Leitch’s Tribute to Roger Ebert
Will Leitch, founding editor of Gawker’s sports blog, Deadspin, contributing editor at New York magazine, and author of the bitingly funny book-length sports manifesto God Save the Fan, has shed the trademark irreverence that famously drew the ire of Buzz Bissinger on Costas Now long enough to write a stirring and memorable tribute to legendary film critic Roger Ebert.
In his modestly titled essay, ”My Roger Ebert Story,” Leitch describes his lifelong admiration for Ebert, a fellow native of Illinois, alum of the University of Illinois, and editor at the school’s paper, The Daily Illini, and how their lives intersected several times during Leitch’s late teens years and early 20s. Surprisingly – or maybe not, for those who know him - Ebert kept up a lively correspondence with Leitch, encouraged his passion and talent, and went out of his way to help kickstart Leitch’s career as a writer.
The pinnacle of the story, and the low point in their relationship, comes when Leitch recalls penning an opinion piece called “I Am Sick Of Roger Ebert’s Fat F—-ing Face,” which he claims now was an immature attempt to establish himself, unfortunately by positioning himself in stark (read: disrespectful) opposition to the old guard. One doubts that Leitch has ever harbored more regret than he does for writing that piece – and wonders whether this essay isn’t an overdue public atonement for it.
In spite of its passing reference to “humping Ebert’s leg,” Leitch’s tribute proves that he is a writer capable of far more than the scathing blog posts about sports figures and corporate media, which launched his career as a nationally recognized commentator. Though he’ll never grow up to be Roger Ebert the way he dreamt he might as a child, if he stays on course he just might become as valued and valuable a critic.
Red Light Properties by Dan Goldman
Like it does for most art forms, the internet offers a lot of opportunities to change the way we think of comics and graphic novels. Creators without the backing of major publishers are able to push their creations directly to the web at a fraction of the cost associated with print versions.
A new web comic from Dan Goldman called Red Light Properties offers a twist on the genre. Navigation is always a bit of a challenge for online comics–the flow of reading a panel-driven narrative can be a bit tricky digitally. But Goldman’s method–to reveal one panel at a time–gives a new feel to the process. He’s a trained filmmaker, so it’s natural that his comic should achieve a filmic feel. Here you take in the action frame-by-frame, and there’s no opportunity for your eyes to wander and spoil the action later down the page.
The full comic–which melds Ghost Busters with the mortgage meltdown and gives it all a sort of Leisure Suit Larry veneer–is available serially each Tuesday on Tor’s website. To get a better look at the process behind the product, check out this really nice Babelgum video.
Celebrities: Lent me your ears!
Ash Wednesday (aka “Night of the Living Ash-Cross Zombies” to the non-practicing) is upon us. While everyone else is giving up chocolate, reality TV and cussin’, we’ve turned our attention to what other people should give up for the next 40 days. To wit:
Kevin Smith: Give up flying coach (or at least Southwest). If, as you say, you “have enough money” to buy two seats, why, perchance, don’t you just fly first class?
Celebrity Mags: Give Up the ‘Celebs Without Make-Up’ features—nothing about 
seeing a star breakout (not to be confused with a breakout star) is pretty.
Betty White: We’re giving you a pass this year—never give up an inch. Everything you do makes us laugh.
Jeremy Renner: You gave a riveting performance in The Hurt Locker, but give up the Oscar—it’s Jeff Bridge’s turn! We see more noms in your future anyway.
Mr. Clean after Rogaine
“The Bachelor” Producers: Give up casting watching-paint-dry-boring bachelors, floozies, and pregnant gals. Okay, fine, keep casting the floozies and pregnant gals, otherwise why would we watch?
Robert Downey Jr.—you’ve given up enough vices for all the Lents to come—just never give up acting. And never give up that muse you married!
John Mayer: Do yourself, more than anyone else, a favor and STOP GIVING INTERVIEWS. Forty days might not be enough for this one–40 years might be a better plan. Exhibit A and Exhibit B.
Betty White is a National Treasure..
and Other Reasons I Love Super Bowl Ads
No, I didn’t watch it. Shocking, I know. To be honest, until yesterday I thought that the Saints were a college team. Ps. They are not.
While I did not watch the game, I did stay up and watch the commercials on hulu.com. Here are my favorites.
Betty White = God.
And the boy she turns into isn’t so bad either.
Google made me weep with this one. I think that if Simon Van Booy were to write a commercial, it would be a little like this:
About the only happy holiday memory I have from childhood was watching National Lampoons Christmas Vacation, so it was fun to have a little visit with the Griswolds again:
And finally, this little kid is just too damn cute:
Camille Rose Garcia’s stunning
ALICE’S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND
Word on the street is that there’s a new Alice in Wonderland movie on the horizon. We’re excited for that, but we’re even more excited for this incredible new book: Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland, illustrated by the wonderful Camille Rose Garcia. In her visual interpretation of Lewis Carroll’s unabridged masterpiece, Garcia brings this classic tale to life with the unique style for which she is famous.
Watch Camille explain her creative process:
Browse inside the book:
Then buy your very own copy.
Music always inspires me while I work, for this project I wanted the art to reference psychedelic colors, and also have a bit of darkness. While reading the story again, I realized it is a pretty dark story, everyone is mean to Alice, she gets drugged by a crazy caterpillar, and the queen threatens her with a beheading! So my musical selections are a nice mix of psychedelic, punk rock, and dark, brooding music. And a couple of folk songs thrown in since my studio is in the middle of the woods!
Camille Rose Garcia shares the music that inspired the book:
Click here for some downloadable wallpapers. Curiouser and curiouser…
“Paging Dr. Luke…”
I’ve lived in Los Angeles for more than a year and I still don’t have a doctor. Okay, technically, that’s not entirely true. I have a dentist who I’ve already seen twice. (Mostly because he shows movies while you sit in the chair and get your teeth cleaned. Last time I watched Slumdog Millionaire. Sometimes I really do love L.A.) However, when it comes to a normal doctor, I’ve come up with bupkiss. This is something that my mom brings up nearly every time we talk on the phone. Our conversations typically go something like this…
Me: “Hey Mom.”
Mom: “Hi sweetheart. How are you?”
Me: “I’m aight. You?”
Mom: “Good. Have you found an internist yet?”
Seriously, it’s that bad. The last time I spoke to her and, of course, she asked me about settling on a physician, I thought about telling her that I found a doctor I’m really stoked on: Dr. Luke. Here’s the one glitch… Dr. Luke isn’t a real doctor. He’s actually a super-producer who’s responsible for some of the decade’s best pop music. He got his start playing guitar in the Saturday Night Live band in 1997 but it wasn’t until he hooked up with fellow uber-producer Max Martin to write and record tracks for Avril Lavigne (”Girlfriend”), Pink (”Who Knew?”) and Katy Perry (”I Kissed A Girl”), that he became a star in his own right.
Dr. Luke-produced songs play in my head on a daily basis so I thought I’d pick the top three tunes I find myself humming when I’m shopping for groceries… or buying stamps at the post office… or picking up my dry cleaning. In other words, the following songs by Kelly Clarkson, Miley Cyrus and Ke$ha always cause random bouts of singing from this lil’ lady. My apologies to anyone within earshot.
KELLY CLARKSON’s “Since U Been Gone”
A million years ago, in another life, I used to DJ. I spun at concerts, while bands did that whole set-change thing, but mostly I got my cred from spinning at MisShapes in NYC. The nights that I worked in that cramped lil’ DJ booth were probably the most glamorous nights of my life—and it’s all been downhill from there! (Just kidding. Sorta.) Anyways, if there’s one thing I can boast about from my tenure on the wheels of steel, it’s that I was the first person to play “Since U Been Gone” at this weekly hipster haven. When I put it on, the dance floor paused; the song was still really new and this was not exactly the kind of audience that watched American Idol on the regular. However, within about 20 seconds, the floor beneath my feet started thumping because people were jumping up and down, dancing like their lives depended on it.
I remember Greg K., one of the hosts coming up to me, grabbing both of my shoulders and saying, “What. Is. This. Song.” I replied, “Kelly Clarkson’s new jam. It’s amazing, right?” He just grinned and started shaking me. I took that as a “yes.” Needless to say, from that point on, “Since U Been Gone” was a staple on any MisShapes playlist.
“Since U Been Gone” by Kelly Clarkson
MILEY CYRUS’ “Party In The U.S.A.”
Almost out of the blue, Miley Cyrus released this page-out-of-diary track in the summer of 2009 and I immediately logged it as one of my favorite tunes to scream, er, sing at the top of my lungs while driving through the streets of Los Angeles. (Did I feel guilty? You wish!) Sure, The Artist Formerly Known As Hannah Montana admitted to never hearing a Jay-Z joint before cutting the song (gasp!) and she thought it was somehow appropriate to pole dance while performing the song at the Teen Choice Awards, but not even those snafus can distract me from this song’s brilliance. It’s just that good. If Dr. Luke knows how to do anything, it’s pen infectiously-catchy-yet-lyrically-simple ditties that are accessible to everyone, regardless of age, sex or musical preference. If you ask me, that’s the sign of a true songwriting genius. As my beloved Barry Manilow would say, he writes the songs that make the whole world sing.
And apropos of nothing, how amazing is the picture below?
KE$HA’s “TiK ToK”
Ever since I heard “TiK ToK,” I was smitten—and, apparently, so was the rest of the music-downloading public. Her Dr. Luke-produced debut album Animal hit #1 on the Billboard charts the week after its release—sorry, Susan Boyle!—and she even knocked Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” out of the number-one spot on Billboard’s Hot 100 singles chart. Take that, Stefani Germanotta! (That’s Gaga’s real name, for those of you non-monsters out there.) I realize I might get pelted with a onslaught of hairbows for saying this, but I think Ke$ha could definitely kick Lady Gaga’s silicone-clad tush, if push came to shove. Sure, Gagaloo could use some—if not all—of her accessories as a weapon, but Ke$ha looks like she’d tear out your extensions, punch you in the neck and then spit in your face. In other words, homegirl doesn’t fight fair—and I love her for it.
Wanna read more of my musings? Hoof it over to http://www.leslie-simon.com. Plus, if you’re not following me (@redpatterndress) on Twitter, what are you waiting for? Don’t make me sick Ke$ha on your collective asses!
Cyanide & Happiness (& plush dolls)
If you aren’t yet acquainted with the disturbed humor of the incredibly popular web comic Cyanide & Happiness, the time has come to get on board. These naughty stick figures will take you to places you’ve never been.
Take a look at some of the comics, then come back here to enter for a chance to win some great C&H stuff–like an official plush doll and a signed copy of the brand new comic collection. One grand prize winner will get a book signed by all four C&H creators, Kris, Rob, Matt & Dave; plus a handsome plush doll. Four 1st prize winners will receive a handsome doll all by himself.
To enter for a chance to win, just send an email to YourItList@harpercollins.com with subject line: CYANIDE before 1:00PM (EST) on February 12. We will randomly be selecting one (1) Grand Prize winner and four (4) 1st Prize winners. No purchase necessary. The last entry will be accepted at 1:00 PM (EST) on February 12, 2010.
Click here to view official rules.
Cooler than cool
*** Full Disclosure: I just hijacked this piece from the wonderful website Iceland Review because I like what they have to say. Read their blog. ***
Cooler Than You: The Tragically Hip
Hot damned Reykjavík is cool. Coolest place on earth, always has been, always will be. Cooler than whatever town you are from, even if you’re from Reykjavík.
And if you think you can come here, slip’n’slide your way into the hip crowd. Well that’s just not possible. These kids are hipper than a year’s worth of surgery in a specialist hip replacement ward.
Or that was the case. Until now, until my sure fire 12-step guide to being hip in hipsville.
1. Find your own style.
First and most important. You gotta make your mark in zero seconds flat, from across the room, across the street. Across the town. Every hip kid has his or her own style. Fortunately it’s easy to find your own, just remember this mantra: I want to be an individual, like all the other individuals. Look around, copy, steal.
2. Drink coffee.
This is your daytime activity. From the moment you wake (no earlier than 1 pm) till the kids go home, you are going to subsist in 101 coffee-shops. Latte, espresso, black or with milk, doesn’t matter what you like, that’s not the point. Drink whatever everyone else drinks, just be seen doing it. Books, pen and paper are for hippies, PC’s for losers, make sure to have a Mac in front of you at all times.
3. Drink. At bars, a lot.
This is how you spend the night. Every night.
Weeknights: Drink beer, the watery stuff from the tap. Weekends: Beer and sugary shots. 1 for 1. Spend all your time at the bar, sit on it for extra marks. Never ever try to dance, no one is impressed. By anything. Ever.
4. Eat out.
Always eat out. Time spent at home is time not seen—ergo time wasted. It doesn’t matter if the food is bad. Taste and the hip go together like toothpaste and orange juice.
5. Be seen, be heard. Ad nauseam.
This is a war of attrition people. The hip of the town are the most seen—in the most places, with the most people. If people aren’t sick of the sight of you, then you aren’t working hard enough.
6. Act like you own the place.
You’ve wheedled your way into the communal hip consciousness, now you gotta get the act down. No problem, just remember this one word. Obnoxious: You’re hip, it’s your right, it’s your duty. What’s the word: obnoxious!
7. Talk about projects you are working on.
Incessantly. At any given opportunity. No one was ever hip just for being hip. You need to be seen to be doing something, and people need to know about it. Something creative, exciting, energetic. Something hip.
8. Never ever work on your projects.
Of course no one who was hip never actually did anything, apart from being hip. This isn’t a contradiction, it’s a paradox. A hip paradox.
9. Tell everyone you love them when you are face-to-face.
Diplomacy is all important in a city as small as Reykjavík. Like any good politician, learn to press the flesh.
10. Criticize everyone behind their backs.
As soon as the schmoes turn their back, get ready to drag their name through the dirt.
11. Never express an opinion that might come back on you.
Diplomacy is a balancing act—with no net. Get it wrong and a fall’s coming.
Remember this: your opinion is worth nothing. The only opinion that is, is the opinion of the Greater Hip. If you have to stand up for your words, then they’re the wrong words. He who stands alone, falls alone. Mean what you say, never say what you mean.
12. Take a day off every now and then.
Mystery is good. It gives the impression that you have more important matters. Of course you don’t, but who’s to know?
This is the perfect time to look up those YouTube clips to screen in coffee-shops, and to dream up hilarious(ly hip) updates for Facebook and Twitter. If you aren’t big on the net, you aren’t big on the streets. Just don’t get too big—500 friends maximum.
So, there you go, that’s it. Follow these 12 steps and you too can be obnoxious, arrogant, ubiquitous, irrelevant.
Though when you put it like that, it just doesn’t sound quite so… What’s the word?
Hip.
We’re With Coco!
Apparently there’s some pivotal event happening today that could shape our country’s future for decades to come. Something having to do with the employment status of some guy from Massachusetts. The country is certainly divided, and the stakes are high.
That’s right, Conan O’Brien is reportedly set to take a big chunk of change and vacate his slot as the Tonight Show host, allowing Jay Leno to resume hosting duties. It looks like it may be too late to change this outcome, but that doesn’t mean people aren’t showing their love for the Pale Force.
I’m With Coco, the brainchild of artist Mike Mitchell, is still going strong with almost 400,000 Facebook fans and Conan rallies across the country (grab the inspiring poster art here and show your solidarity on your Facebook profile). This weekend, hundreds of Los Angelenos crowded the NBC lot in the rain for an I’m With Coco event (a stunning achievement, considering their aversion to inclement weather). Coco himself made an appearance, running through the streets leading his band of merry revelers, giving a rooftop speech reminiscent of Eva Peron, and even ordering free pizza for his loyal subjects. You can read a recap on the Tonight Show blog, and watch a video of the proceedings:
Then when you’ve dried your tears, revisit a a simpler time, 2004 to be exact, when Jay Leno knew that he’d be washed up by 2009 with this video from the Funny or Die archives.
Oh, and I guess there’s some Senate seat up for grabs today too. Not sure what that’s all about.
Tiger’s Behavior Simply Answered The Sports Guy’s Request
Since Thanksgiving, America has been captivated by the Tiger Woods sex scandal. And while various theories have been posited by sports analysts, sex addiction counselors, and most Americans-turned-temporary-armchair-psychologists (Tiger was too young when he got married, Tiger was simply acting out against a lifetime of discipline, Tiger’s downward spiral began when his dad died), I’d like to offer up a new hypothesis: Tiger was simply responding to a request made by The Sports Guy, a.k.a. mega-popular ESPN.com columnist Bill Simmons, in an article called “C’mon, Loosen Up Tigg Daddy!” dated August 26, 2006.
In this column, Simmons complained that Tiger was a ”blank slate. He keeps winning and winning and gives us nothing to say.” In a public plea to Tiger to give the media and fans something — anything– to keep us interested in him in the face of his now-routine golf domination, Simmons outlined a list of 10 things for Tiger to do. Among suggestions such as getting a new nickname, changing up his look, or squaring off against an archnemesis is golden idea #5: get a divorce.
Simmons wrote, “I’m sorry, but married people aren’t interesting. Trust me, I’m one of them. I want to see you on the cover of US Weekly linked to Jessica Simpson, Ashlee Simpson, O.J. Simpson … I don’t care, just keep rotating the girlfriend du jour every few months. Maybe you could move into the Malibu babe lair with McConaughey and Lance. Hey, whatever it takes to be noticed, right?”
While Tiger might have settled for “hostess” Rachel Uchitel, porn star Holly Sampson, and waitress at Orlando’s Perkins Diner Mindy Lawton rather than lusting after A-list celebs like the ones Simmons suggested, he otherwise heeded The Sports Guy’s call for action and granted him exactly what he wanted: something to “keep us on our toes” (which, in fact, got most of us up on our feet).
Now, let’s just hope Tiger also follows Simmons’ suggestion #8: write a controversial autobiography. There’s a tell-all I’d pay $25 for!
Are you gonna eat that?
Here in New York City, it’s law that any restaurant with 10 locations or more post the caloric content of food and beverages on menus (I’ve often wondered why they don’t do this in L.A. too but was recently told people don’t actually eat there so why make the effort…educational!). Ever since these numbers have started appearing on menus I have been OBSESSED with them. And now thanks to a certain Matt Daniels, you can obsess too!
Matt’s created a fun (or depressing?) way for you to guess how many calories are in many popular food items and then compares your guess to the average guess and what percentage of a 2,500 calorie a day diet that item would take up. It’s fun kids…take a look.
Poor Michael Furey… He said he did not want to live.
Today we are taking a page out of the playbook of the second best blog on these here internets, FiftyTwoStories.com, and talking about … a short story. But not just any short story. Possibly the greatest short fiction ever written (apologies to “A Perfect Day for Bananafish”).
Why you ask? Because today is January 6th. In addition to being the day Nancy Kerrigan went and got herself clubbed, Mother Teresa arrived in Calcutta and Joan of Arc being born in Domrémy, January 6th is known through all of Ireland as Little Christmas or The Feast of the Epiphany. It was this night, in 1904, that the Morkan sisters threw their annual holiday party where
Lily, the caretaker’s daughter, was literally run off her feet.
And so begins James Joyce’s “The Dead.”
Here is a story that captures the holiday season as none other can. A packed house on a cold, snowy night. Music and singing and dancing and food. A middle-aged man breaking the promise to his mother of not getting drunk again. A dozen or so young women fearful of spinsterhood approaching. Dinner conversations of music and travel, religion and an increasing lack of it, politics and the decreasing amount of rights and freedoms, traditions and the younger generation’s lack of interest in them. And more politics. And more religion.
But above all else, there is the ghost of the past. The remembrance of a life cut short. The ultimate act of love.
Poor Michael Furey… He said he did not want to live.
And the realization – the epiphany – that the great life you are living should have belonged to someone else.
Generous tears filled Gabriel’s eyes. He had never felt like that himself towards any woman but he knew that such a feeling must be love. The tears gathered more thickly in his eyes and in the partial darkness he imagined he saw the form of a young man standing under a dripping tree. Other forms were near. His soul had approached that region where dwell the vast hosts of the dead. He was conscious of, but could not apprehend, their wayward and flickering existence. His own identity was fading out into a grey impalpable world: the solid world itself which these dead had one time reared and lived in was dissolving and dwindling.
Read “The Dead” or visit it and celebrate January 6th.
Stuff We Like: Cal Morgan
All right, so I’ll admit to being the mustiest of the It List contributors. When I was a kid I walked to school uphill both ways, one mile over and two miles back. But somehow people are still (re)issuing stuff I like.
Favor!te Album: Naked Willie by Willie Nelson. Back in the 1960s, Willie made an LP’s worth of wistful, soulful, richly chorded, characteristically personal records, beautifully sung, sparsely accompanied, all but two of them perfect. Somehow, in the wisdom of that golden era, they were all separated from their peers, slathered over with poorly judged strings, and sent off like orphans to moulder on various long-deleted albums. This year, Willie brought them together for a family reunion–and despite a lackluster package and laughable title it became my most treasured new album in years. With echoes of everything from Count Basie to Roger Miller to the Beatles’ “Here, There and Everywhere,” Naked Willie is country music’s missing Rubber Soul.
This year, Billy Bob Thornton toured with Willie to support the album. Click here to hear him talk about it.
Favor!te Verse from Favor!te Album:
I’m a love that you bought for a song
I’m a voice on a green telephone
I’m a day that lasted so long
Close your eyes, I’m a memory
–Willie Nelson, “I’m a Memory,” from Naked Willie
Favor!te Single: “Au Claire de La Lune,” Leon Scott, 1860. Yeah, that’s right, 1860. Twenty years before Edison waxed his first beats, this Frenchman rocked a steampunky little device called a phonautograph and recorded ten seconds of scratchy but audible singing on a piece of paper. So he forgot to invent a way to play it back. What do you want from my life? This thing was recorded before Abe Lincoln entered the White House. Take it away, Leon!
Favor!te Art Book I Can’t Afford: Stephen Heller and Kevin Reagan, Alex Steinweiss, The Inventor of the Modern Album Cover (Taschen, 2009). The “record album” was invented in the 1940s, and for one luminous moment the album cover became the exclusive province of a twentysomething graphic visionary named Alex Steinweiss. His designs are landmarks of midcentury color and style, exuberance and elegance. Mr. Steinweiss still lives in Florida, bless him. Stimulate your envy with Taschen’s browse-through function, here.
Favor!te Multi-Platform Magazine: Coilhouse. Only three issues in, and the lovely ladies of the Coilhouse empire have rocked the world each time with their silly symphonies of past and future, gravity and kitsch, beauty and grotesquerie. Through its ultra-glossy pages fly miraculous jeweled birds, brilliant anarchic interviews, and girls that make me blush. Saving grace: My wife likes it as much as I do. And their blog is a constant pleasure. Nadya, Mer, and Zo, we’re waiting on Four and more. Check it out here.
Favor!te Book-Like Object: Correspondences, Ben Greenman (Hotel St. George Press). Yes, it was published in 2008–but word spreads slowly when you’re a delicate, intricately folded, letterpress-printed box that contains seven stories, published in an edition of too few copies. Yes, I liked it so much I almost neglected to read the stories–until I did, and was floored by Greenman’s exquisitely arch romanticomedy. And, yes, I liked them so much that I convinced all concerned to let us republish the stories in an expanded mainstream edition next year, called What He’s Poised to Do. But the original remains one of my favorite publications of this or any year.
Favor!te Performance by an Actress: Maggie Gyllenhall in Crazy Heart. Jeff Bridges was just nominated for a Golden Globe, and he deserves it too–but Maggie, for me, was the revelation, all folded shoulders and wounded, hopeful flirtation.
Favor!te Video: Pete Drake, “Forever.” Because apparently David Lynch was making videos for Hee Haw in the 1960s.
Pete Drake – Forever
ATL Al | MySpace Video
“From All The Jobs, The One I Chose Is Music”
I’ve always wanted to be an IT girl and now my dream is finally coming true in the form of being your go-to music gal on YourItList.com. [Does the running man in place.] I’ve been a part of the HarperCollins extended family for a couple years now, so think of me like the second cousin twice removed on your mom’s side who used to have a horrible bowl haircut when she was eight but finally shed the baby fat and stopped wearing stirrup pants. If you already have my books on your shelf, coffee table or nightstand, kudos!! Me love you long time!! If you don’t, it’s okay. I’ll dig deep and try to find it in my cold, black heart to forgive you—that is, if you mosey over to the book store immediately and add the following to your cart: Everybody Hurts: An Essential Guide To Emo Culture and Wish You Were Here: An Essential Guide To Your Favorite Scenes—From Punk To Indie And Everything In Between.
Whew… That was a close one.
Without further adieu, I’d like to present the first of many columns for YourItList.com. When some girls grow up, they dream of becoming a princess or a ballerina or even a celebutard. Not me. I dreamed about being British, which I realized was impossible at a very young age because I was born in Cleveland, Ohio. However, as the years passed, I never gave up on the fantasy of moving to England and living the Limey life, thanks to tunage from bands like The Big Pink, La Roux and The Wombats.
Now, if I could only find a bloke to make an honest bird out of me.
THE BIG PINK
Within the first 30 seconds of the song “Dominos,” I fell in love with The Big Pink. I was picking out china patterns, thinking about where we’d vacation on our honeymoon and wondering if I should change my name or not. In other words, I was completely smitten and knew that I needed to build a life with the band—comprised of multi-instrumentalists Robbie Furze and Milo Cordell—STAT. Their debut album A Brief History Of Love is the kind of electro-infused shoegazing rock that would make Ian Curtis and the Moz proud. In other words, it’s dreamy, brooding and beautifully British.
LA ROUX
Blur’s Damon Albarn said it best when he sang, “Girls who are boys who like boys to be girls who do boys like they’re girls who do girls like they’re boys, always should be someone you really love.” I’m not exactly sure what that means, but one listen to La Roux and I’m a little closer to understanding. Awesomely androgynous, singer Elly Jackson might look like your typical Camden bad-ass with a razor-sharp faux-hawk and the kind of glammed out wardrobe that would make Ziggy Stardust jealous, but once she opens her mouth, the Brixton native reveals herself to be pure pop. Roux la la!
THE WOMBATS
Not a day goes by that I don’t think about selling all of my belongings, buying a one-way ticket to Liverpool and following around The Wombats for the rest of my life—or until one of the dudes in the band gets a restraining order against me. (I imagine it would be kind of like going on Phish tour… minus the 23-minute vacuum solos and pesky parking-lot drum circles.) Although the trio is huge in England, they still skulk in the shadow of bigger Brit-pop imports like Arctic Monkeys and Bloc Party. That said, I’m hoping America stops kissing Alex Turner’s tush and dishes out some marsupial love when The Wombats release their sophomore album in 2010. In the meantime, “Let’s Dance To Joy Division,” shall we?
Wanna read more of my musings? Hoof it over to http://www.leslie-simon.com. Plus, you’re a wanker if you’re not following me (@redpatterndress) on Twitter. (Okay, you’re not really a wanker, but you are missing out on my bloody fantastic tweets.)
Our Favor!te Things 2009: Kevin
Considering he saw (500) Days of Summer eight times (at last count), we’re pretty surprised that our marketing head honcho Kevin Callahan actually had time to enjoy other pop culture delights this year. Apparently he did, and apparently these were his favor!tes.
Favor!te Film: (500) Days of Summer. Because “this is not a love story.” Because in the hands of actors less talented than Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel the movie could have taken an entirely different direction, but what they do in it is remarkable. Because I want to live in Tom Hansen’s apartment. Because of this.
Favor!te Concert: Nirvana, Live at Reading. Because very rarely can you be transported back in time and witness something amazing happen.
Favor!te Album: Green Day, 21st Century Breakdown. Because five years ago Rolling Stone wrote “Tell the truth: did anybody think Green Day would still be around in 2004?” and Green Day not only proved their importance then with American Idiot but far-surpassed it in 2009 with 21st Century Breakdown. Because seeing Billie Joe Armstrong in concert is a religous experience. Because What’s the latest way that a man can die / Screaming hallelujah? Because even though Billie Joe has a son in high school, you still believe him when he tells you how mom and dad will never understand.
Favor!te Book: The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet, Reif Larsen. Because every now and then you can get completely lost in the mind of a book’s character and forget that he doesn’t actually exist. Because Reif Larsen has created an inventive forms of storytelling. Because the interrior looks like this.
Favor!te Art-type thingy: Hamlet. Because Jude Law made the funny lines actually funny. Because he didn’t over do “To Be or Not to Be.” Because the scene of Polonius’s murder was the best version I’ve ever seen. Because in my opinion Getrude is the toughest role to have and Geraldine James was incredible in it. Because the costumes and set decorations were brilliant in their simplicities. Because it snowed on stage. Because I’m a Hamlet snob so for me to like it as much as I did, it must be good.
Favor!te Fashion: Hoodies. Because a hoodie under a blazer is warmer than a winter coat. Because 2007 was the last time GAP made a decent hoodie. Because 2007’s hoodies are now perfectly worn-in.
Favor!te TV Show: Gossip Girl. Because I lost a little faith after Seaon 2, but Season 3 has more than made up for it.
Favor!te Blog/Website: HTMLGiant. Because it contained the Best Essay of 2009: Blake Butler’s “James Joyce does not exist.”
Favor!te Real Housewives: Dina Manzo and Caroline Manzo from Real Housewives of New Jersey. Because they are thick as thieves.
Favor!te Twitterer: @God. Because, well, he’s God.
Favor!te You Tube Video: When Pandas Attack. Because this is the video proof that underneath all that fur, pandas are mean fuckers.
Bonus:
What are you most excited about for 2010? Emile Hirsch’s Hamlet may surprise a lot of people. Ed Westwick as Heathcliff and Gemma Arterton as Cathy in a new Wuthering Heights. And I still have high hopes for Shutter Island.
Who do you most want to smooch on New Year’s Eve? Patricia Highsmith. Because “My New Year’s Eve Toast: to all the devils, lusts, passions, greeds, envies, loves, hates, strange desires, enemies ghostly and real, the army of memories, with which I do battle — may they never give me peace.” – Patricia Highsmith, January 1, 1947. 2:30 am.
Our Favor!te Things 2009: Joseph
In our third Favor!te Things installment, I’m pleased to present Joseph’s (YIL contributor, publicist extraordinaire and wearer of thigh-highs) 2009 picks.
Favor!te Film: It’s a dead tie between Where the Wild Things Are and The September Issue, which I’ve already discussed.
Credit: Caroline Knopf
Favor!te Album: Nellie McKay’s Normal as Blueberry Pie. She divine.
Favor!te Concert: Semi-Precious Weapons. I’ve seen them live probably 5 times in 09 and they get better every time. My favorite show was the one they played in the courtyard of the Hudson Hotel in NYC. They are now on tour with Lady Gaga.
Favor!te Book: I re-read Call Me by Your Name by Andre Aciman. He’s a breathtaking story teller.
Favor!te Art Show: Noah Scalin’s Skull exhibit at Quirk Gallery in Richmond was pretty brilliant. His book was pretty cool too.
Favor!te Fashion Trend: I’m just really happy that color seems to be universally okay again. Even in New York. As I mentioned before I’d get a sex change to wear these shoes.
Favor!te TV show: 30 Rock reigns supreme, but as far as new shows go, I’m loving ABC’s Modern Family.
Favor!te Blog: www.towleroad.com
Favor!te Real Housewife: Me. My life’s goal is to be a housewife. Volvo and all. Bring it on. 
Favor!te Twitterer: Kirstie Alley. She’s a big ball of crazy.
Favor!te You Tube Video: Undoubtedly the gays lip syncing Party in the USA.
Bonus Coverage:
What are you most excited about for 2010? The summer, when my short shorts can make their return.
Who do you most want to smooch on New Year’s Eve? Zac Efron.
The Ultimate Avatar IMAX Experience Giveaway
UPDATE: All winners have been selected and notified….thanks for playing!
YourItList.com and IMAX are offering you a chance to enjoy the ultimate Avatar experience. Read about the world of Pandora in “James Cameron’s Avatar: A Confidential Report on the Biological and Social History of Pandora,” then experience the world of Pandora for yourself in IMAX 3D, and finally, bring the excitement home with an Avatar IMAX t-shirt.
To enter for a chance to win, just send an email to YourItList@harpercollins.com with subject line: AVATAR before 1:00PM (EST) on December 17th. We will randomly be selecting 1 Grand Prize winner, 1 First Prize Winner, 5 Second Prize Winners and 10 Third Prize Winners from the emails received. No purchase necessary. The last entry will be accepted at 1:00 PM (EST) on December 17th, 2009.
- Grand Prize (1): Avatar: A Confidential Report on the Biological and Social History of Pandora, IMAX tickets for you and 20 of your friends, Avatar IMAX t-shirt (approx. retail value $237.98 )
- 1st Prize (1): Avatar: A Confidential Report on the Biological and Social History of Pandora, 4-pack of IMAX tickets, Avatar IMAX t-shirt (approx. retail value $77.98 )
- 2nd Prize (5): Avatar: A Confidential Report on the Biological and Social History of Pandora, pair of IMAX tickets, Avatar IMAX t-shirt (approx. retail value $57.98/prize)
- 3rd Prize (10): Avatar: A Confidential Report on the Biological and Social History of Pandora and Avatar IMAX t-shirt (approx. retail value $37.98/prize).
Avatar has been digitally re-mastered into the unparalleled image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience® through proprietary IMAX DMR® technology. With crystal clear images, laser-aligned digital sound and maximized field of view, IMAX provides the world’s most immersive movie experience. Visit www.IMAX.com for more information and to find a theater near you!
Click here to view official rules.
Mad Men goes shark jumping.
Say it ain’t so, Matthew Weiner! First Sal gets the axe for having some scruples, now this? Everyone’s (okay, only the 2 million of us with good taste) favorite show, Mad Men, has gotten the Sesame Street treatment. In the short segment, Don Draper (a daper Guy Smiley) teaches two of his underlings a lesson about Mad vs. Sad. While the whole exercise make me a bit sad, I’ll admit I was pretty surprised to hear the word “sycophant,” thrown into the segment. Maybe back when I was a toddler they threw those sort of 10-cent words into the sketches, too, and it just went over my head.
Stay tuned for Episode 2 staring the newest Sesame Street character: Whisky Monster (”M is for Maker’s…”)
A Book Club for Picture People
On the heels of King Con Brooklyn comes the inaugural ComicArts Book Club meeting at Bergen Street Comics. YourItList loves graphic novels, book clubs and Scott McCloud, so we naturally love this.
Mix Tape: 2009 Edition
I lived for mix tapes all through the 90s. I would spend hours and hours slaving over the perfect playlist for my friends and/or potential boyfriends. I thought about every song and what it said about me or my feelings for that other person. “Does this Portishead song properly convey the internal conflict I feel about how you sometimes hang out with people I don’t like?” “Will this Sonic Youth song make you think about me at night?”
I eventually moved to mix CDs at the end of the 90s…but it’s never been the same. A CD just says “I cared enough to click burn” while a tape has time and effort written all over it (literally, because I would write that on the tape).
While we’ll never really get that back, now we can at least pretend with Mix Tape USBs. At the end of the day it’s just a fancy container for a cheapish USB stick, but I can honestly say I think this is totally fucking awesome and I bought 10 of them. Half the fun was always writing out the playlist anyway, right? Christmas shopping: DONE.
YourItList reports from King Con Brooklyn
This weekend marked the inaugural King Con Brooklyn, and we were there to hand out tote bags, raffle off a copy of the eagerly-anticipated Kiss Kompendium, and press the flesh and talk shop with comic folks.
Major highlights, from a highlight-filled weekend, included:
Graphic artist Alex Robinson (right) signed a ton of books for fans of his new Christmas title A Kidnapped Santa Claus.
I got to meet the legendary Harvey Pekar and up-and-comer Sean Pryor at the Royal Flush booth. Mr. Pekar was as charmingly misanthropic as I could have hoped.
Everyone’s favorite bubble head, Ralph Wiggum, made an unscheduled appearance at our booth. He was surprisingly tall and classically handsome in person.
Bring on King Con 2010!
Twitter Wit Sweepstakes – Winner!
And the winner we’ve selected for our Twitter Wit Video Contest is:
Congratulations to our Grand Prize winner, Steven Lewer, who will be receiving a copy of the book and an iPod Touch.
Click here to check out more of Twitter Wit, and make sure to sign up for our newsletter below for everything Your It List.
See you at King Con Brooklyn
The yearly Comic Con extravaganzas in San Diego and Manhattan are a guaranteed great time for fanboys and girls. But sometimes all the Hollywood hoopla and over-crowded convention halls leave you pining for something a little more grassroots.
That’s where the inaugural King Con Brooklyn comes in. Some of the country’s best comic and graphic artists live in the borough, and excellent indie comic shops like Rocketship and Bergen Street Comics have helped spark a healthy demand for the genre. So why not celebrate the Brooklyn comic world with its own Con?
Diehard comic geeks will converge at Park Slope’s Brooklyn Lyceum this Saturday and Sunday (November 7th and 8th), and we’ll be there with our very own booth. Come say hello, pick up some swag–Cyanide & Happiness tote bags, Ralph Wiggum fans, Kat Von D posters–enter our free Kiss Kompendium raffle, buy some newly released books (Monster Book of Manga Boys, Lilli C
arré’s The Fir-Tree), and meet the nerds behind Your It List. Our author Alex Robinson will be signing his brand new stocking stuffer A Kidnapped Santa Clause on Sunday at 3 pm, and panels, raffles, contests and concessions will be ongoing throughout the two day event. Hope to see you there!
The Faith of Graffiti
The Legendary Book is Back in Print: 12/22/09
It may seem surprising now, but there was a time when graffiti wasn’t the venerated subject of gallery shows and graduate school dissertations. In 1974, it was a fact of life for the urban commuter, and a quick way to land yourself in lockup for the writer. As Norman Mailer wrote in THE FAITH OF GRAFFITI:
There was a panic in the act, a species of writing with an eye over one’s shoulder for the 
oncoming of the authority. The Transit Authority cops would beat you if they caught you, or drag you to court, or both, and the judge donning robes of Solomon would condemn the early prisoners with the command to clean the cars and subway stations of the name.
The Name is what early graffiti was about. There was no Banksy, with his critically praised, tongue-in-cheek urinating bobby and “balloon boy” prognostications. These were kids–generally marginalized and without a voice–who were taking it upon themselves to express their ego with a can of spray paint. When Mailer pressed an early writer, Cay 161, for the essence of graffiti, he replied:
The name is the faith of graffiti.
Hence an iconic book, featuring Jon Naar’s legendary photos of New York’s most prolific graffiti artists–their work, their neighborhoods, the writers themselves–had a name. It became a classic, then fell out of print. Now it’s back, with dozens of additional photos, and this time it’s born into a world that sees graffiti much differently. The subway cars have been scrubbed clean, like most of New York, thanks to Mr. Giuliani and his urban soldiers’ efforts. But after 35 years, this early graffiti has gained a nostalgia patina, showing up in museum shows, on billboards, and on street gear like these incredible t-shirts from the Stüssy x Jon Naar collection (thanks to our friends at Stüssy for the fantastic video above as well).
Graffiti: Art? Crime? Both? There’s still no definitive answer, and you’ll have to read Mailer’s insightful essay to get his particular take on it. Regardless, it’s come a long way from the streets and subway stations of the Bronx, and THE FAITH OF GRAFFITI is an illuminating and beautiful look at graffiti’s humble origins.
Stay tuned for more FAITH OF GRAFFITI news in the coming weeks.
