'm kind of surprised anyone thought this was a good idea. I've already seen a couple of calls for submissions in the short story market where the rules include "NO AI", including one where they mentioned that not only can they spot a story written in AI, but if you submit one they will never consider another submission from you again, ever. So yeah, AI is a sore subject among writers, so again, not sure why this was even considered. 

I haven't played around with AI, ChatGPT, or anything like this (in fact, I'd completely forgotten about this and I wrote a blog post about it), but from a writer's POV it doesn't seem like this is something we want to embrace. Time will tell, but if nothing else, this was really bad timing given the WGA strike. I still think highly of Scriptapalooza - they've been around forever and I've never heard anything negative about them before this debacle - but they really bungled this. That black eye may take some time to heal.

Update 7/8/23: Got this in the email, this time clearly from Scriptapalooza, not AIscreenplaycompetition.com:

Team America, indeed

So yesterday I posted a link to the famous Dodge Challenger/Team America Theme Song mashup that can be found here on YouTube.

After I did so, I scrolled down and started checking out the comments...and some of them are just freaking hilarious! So I decided they needed their own post. Enjoy!

 

Well done, Carlos Kmet on YouTube, and congrats on a well deserved 5 million views!

Happy Fireworks Day!

Hey America! It's your birthday! 

 

I wanted to post the immortal Dodge Challenger/Team America mashup, but it's age restricted on YouTube due to language (FUCK YEAH!!!) so here's a link: Enjoy!

 

I think Sophie may be a bit deaf in her old age. She hardly hides from the fireworks at all anymore.

Now the second worst thing we've done to England after Meghan Markle.

Greetings from the beach! No, I didn't do this, I just snicked it off the internets.

God bless America.

June Words of Wisdom - Reading and Writing

That I can read and be happy while I am reading is a great blessing. --Anthony Trollope

 

Think not of the books you've bought as a "to be read" pile. Instead, think of your bookcase as a wine cellar. You collect books to be read at the right time, the right place, and the right mood. --Luc van Donkersgoed

 

My aim is to put down on paper what I see and what I feel in the best and simplest way. --Ernest Hemingway  

There is something delicious about writing the first words of story. You never quite know where they'll take you. --Beatrix Potter

Writing is the only thing that when I do it, I don't feel I should be doing something else. --Gloria Steinem

Get it down. Take chances. It may be bad, but it's the only way you can do anything good. --William Faulkner

Writing leads to writing. --Julia Cameron (Write for Life)

Recent reading: "Clark and Division"

 Clark and Division by Naomi Hirahara 

 

I scored this critically acclaimed novel in my book bag at California Crime Writers, and since Naomi Hirahara was attending, I was also able to get it signed! 

In Clark and Division, young Aki Ito relates the story of her family - her parents and her adored older sister Rose. The young women are Nisei, first generation American-born children of Japanese immigrants in pre-World War II Los Angeles. Their father is a grocery manager and despite sometimes experiencing discrimination, Aki and Rose have a pretty content life in California. That is until Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor propels the United States into World War II.

The Ito family spends time at Manzanar before being re-settled in Chicago. Rose precedes her family to the windy city by a few months, but when the rest of the Itos arrive they are greeted with horrific news: Rose is dead, having just been hit by a subway car in the Clark and Division Station. 

Having always existed contently in Rose's beautiful, sophisticated shadow, Aki is not only devastated by her sister's death but also compelled to investigate it. When the coroner, who has ruled Rose's death a suicide, informs Aki that her sister recently underwent a highly illegal abortion, she is even more determined to find out what happened and to prove that Rose wouldn't have taken her own life. What follows is a determined journey in which Aki blooms from the mousy, subservient sister into a smart, beautiful, and relentless woman fearlessly taking on the mystery of her sister's brief life in Chicago even when it puts her in dangerous situations, while also dealing with the brutally unfair hand that life has dealt her and her Japanese-American family and community. And she does it with admirable grace and strength.

 

The story sucks you in and I just devoured this book. One thing that really stood out to me was that in addition to Aki, the large number of supporting characters are so well fleshed out. Each is a unique individual with their own voice. While Aki is compelling, she is also surrounded by a colorful cast that rings true.

I didn't realize it until now, but Clark and Division is the first of a series featuring Aki. The second, Evergreen, will be released in August and I'm looking forward to reading more about the life and times of Aki Ito.

So, Sidecar Doughnuts...

I'd been wanting to try Sidecar Doughnuts for some time. When I would check out their website, the flavors looked interesting and unusual, and let's face it, you can't beat a good donut. Yesterday I had to go to the Manhattan Beach mall to drop my phone off at the Apple Store for a new battery, and had to kill an hour while it was being done. I did some grocery shopping at the adjoining Ralph's, and then decided to try and find the Sidecar Doughnuts location at the mall.

 

I almost walked right by the shop, their signage is so small. It's also a very small place - there's no indoor seating. But I wasn't eating there anyway, so that wasn't an issue (they do have a few small tables outside). So how was my overall experience? I wish I was posting this as a rave, but unfortunately...not so much.

First thing I noticed as I approached the door was the sign informing me that Sidecar is a cashless business - always a turnoff for me. Especially when you consider that if you go in for just one donut, or one cup of coffee, you could be forced to use a card for an item that's less than $5. I just find it off-putting to be told I can't pay cash for a low-cost item.

I ordered two donuts: Meyer Lemon and Huckleberry. For some reason they don't have boxes, at least not for this small of an order, so each donut was packaged separately in individual plastic boxes. The guy waiting on me also did not offer me a bag to carry them out in. I thought it was odd that they would use such wasteful packaging for the donuts themselves, but not provide a bag. Also, the donuts are still warm, so as soon as they're boxed up, they start steaming up, which had me concerned that they would get soggy at some point. When I got them home I put them in the fridge so that wouldn't happen.

The donuts are also not cheap. The huckleberry was $4.75 and the lemon was $4.35. Still, the complete order was under $10 and I didn't appreciate the idea that I couldn't pay cash if I wanted to.

But how about the most important aspect? How awesome where these highly-touted donuts?

They were okay. Nothing special, just sort of there. I had the lemon one yesterday and am working on the huckleberry as I type this. They're okay. But what they are not are something I'm going to find myself craving. For four-five bucks per donut, they need to be spectacular and I just don't feel like these lived up to the hype. 

Because I was heading back into the mall and the Apple Store, I didn't order a coffee. I might give it a shot next time I'm there (the laptop also needs a new battery, so I will be back soon) especially since they have peppermint mocha, something I'm a sucker for. But sadly I won't be back for the donuts.

Hopefully, when I get around to checking out the Randy's Donuts on Rosecrans they won't let me down like Sidecar did. Best donuts I've ever had? Golden Donuts in Arcadia. Little family-owned place in a strip mall on Foothill. I don't know what they do differently, but they make the best damn donuts I've ever had. 

Of all the gin joints...

How beautiful is this thing?

 

 

When I opened the box, the book was wrapped in this (a brown paper bag):

Framing this? You bet I am. I just love it!

 

This is a really beautiful book that I haven't even begun to get into. In addition to the drink recipes, each entry has pics and info on the noir film that inspired it. I do have to say that the list of items needed to set up even a basic home cocktail bar is pretty intimidating.

 

You can get your copy (and other great books) from Larry Edmunds Bookstore in Hollywood.

Cheers!

Happy Father's Day

For those of you who still have your Dad, hope you all have a very happy Father's Day! I do miss mine.

Kona Jim

Yay or nay?

Oh lookie - it's a Jaws lamp! Could this be any more tempting? I think not.

Seriously, look at this thing! Especially lit up in the dark!

 

 

Hmmm....

California Crime Writers Conference 2023

I don't know about the rest of you, but I had a wonderful weekend! Saturday and Sunday marked the in-person return of the California Crime Writers Conference, a bi-annual co-production of the Los Angeles chapter of Sisters in Crime and the Southern California chapter of Mystery Writers of America. 

Cool logo, eh? Turns out it was done by the same guy who did the cover art for Entertainment to Die For.

 

In addition to the great panels, I met a bunch of really nice people (for some reason this genre seems to attract fun and funny peeps), and how about this - even though I've never even finished a novel, I had two books in the bookstore:

 

It was really nice to finally be able to attend a conference in person again. This one has the benefit of being in Culver City, the next town over from where I live, so I didn't have to fly in or get a hotel room. Ten to fifteen minutes from my apartment to pulling up in front of the hotel. Easy-peasy.

 

Historic Mysteries panel.

 

I'm already looking forward to 2025!