R.I.P. Alex Toth 1928-2006

The legendary Alex Toth passed away Saturday morning at his drawing table. A giant among American comic illustrators, he was best known for designing the Super Friends and Space Ghost cartoons (including, of course, Brak). Wizard magazine named him the 7th most influential comic book artist of all time, and his "Death Flies the Haunted Sky" was included in The Greatest Batman Stories Ever Told. Check out this Alex Toth Gallery, and TVparty's Twenty Questions with Alex Toth, conducted in 1991 (and answered in his own distinctive handwriting).

John Lasseter in his own words to Fortune

I do what I do in life because of Walt Disney - his films and his theme park and his characters and his joy in entertaining. The emotional feeling that his creations gave me is something that I want to turn around and give to others. I believe in the nobility of entertaining people, and I take great, great pride that people are willing to give me two or three hours out of their busy lives.

Pixar's John Lasseter relates what essentially amounts to his (and Pixar's) condensed autobiography to Fortune magazine, including how the merger with Disney came to be. One particularly fascinating revelation: I was a sweeper in Tomorrowland the summer that Space Mountain opened [1977], and then I transferred to be a ride operator on the Jungle Cruise ride. No one really believes this, but the Jungle Cruise taught me a lot of what I know about comedy and comic timing. This is a must-read.

High fructose corn syrup is evil.

On a recent Boston Legal, Candice Bergen's Shirley Schmidt enlightened a courtroom (and millions of viewers) that high fructose corn syrup doesn't metabolize like a normal sugar, and prevents a hormone called leptin from reaching the brain - which is what normally tells you that your stomach is full. So when you eat foods with HFCS, you tend to eat more, and hence... Americans are the fattest people in the world. So why not just avoid it? Well, I for one try, but the problem is that it's in a staggering array of processed foods (especially sweetened beverages, like sodas), because it's cheaper than real sugar. Anyway, the Accidental Hedonist had more to say on HFCS this week, which made me regret that root beer float I had yesterday. (Via Boing Boing via Megnut.)

Apple announces Nike+iPod

I'm not a runner (though I probably should be), but this strikes me as pretty damn cool. Apple and Nike announced a partnership today to create a new line of products integrating sports and music, starting with the Nike+iPod Sport Kit for runners that enables Nike+ shoes to wirelessly communicate time, distance, calories burned, and pace data with your iPod nano. It will retail for $29 starting July 13, and apparently Lance Armstrong is already using it to prepare for his first New York Marathon. (Here's the press release, and check out Nike's extremely cool Nike+ website for more info.)

P.S. 5/24: Business Week offers a behind-the-scenes look at the Apple/Nike collaboration.

Whedon writing Buffy: Season 8 comic

ICv2 reports that Joss Whedon's forthcoming six-issue Buffy the Vampire Slayer comic for Dark Horse will be a sequel to the TV series, and function as its 8th Season. (It launches in October.)

The Sleep Sheep

I promise not to turn this site into robobaby just yet (though I am contemplating a spin-off site, which just might launch by Father's Day), but I simply can't resist sharing three baby gadgets I've been particularly taken with.

The first is the Sleep Sheep by Cloud b, an adorable plush "audio pacifier" that makes four "soothing sounds" to (allegedly) lull both babies and adults alike to sleep. I can't quite yet attest to it having any measurable effect in this regard, but... it's so cute, and it makes sounds! There's "Spring Showers", which sounds like rain. There's "Ocean Surf", which sounds like, um, ocean surf. There's "Mother's Heartbeat", which frankly sounds like Godzilla stomping through Tokyo. And then there's the reason I had to have this - "Whale Songs". I mean, what devious mind decided, "The Sleep Sheep won't make soothing sheep sounds, no - that'd be too obvious. It shall make whale sounds to screw with infants' brains by programming them to associate sheep with the sound of whales, and vice-versa!" So when I take Benjamin to a petting zoo someday, he'll be totally freaked out when the sheep sound like sheep, and not whales. And even more freaked out when he discovers whales sound like sheep! I love it. (It runs on two AA batteries, and is under $25 at Amazon.)

Dual Tuner TiVo Nirvana

I love my TiVo. I love the sounds it makes, and the power it gives me to pause, rewind, and fast-forward TV, and to automatically record all my favorite shows. It is one third of the Holy Trinity of consumer technology at whose altar I have worshipped daily for years now - PowerBook, Treo and TiVo. I'd be lost without any of them, and would metaphysically implode without all three.

But now I love TiVo even more. With the pending arrival of RoboBaby, my parenting partner and I made the oh-so-wise choice of snagging a brand new 80 Hour Dual Tuner TiVo - which is on sale for a mere $80 on Amazon (after a $150 rebate). It's the same as your standard Series2 TiVo, except that it not only adds an Ethernet port (so you can connect it to the internet via your router without an adapter, unleashing all sorts of cool new features) - it lets you record two shows at the same time. Like, for instance, America's Next Top Model and Alias. Or American Idol and Lost. Previously, the only way out of such conflicts (other than owning a DirecTV TiVo) was to either stay home and watch one show live while TiVo'ing the other, or manually program something as archaic as a VCR to record the other show (and either way, you'd have to install a cable splitter to do so). But now? Problem solved. And on top of that, you can now TiVo a show in the background while watching something else in the foreground (with the ability to pause, rewind, fast-forward). Or you could be recording two shows simultaneously, while watching a third, pre-recorded show. How cool is that?

This, my friends, is what the 21st Century is all about. Sure, there's still the Series3 HDTV TiVo looming on the horizon, but in the meantime, for most people, this is the most elegant, powerful, affordable solution to all your TV viewing needs - and, I gotta say, a must-have if you're a parent whose life laughs back at you if you attempt to schedule it around your favorite shows. Now you can schedule your favorite shows - all of them! - around your life. As it should be.

P.S.: If you buy one, please enter my e-mail address (paul[at]perchance[dot]com) when you activate it and I'll get TiVo points for referring you. ;-)

Reality show joy! Danielle wins! Elliott loses!

Shut cho mouth and say it ain't so! Even though I'm entering Day Three of Hiccup Hell, I'm still in a giddy glow over last night's one-two punch of reality show joy.

First, evil arrogant psycho Jade finally got eliminated on Top Model, resulting in the greatest finalist pairing ever - (formerly) gap-toothed Arkansas underdog Danielle and (formerly) snaggle-toothed preacher's daughter stripper Joanie. For the first time, I was really rooting for both finalists, and would have been thrilled to shiny little pieces to see either of them win - but it was particularly awesome to see [younger, taller, sassier] Danielle reign supreme, while [blonder, brighter, blander] Joanie shined as the classiest, most gracious runner-up to date. I'm still amazed that my early pick Nnenna didn't even make the final four, but once again Top Model proved why it's my favorite reality show. It's fierce. (I can't wait for next season's "My Life as a Cover Girl" segments!)

And then it got even better! Over on American Idol, bizarrely bland Elliott Yamin finally got the boot, after inexplicably taking rock star Chris Daughtry's deserved spot in the top three last week. For the life of me, I still can't understand why the charisma-free, melodically mediocre Elliott lasted as long as he did and elicited such incongruous praise and support from the judges. But thankfully his eerie leer has been expunged from the show, giving us the coolest, weirdest Idol finale showdown ever next Tuesday night - gorgeous girl-next-door Katharine McPhee and "Soul Patrol" wild card Taylor Hicks. I adore Katharine, and have been rooting for her since her audition (along with Chris Daughtry, who I think should've won), but a perverse part of me wants to see Taylor win, just because that'd be so insane. Whoever resists the urge of overdoing it (which they both have a tendency to do), and just sings clean and clear will win. But both of them (and Chris) are probably the best talents to ever emerge from Idol.

The Blanton (Belatedly)

When I first moved to Austin a dozen years ago, it occured to me that there were just three things keeping it from being a true metropolis - a rapid transit system, a major art museum, and the availability of good donuts downtown.

We're still awaiting the first - and thankfully both Whole Foods and BakerMan's Bakery have taken care of the third - but now we finally have the second in the form of the long-awaited Blanton Museum of Art at UT.

I had the pleasure of visiting it on opening day (April 30), but haven't had the chance to write about it until now (given the arrival of RoboBaby and all). It's inspiring, even in its unfinished form (the main two-story, 124,000 sq. ft. Michener Gallery is now open, with an adjacent 56,000 sq. ft. Education and Visitor Center due within a year). The first floor hosts rotating exhibitions (currently Paul Chan and New Now Next), while the second floor is home to a showcase of the Blanton's permanent collections, representing 300 European paintings (primarily Italian Renaissance and Baroque), over 400 works of American and Contemporary art (from 1875 to the present), and over 2,000 works of Latin American art (from more than 600 artists). Shown here is one of my favorite pieces, Giovanni Francesco Barbieri's Personification of Astrology (circa 1650-1655).

This is a real museum - the largest university art museum in the country, and the third largest museum in Texas - and well worth a visit. (Thursdays offer longer hours and free admission, and it's always free for members.)

Superman Bowling Club

Must. Have. Superman Bowling Ball!

(More details here.)

Fantastic Fest 2006 Update: Call for Entries, Badges on sale!

Over at AICN, Harry announced the latest news regarding this year's Fantastic Fest (which I co-founded and co-chair). This year's will be bigger and better, as we're expanding to a full week (September 21-28) while also lowering prices. Badges are on sale now, including the $160 V.I.P. badge that guarantees admission to each and every screening, panel, forum, party, reception, you name it - and also includes a limited edition poster and t-shirt. (Regular badges are $110.) We're also now accepting film submissions (features and shorts) through July 15. (Check out fantasticfest.com for more details.)

MacBook & Treo 700p released

Technology marched on this week with the release of two long-rumored, much-anticipated products - Apple's new 13" widescreen MacBook (replacing both the aging 12" & 14" iBooks as well as the 12" PowerBook) and Palm's Treo 700p (which replaces the 650).

Announced today, the MacBook is a mere 5.2 pounds and just over an inch thick, ships with a 1.83 or 2.0 GHz Intel Core Duo processor (several times faster that its iBook predecessor's 1.42 Ghz G4) - and comes in either white or black (so it'll coordinate with your iPod). It starts at a mere $1,099, which is pretty serious bang-for-the-buck. My pal Mike Curtis at HD for Indies has some astute commentary, but basically... if you're looking for affordable and highly portable but don't need to do any major video editing or such on it, this is probably the computer for you - especially if you've been thinking about switching from a PC. (Personally, I have no reason to ditch my two-year-old 15" 1.5 GHz PowerBook G4 just yet, but if I were buying today I'd be seriously torn between the 13" MacBook and 15" MacBook Pro.) Remember to buy yours at Amazon, 'cause robo gets a cut!

Announced yesterday, the Treo 700p is a pretty seriously beefed up version of the 650 (and preferable to the troubled 700w), utilizing high-speed EvDO wireless internet and built-in dial-up networking (so you can use it as a modem for your laptop). It's only available for Sprint or Verizon at the moment, so I won't be upgrading my T-Mobile Treo 600 quite just yet, though I envy it's increased memory, 1.3 megapixel camera, and enhanced multimedia capabilities. (For more info/commentary, check out Treonauts.)

XL's Fortunate 500

I was pleasantly surprised (and rather flattered) to discover my name among XL's Fortunate 500 list of Austin's top movers and shakers in this morning's Austin American-Statesman. (I'm listed among 30 Film Stars for co-creating Fantastic Fest and my work on the forthcoming Villa Muse Studios, among - I suppose - other things.) While there are several omissions to the list who I think are more worthy of inclusion than myself, it is very nice to be recognized in such esteemed company.

RoboBaby 1.0

Sorry for the lack of updates lately, but I've been a little preoccupied with a certain bundle of joy. My son Benjamin was born a week ago today (7lbs 12oz), and I've since been a happily doting dad. (Here he is at one day old, getting a hearing test.) Anyway, I'll try to get back in the swing of things around here soon with all manner of robogoodness, but in the meantime... you have seen the new Superman Returns trailer, haven't you?

(And FYI, I'm registered at Amazon and Babies R Us.)

Mr. T reality show coming

TV Land has greenlit "I Pity the Fool," a reality show starring Mr. T as a Dr. Phil-style help guru.

This is awesome.