Lennie Weinrib

Over at Mark Evanier's site (a link to which you'll find over on the side) he has posted several items, including video links, about his friend Lennie Weinrib. If you click on the above headline you'll get over to the Internet Movie Database page which has a partial listing of Mr. Weinrib's career. Looking at it was like getting a flashback to a lot of my childhood. As a writer/performer on many of the Sid & Marty Krofft's shows his voice (and he seemed to have dozens of them) was heard by all of us kids.

Mark also mentions, with another link, that Mr. Weinrib was the voice of "Timer" a character used in a number of nutrition cartoons which ran on ABC for seemingly decades. The spot Mark uses is about cheese. There are still times when I find myself singing part of the tune ("I hanker for a hunk of cheese!").

My sympathy and condolences go out to Mr. Weinrib's family and many friends.

Summer viewing

Sorry, but I haven't had much chance to post this past week. Things have been pretty busy at work between catching up on things for the end of the fiscal year and my assistant manager being on vacation. Add to that some major air conditioner problems at the library.

With most of our faves in rerun or off for the summer, Donna and I have been watching a few new shows plus checking out things on the higher cable stations we have had to miss.

THE 4400 is back on USA and is just as good as ever. The Returnees are gaining increasing strength and even some new powers. We were sorry to see the passing of Lilly (actress Laura Allen) and are intrigued by Isabelle's rapid aging. Jeffrey Combs, as scientist Kevin Burkhoff, is for me the most fascinating character, and possibly the best actor on the show. I can't wait to see what changes is going to undergo via his research and self-experimentation. I had the opportunity to actually see Combs in person at a FANGORIA Convention and found him very funny and friendly in public. I also don't think we have seen the last of the presumed dead (and missing) Collier, former leader of the 4400 Institute.

I'm embarrassed to admit that I have been watching LAST COMIC STANDING and the first episode of AMERICA'S GOT TALENT. Both of these are of the 'car wreck' variety of shows, being so bad at times that you can't turn them off. Of course, the idea of David Hasselhoff judging these folks is amusing in itself. I'm one of those folks who don't have strong feelings one way or the other about Hasselhoff, sometimes actually finding him funny. He reminds of me Lee Majors, basically an actor who lucked into a couple of roles which clicked for a brief time. Naturally, I'm willing to watch Regis any time. :-)

Havana Passage by Jay Lillie: A review

This is going to be passed along to the Joe Bob Briggs folks for eventual posting.

I took this book on the cruise, but didn't have as much chance to read it as I had hoped. Ended up finishing it during my daily commutes. While, as I state in the review it reminded me of the similar PATRIOT TRAP I reviewed a few weeks ago, it was a decent read if you don't go all political about this type of thing.
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HAVANA PASSAGE by Jay Lillie
Published by Ivy House Publishing Group
ISBN: 1571974520

With the end of the Cold War writers of thriller/suspense novels have had to search for a new foe for their heroes to confront. International drug cartels just don’t cut it anymore, so since 9/11 various Islamic nations or ‘terrorist’ groups have become the main focus.
While the last few Communist nations (China & North Korea, for example) can still cast their evil shadows over the U.S. and their allies, it really amazes me that some authors seem to let their gaze wander only ninety miles from our shores.

In the past few months this is the second book I’ve reviewed in which the main character and his/her companions are threatened by elements in Cuba. In both, the chief protagonist ends up in Havana, caught between parties attempting to overthrow the Castro government or attempting to gain power when the current regime ends with Fidel’s passing. Also, oddly enough, in both novels the characters at some point are escaping from Cuba by boat only to be caught off the Florida Keys in approaching storms or hurricanes. I guess this happens more frequently than you’d think.

When a fishing vessel is stopped by the U.S. Coast Guard off the coast of Cuba, it is discovered that one of the men aboard is without documentation. When the boat’s owner is arrested and his boat confiscated this triggers a series of events which brings together law student Kate Stevens, Washington D.C. lawyer Gordon Cox and the first female President of the United States. The President, looking to end the decades old trade embargo, sends Kate and Gordon (who at one time dated Kate’s mother) to Havana in order to discover what the reaction might be to such a decision. The lawyers find that things are much more complicated than they appear with angry Cuban exiles on one side and a possible coup by Army officers on the other. Add to this mix the mysterious Santiago deCristo, a one time member of Castro’s elite guard who has his own reasons to return to his native land.

Writer Lillie brings an old fashion feel to his book, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’s a fast read, ideal for vacation reading. The author throws in the occasional sexual detail and “F” bomb, but it feels as if he is doing it more to appeal to a section of readership who want that sort of thing, rather than something which comes naturally. While the character of the President never rises above reminding me of Geena Davis in COMMANDER IN CHIEF, Lillie brings enough life to the rest of his cast to pull the book up a notch from similar fare.

Three stars

Tortola, British Virgin Islands

Just to give you an idea of one of the shopping areas in Tortola. There was a less 'scenic' one right outside the pier area, but this one was located near the main shopping district where most of the tour buses loaded up.

I wouldn't mind going again, to have a chance to check out the beaches. You can sit by the fountain with chickens running around you, drinking cokes and local beers. Pretty pleasant way to spend an hour or so.

Shots of San Juan

A few shots at Casa Bardardi, including your's truly in front and the open bar. Also a couple showing the fort at the entrance to the harbor of San Juan, as well as the view from our balcony. That's not Donna, but the lady in the next cabin checking out the sites. I feel bad that I can't recall her name at this point, since we had several nice conversations in the early mornings peaking around the balcony seperation.

So what's the 2nd worst?

As near as I can figure there are around twenty folks who read this and my other blog on a fairly regular basis. Of those, there can't be more than a handful that will know what I'm talking about in the next paragraph. Are you one of the chosen few?

It will be hard for those of you who know me and have read Ted Rall's "The Worst Thing I've Ever Done!" to believe that I am actually being considered for a certain position in California. I'd probably be better off not jinxing it, but it does make me stop and consider the things I've done in the past. If there is such a thing as Karma (as the title character in MY NAME IS EARL would say) it's about to bite my a**.

Just some catch up!

Was sorry to hear belatedly of the passing of comics great Alex Toth. His work on ZORRO, his own BRAVO FOR ADVENTURE, Archie's BLACK HOOD and dozens of other titles made him an inspiration to a number of working artists. I had the opportunity to meet and speak briefly with him at a convention about a decade ago. He was polite and couldn't have been nicer as I gushed in typical fanboy fashion. Rest in peace and my condolences to his family.

Surprised this morning to find that both the Rachel Maddow Show and Jerry Springer morning shows on Air America Radio spent a few minutes on DC Comics announcement of the new BATWOMAN. I'm sure that this won't be the only things we hear, not all of them positive. (Anybody want to bet that Pat Robertson will have a few words about this?) I don't know anything about the new DC continuity post-Infinety Crisis, but isn't this a real ret-con of an old character? Unless this isn't the same BW who used to run with Batman in the Silver Age. Apparently she's having a lesbian relationship with another character who has only recently come out.

Also heard that Warner Bros. is moving up the premiere of the latest SUPERMAN film to a week before July 4th. I had also not known that they were going to edit in some Marlon Brando footage, with the late actor appearing as Jor-El. Anybody know if they are using the dialogue from the first film or are they using a voice actor?

Carnival Legend: An incident at sea

Some of you will recall that Donna and I sailed on a Caribbean cruise last week on the Carnival Legend. You may also have seen that ship in the headlines the last day or so.
The next few days I’m going to be telling you about the cruise and posting photos. We generally had a good time and so I wanted to mention tragedy right off the bat.

It was around 1:15am on Saturday morning when I was awoken by the Captain’s voice over the public address system. As any of you who have cruised before know, they seldom make announcements after 10:00pm and NEVER in the middle of the night. The Captain said, as closely as I recall, “Operation Bravo. Operation Bravo, all staff. Operation Bravo on the starboard side.”

Having served in the U.S. Navy my initial reaction was that there was a fire. When I noticed no alarms sounding, I immediately realized that it had to be the second worst incident, namely a ‘man overboard.’ Going out on the patio I noticed, being all the way aft, the ship was slowing quickly and then turning sharply. Peter, who was sharing our cabin, also awoke and we saw the ship’s searchlights playing over the surface. A call to the Purser/Reception Desk got me an ‘everything is under control’ response. It was only about twenty minutes later when the Cruise Director came over the P.A. to verify the ‘man overboard’ situation.

For the next twelve hours the Legend, along with the U.S. Coast Guard (via aircraft) and at least one other vessel (a private sailing boat) continued to cover the area in which the man had disappeared.

According to word making the rounds (including several of our tablemates, who had a stateroom several doors down from the man and his family), the husband had been drinking quite a bit, and had lost a ‘large amount’ in the casino. He and his wife had been heard arguing several times around the ship and security was called around 12:45. Upon several members of the security team gaining entrance to the room, the husband made a dash for the patio and leaped over the railing. This was witnessed by the security team, the wife and at least one of their two children (reported to be around seven years old, and I have been told there was a young child as well). Obviously, in this type of situation rumors abound, but I’ve tried to keep this to what we heard from first and second hand sources.

Over the next two nights, Donna and I saw the wife accompanied at all times in both the dining room and in the lobby leading to the buffet by a female security officer. Our table mates, who shared the deck with the family, told us that a security guard was posted permanently outside the cabin.

Sadly, no report I’ve yet heard or read states that the man or his remains have been located. From my knowledge of the vessel and my experience in the Navy, I have to assume that he was more than likely immediately pulled into the wake of the ship, probably under & into the propellers.

We may never know the entire situation, but my thoughts must go out to his wife and children, as well as any other surviving family. This is an incident that will remain with them for the rest of the lives and I hope that the media will leave them in peace.

Bon Voyage!

Like I've said before, nothing says cruising like towel animals.

Donna, Pete and I are headed off today for an 8-night Caribbean Cruise aboard the Carnival Legend. We'll be back on the 28th and I'll fill you in on all the details. take care!!

Time to set sail!

If I have a chance later today or early tomorrow, I'm going to post a few photos we took during our last cruise of the towel animals we found each night in our cabin. Folks familiar with cruising will be familiar with this tradition of the cabin stewards creating some wonderful items our of towels and bits of paper. Every night we would find one of them sitting on our bed or otherwise visible, along with our nightly chocolate/mint on the pillow.

If I don't have time I at least wanted to remind you that I'll be off for the next nine to ten days. Eight of those on the cruise and a day or two to rest up after. Enjoy your Memorial Day holiday!

PATRIOT TRAP:by Raymond Duncan, a review

I think I come off more negative here than I meant to, since I didn't really dislike the book. It was more that it held no surprises and seemed very much 'by the numbers', if you know what I mean. I've been doing these reviews for a couple of years and I'm getting pretty used to the trappings of the thriller/suspense genre. In this case, I was pretty much able to stay way ahead of the plot.
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Patriot Trap by Raymond Duncan
Published by Leisure Books/Dorchester Publishing
ISBN: 0-8439-5631-3

Neal McGrath is one of those heroes who seem to exist only in the imagination of a Tom Clancy, or Robert Ludlum and their numerous imitators. Usually he is a university professor, with some military background and a stint with some intelligence agency. They are usually in their mid to late thirties and have some personal tragedy (dead wife, fiancé, child, etc.) from which they have never fully recovered. For some reason or other a former friend or superior, still working with the agency, will suddenly pop and ask the hero to take on some small mission. Almost always they will be assured that there is no danger, of course,

Raymond Duncan doesn’t bring his hero to life as much as simply put him through his paces. We know that there is more to the request by his former CIA superior than to simply ‘look up’ a former student of the professor’s, Elena Rodriguez who just happens to be working for the Cuban equivalent of our own intelligence agency. From the opening sequence, straight out of CSI: Miami, with speed boats picking up bales of drugs dropped from planes, we see that Duncan is not going to let up on the action. McGrath and his friend, Don Samuels quickly find themselves on the wrong side of political tensions in Havana. They also discover from Elena that she has information which could link the head of her department, General Ramiro, to the drug running that is becoming widespread in the island. Unknown to Elena, on the other hand, is the fact that the General is also part of a group planning a coup against Fidel Castro. Toss in a Mexican assassin, bent on killing the President of his country, while he is on tour in the United States and you get a pretty complicated plot.

McGrath and Elena sometimes appear to be getting along more on luck than skill, something even one of the books characters comments upon. Of course, many writers in this genre going back to Alistair Maclean and Ian Fleming did a lot of the same type of thing, so you can’t really blame Duncan for doing so. From escaping a hit & run in the streets of Havana to surviving in a small boat a violent hurricane, the duo seem to go from one dangerous situation into another. In the case of General Ramiro, Duncan truly seems influenced by Fleming’s villains for his James Bond novels, as Ramiro has his henchman feed his enemies to poisonous sea snakes and piranha.

On the whole it’s not a bad book, but just nothing special. The nicest sections were those dealing with contemporary life in Havana, which I found realistic. If you enjoy this type of thing and don’t really expect any surprises Duncan may be the perfect author for your beach reading.

Two and a half stars.

LOST & INVASION

Both ABC shows were on last night and gearing up for the Season Finales. LOST wasn't quite as intense as last time, with the shootings of Ana Lucia & Libby, but things did happen. It was nice to see another flashback featuring Mr. Echo and his brother. The strange flashback/dream sequences always through you since it's sometimes unclear if what you are seeing is real or not. I'm sorry to see Libby go, as she was one of the nicest characters outside of the original castaways. It will be interesting to see if Locke tells Jack of his new discovery regarding the computer sequence.

INVASION gets more intense each week, and it is odd that the viewer is beginning to actually like Tom, as he was set up in the original episodes as the obvious villain. The hybrids appear to be about to sacrifice the uninfected townsfolk, but I think something it going to happen to prevent a wholesale success. Also, I can't wait to see if the pregnancies are allowed to take place this time and what we will see.

Sorry that I had to miss the final episode of TOP CHEF, but I'm sure that Bravo will be running the shows again. I knew that Stephen wouldn't make it to the final three.

End of the Season Viewing

The networks are wrapping up their major shows for the summer hiatus, which means that we will be overwhelmed by try-outs and 'reality shows.' We're going to miss WILL AND GRACE, and WEST WING now that they are ending their runs. Also, looks like both CSI and CSI: MIAMI are going to end with characters being shot. LOST will be wrapping up in a week or two as well and I have a feeling that several more characters are not going to be coming back.

Fortunately, the summer also means that USA Network will be bringing us new episodes of MONK and THE 4400. We'll probably be watching a lot more Animal Planet, Food Network and other stuff that we've skipped since the Fall season began.

Did I ever mention that I got hooked on Bravo's TOP CHEF, while Donna's guilty pleasure is that same network's "The Real Housewives of Orange County"? Sad, but true, plus we watch them both together, so what does that say for our marriage?

No Free Comics Day for me!

Sadly, for the first time since the national Free Comics Day program was started I won't be able to take part. I'm working tomorrow (5/6) and there aren't any shops in the area. By the time I get out most shops will be closed and generally I just like to go straight home after work anyway.

Hope that the rest of you will take part in the event, which is held at the better comic shops around the country. You'll find a link to the official web site over on the side and it will inform you about some of the publishers taking part, as well as some of the special product being produced just for FCD.

Happy reading!

Sounds like...KONG!

I haven’t yet seen the Peter Jackson version of KING KONG, but I hope to get a chance on DVD one of these days. I’ve always loved the original and even saw the 1976 version Jeff Bridges and Jessica Lange. As a kid, even watching it on a small b&w 15 inch screen in my bedroom, the original film kept me captivated. I always felt such sympathy for Kong, which I think was the intent of the filmmakers.

The new Jackson film has inspired a number of books to be written (officially and otherwise) about the various films and for Blackstone Audiobooks to come out with a special unabridged reading of the 1932 novelization of the film. Written by Delos W. Lovelace and based on the script by Edgar Wallace & Merian C. Cooper the book expands a bit on the film actually giving us a bit of background on some the major characters, especially Ann (played famously by Faye Wray in the original).

Read by award winning narrator Stefan Rudnicki, the audiobook brings the book to life and you can visualize the scenes in your mind as you listen. Rudnicki, who I’ve heard on other audio adaptations, captures the ‘voices’ of the dozens of characters convincingly enough so that you’ll instantly recognize them throughout. If you're a fan of Jack Black, you might not like how his character, Carl Denham, comes across in the novel. A tad more P.T. Barnum, mixed with uncaring business man (perhaps not a inaccurate mix at that) than likeable showman. Also, the Kong in the book is closer to the savageand brutal beast we remember from the early film.

An added bonus is that following the adaptation you’ll hear interviews with such folks as Ray Harryhausen, Larry Niven, Ray Bradbury and Harlan Ellison each of them speaking about the influence (positive & negative) the film has had on them and the American public since its release. Highly recommended for Kong fans or lovers of good audio.

Cleaning my collection!

Even though I didn't get the OCPL job, Donna and I still intend to move eventually. With this in mind it's time to start ridding myself of thousands of comics that I've collected over the years (or the last two decades to be precise).

Most of this stuff is from the 1980s & '90s and at least in VG or better condition. I don't have the money or interest in sending anything out for slabbing and most aren't even bagged. I have most of it cataloged so I'm going to begin putting information out here for anyone interested. As I go through them you'll find that the majority are DC and independents (as we used to call smaller publishers), with very few Marvels.

I have a number of TMNT comics from the B&W days, including stuff like SHELL SHOCK, the First Comics TPB collections and Mirage's own THE COLLECTED Eastman & Laird's TALES OF THE TMNT TPB from '89. Also have a few of the Archie series around somewhere.

Got gaps in your CEREBUS collection? I have an almost complete run beginning from #50 thru #300 and the CEREBUS Bi-Weekly #1-26. Even got a slighly yellowed and chipped SWORDS OF CEREBUS #1 signed by Dave Sim from his 1992 New York Tour, with a small CEREBUS head he drew.

Drop me an e-mail or post a reply here if interested. I'm not expecting to make a fortune, but would like some of this stuff to go to another fan.

Cutting down on links

If you check over to the Right you'll note that I've removed a number of links. I don't have anything negative to say about any of them, but it was just getting ridiculous. More than half of them I haven't gone to since I placed them there to begin with. Several have not been updated for months and a few were to sites no longer active. I may be adding or dropping others as time goes by, as I'd like to keep things interesting for myself and anybody reading this blog.

I want to apologize for not posting more often here, since my mind has been on other things. As I have been reporting over on Parting Shots I have been actively looking for library jobs in southern California and my online time has mostly been directed towards resumes and want ads.

FURY by Robert K. Tanenbaum: a review

Here's the latest Joe Bob Briggs review. I finished the book prior to my California trip, but only just now had a chance to put my review notes together.
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FURY by Robert K. Tanenbaum
Published by Atria Books; ISBN: 9780743452908

I don’t recall reading any of Robert Tanenbaum’s previous novels, but I suppose it’s possible I may have listened to one on audio book as I only started keeping track of that for the past year or so. I also wasn’t sure how much I was going to enjoy the book after the first chapter or so. Perhaps, if I had read an earlier “Butch Karp/Marlene Ciampi” novel I wouldn’t have been so quick to judge.

This is the seventeenth book in the series, so I was unfamiliar with the characters and their history. Fortunately, Tanenbaum fills in the new reader once the story begins to unfold. On the other hand, as Joe Bob has said in some of his movie reviews “there’s a whole lot of plot getting in the way of the story.”

It begins with a flashback to a brutal rape in Coney Island, reminiscent of the well known Central Park incident, with a gang of ‘wilding’ black youths beating and nearly killing a jogger. Convicted of the crime four members of the group are later freed when another who took part confesses that he was the only one involved. Now the “Coney Island Four”, with the aid of an attorney (part Al Sharpton, part Johnnie Cochran, and totally corrupt), is bringing a law suit against the city, the NYPD and the District Attorneys who worked the case. Throw in a crooked judge, another lawyer looking toward her own political career, police union officials, and some other dishonest types all tied together, things look bad. Apparently not satisfied with all this, Tanenbaum tosses in some Islamic terrorists, Russian gangsters (with ties to Karp and his family), and some underground dwellers who may be led by a serial killer thought dead. Besides the central case, we also have Marlene looking to defend a university professor wrongly accused of rape and a dirty bomb being constructed to go off in Times Square on New Year’s Eve. There’s enough going on here for several novels and a movie or two.

The mere fact that Tanenbaum is able to keep all these balls in the air is a feat in itself. Helped by a few coincidences and good luck along the way Karp & Co. are able to come out ahead for the most part, even apparently tying up some loose ends from previous books and setting things up for the next. Kind of a cheat in my book, but it’s easy to see why the author is so popular. If some of his characters come out less than three-dimensional I think I can forgive him since he more than succeeds in telling a pretty good tale.

Three stars (but kick it up another half for the closing chapters).

Viewing at Thirty Four Thousand Feet!

The past few years Donna and I have flown almost exclusively on either Jet Blue or Song, so I've gotten used to having those individual TV screens and dozens of channels to watch during flights. This time out to the OC I went on American Airlines so it was plugging into the feature film choice and other stuff.

On the westbound flight we saw THE THING ABOUT MY PARENTS with Paul Reiser & Peter Falk, as father and son taking a road trip when Falk's wife of forty plus years (played by Olympia Dukakis) writes and tell him she's leaving. Mostly light comedy with some slapstick moments and tender bits thrown in. Nothing special, but enjoyable enough with an overall 'made-for-TV' feel about it. Prior to the feature American has a couple of hours of CBS network material, behind the scenes stuff and bits from 60 Minutes, The Early Show and an episode of one of their sitcoms. After the film they had episodes of TAXI, and FRAISER, which was an odd switch to NBC product.

Eastbound they showed FUN WITH DICK & JANE, a remake of the '77 George Segal/Jane Fonda comedy, with Jim Carrey and Tea Leoni where husband & wife turn to robbery to pay the bills. Made in 2005 the film takes place in 2000, with Carrey losing his job after the CEO of his firm (played nicely by Alec Baldwin) bankrupts the company. The film ends with a more timely joke and the credits aim a dedication at some well-known firms, many of which are no longer with us. A cute bit and a safe political jab at the same time. Since the flight was shorter (had to switch planes in Chicago, as opposed to the direct flight I had going out) we had the feature first with only part of the CBS segment getting in before we landed. I barely recall the Segal/Fonda comedy, but found the remake enjoyable enough. Again, a safe non-offensive film for a trapped general audience.

Hotel San Diego

If you click on the headline above you'll find an item Mark Evanier posted a couple of days ago (I'm trying to catch up on my blog reading before going cold turkey while I'm in California) on the up-coming implosion of the Hotel San Diego.

When I was in the Navy in the mid-1970s & stationed in the area, the Hotel SD already had a shakey reputation, at least among the sailor's I knew (the joke being that it should be called the Hotel STD). It was notorious for the hookers working the area, and it was also known that late night you could get the guy at the desk downstairs to send one to your room. I stayed there a couple of nights when I had a weekend off, but after a couple of run ins with the 'ladies' in elevators and the lobby, I began spending those weekends out of town.

Elayne Riggs will back me up when I say that our stay at the hotel during a Comicon in the early 90s wasn't the most enjoyable evenings we shared in southern California.