Have a Happy Iron Age Cult of Suffering Day!

Torn from today's headlines!

I wonder how carefully they vetted that newsprint? I could just see Sally obliviously wearing a jacket displaying the headlines "BRAVE ALABAMANS HALT DE-SEGREGATION", "COMMIES INFILTRATE DAIRY INDUSTRY" or "RELEASED ATOM CLOUD HARMLESS, SAYS OFFICIALS. MAY ACTUALLY CURE ILLNESS"or some other propagandistic horror common to the media. Imagine what a jacket like that would look like today.

• "GULF OIL LEAK BENEFICIAL TO ENVIRONMENT, REVERSES GLOBAL WARMING"
• "NOTHING TO SEE HERE, MOVE ALONG, SAYS GOVERNMENT"
• "JUSTIN BIEBER #1 ENTERTAINER ON EARTH"

Brrr...

From Personal Love #4 (Mar-Apr 1959).

May Poison Food

Enough customers commented that these decorative "coffee lovers" planters in the form of over-sized cups would be great for soup or drinks that I finally just turned them all over on the display case so the warning on the underside could be seen. I also cautioned that raising herbs for cooking in the planter may result in poisonous herbs.

This is a warning label that makes sense, unlike those ones that state batteries or soap are not for consumption.

Goodbye, Elisabeth Sladen

The universe has to move forward. Pain and loss, they define us as much as happiness or love. Whether it's a world or a relationship, everything has its time. And everything ends. - Elisabeth Sladen as Sarah Jane Smith (April 2006).

The big news in entertainment and SF fandom today is the passing of actress Elisabeth Sladen from cancer. Miss Sladen is probably best known the world over as the long-running companion of the nigh-immortal Time Lord in the Doctor Who television series. As Sarah Jane Smith, Elisabeth Sladen portrayed her character in terms that reflected the emerging Women's Liberation Movement and when the story and producers allowed did more than scream and wait for rescue as was more typical of entertainment of the era.

There are a few reasons that Sarah Jane Smith returned to the series again and again. Her original appearances took place during an era of immense popularity for the show and Elisabeth Sladen as an actress had much to offer. Her story as a companion was perhaps the saddest of the many that crossed paths with The Doctor. Abandoned in the wrong town when the Time Lord was called away on a mission Sarah Jane spent years pining for her previous exciting life, waiting for someone who would possibly never return. Her story continued in the 2006 episode of the revived Doctor Who series where it was revealed that her life had been on hold for over thirty years. She eventually found happiness as her story continued in her own spin-off series.

Since the 5th season of the Sarah Jane Adventures was in the process of being filmed when Sladen passed away the future of the series is in doubt. Undoubtedly the prospect of regeneration is on the table for her character. Anyone associated with the franchises that did not even consider having Sarah Jane regenerate in a similar fashion to The Doctor, allowing a new actress to step into the role should be fired and never be allowed to work in entertainment again. However, my preference would be to let Sarah Jane Smith pass with Elisabeth Sladen. As much as I enjoy any entry to the Who universe being left behind to time is the fate of the companion. The Doctor to his sadness and regret is eternal when his friends are not.

Sarah Jane will probably return eventually, even if it takes another three decades (though the advances in CGI will probably allow her to return, in realistic fashion, much earlier). I doubt that thirty years hence anyone will be excited should Rose return for a Very Special Episode but I would come out from behind the couch to see a Sarah Jane Smith adventure again.

Happy Birthday To A Girl Like You

As several people have reminded me today is the birthday of my favorite actress and unrequited chaste crush Hayley Mills. Trust me folks, I don't need reminding. My calendar is marked and the admin assistants at the Hayley Mills Celebratory Complex here in sunny San Diego has been taping photocopies announcing the event to the time clock and coffee machine for the last couple of weeks. So I dragged myself out of bed to post something and hey, the pain of sitting in a chair is worth it for Hayley. I have no regrets.

UPDATE! 2011 has been exciting year so far at the HMCC as we finally received some non-region DVD's of Wild At Heart and a copy of Sky West and Crooked. The Hayley-centric episodes of Wild At Heart have been playing nearly non-stop in the Hayleydome movie theater to standing-room-only crowds.

As a treat a special midnight screening of 1970s Take A Girl Like You was held and fans dressed up as their favorite characters from the movie and acted out scenes a la Rocky Horror. It was great fun though everyone booed Oliver Reed every time he appeared on screen.

I totally get that. Oliver Reed pawing Hayley? Even though it was just movie magic FX we just had to keep telling ourselves "It's only a movie...It's only a movie..." until it was all over. Fortunately nurses were in attendance to provide aid to those who went into shock when Oliver tried to kiss Hayley WHICH NEVER HAPPENED.

Oliver aside here is the opening title sequence from Take A Girl Like You with Hayley Mills being adorable times infinity.

Be honest, is Hayley great or the greatest ever? That's right, she's both!

The big birthday bash was held in the main dining hall and as usual, a plate was left empty at the head of the table for Hayley in respect just in case she showed up. Not that we expected her to visit this year, we all know how busy she is being adorable (that is a full-time job). It is enough that the HMCC exists and has such enthusiastic international support from all the fans.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HAYLEY!

I want to break free

Nifty anti-oppression song from 1984 performed by Queen that did well in Europe but not so much in America. The video featuring the male band members in drag, a frequent comedic trope in the UK, was marginalized or banned from play in the United States. That some members of the band were homosexual was known though not generally acknowledged at the time by the media and many fans. I've seen references likely repeated from the same original unverified source that this video heralded the death of Queen as a music force in America. While the sight of Freddie Mercury in a dress probably made some stupid and prejudiced Americans uncomfortable, even though being gay and donning ladies fashions has little or nothing to do with the other, it was more likely that the style of music Queen produced was becoming unpopular rather than public reaction to band members in costume.

While controversial in 1984 it seems American evolution has progressed to the point where many would find the video whimsical and ironic or just another entry in typical bad 1980s MTV.

A lazy, shwooshy peplum Sunday post.

43 Cameras

Lot of cameras for a little store. I speculate fear of loss of product, or shrink, through theft is so high due to the low profit margins. A small establishment can not sustain for long the daily losses of $500-$1600 a day due to pilfering the larger chain stores can withstand (Photo taken in San Dieg0, April 2011).

Improved by graffiti

I'm not the type of person who considers most graffiti as actual art. Banksy and others in that class aside the majority of the scrawls on walls and property is, cleverness notwithstanding, simple and ugly vandalism that is costly and deleterious to the area in which it appears.

The graffiti in my neighborhood, while full of pretty colors and large swooping letters, makes the street look like a slum. I don't get why people poop where they live.

One exception I found recently is a case where vandalism may actually improve a location. While eating lunch on a day out with my wife I discovered a vandalized painting of a still life of flowers hung up above a urinal in a bathroom of a local restaurant. The painting itself is of a class that some consider to be perfectly suited for hotel rooms and other areas like bathrooms. No disrespect to the artist, as it is better than I can do and is an improvement to the standard decor of air fresheners and paper towel dispensers.

Apparently, a few ne'er-do-wells had taken the time to scrawl their monikers on the painting, tagging it with their signatures. Shame. Vandalizing art is tantamount to burning books as far as I'm concerned.

Yet the vandalism is not the most unfortunate aspect of the painting. During flushing, fluids in a toilet become aerosolized and spread out about a yard or so in all directions. Due to the proximity of the painting to the urinal it is probable the art is toxic to more than the eye. The painting is a still life but I don't doubt that the surface is teeming with squirming, throbbing, icky, deposited nastiness. Worse, any person of average height using the urinal is positioned directly in front of the canvas, mouth a few inches away from the surface (on average, about six inches distant), breathing in and out, blowing colonies of bacteria and horror into the air and then inhaling them deep into the lungs and sinuses. So the good thing about the vandalism that mars the painting, the only reason when graffiti would improve something by damaging it, is that for esthetic reasons the painting is unlikely to be moved during redecorating to anywhere else in the restaurant. Like to the dining area.

Outstanding in his field

I'm really enjoying the new Avengers series primarily for the JRJR art though I'm not hating the story direction either.

In particular I appreciate this scene from Avengers #6 (Dec 2010) of Ultron standing at the crest of a pile of debris.

This panel conveys a real sense of horror and menace from the human-hating robot Ultron. In the past Ultron or any other villain, when shown as victorious, would usually be depicted standing in a vast control room or city that is an extension of itself. While visually appealing it also became somewhat of a cliche and usually the cause of the antagonist's defeat. A super-intelligent robot wouldn't really need to sit on a throne or connect to the internet though it looks good in CGI cartoons.

In the comic Ultron was placed in a scene where the robot's essential binary nature was revealed. Ultron is either ON or OFF, at ZERO or ONE. Having completed the directive to erase humanity from the planet Ultron stops in mid-step, inert until it is prompted to proceed again. Like an anti-life Roomba, Ultron apparently just walking the earth until the program was fulfilled, having extinguished all life. That's scary.

Essential Mysta

Here is a gathering of all the pertinent links for the Planet Comics serial Mysta of the Moon posted on Lady, That's My Skull.

The links are sorted per issue though sharp-eyed readers may notice the chapter headings do not match the links. This is due to my not noticing a few posts were deleted by the service before I entered new ones. So to avoid confusion just go by the post titles.

Mysta of the Moon is a science fiction adventure serial that ran in Planet Comics from 1945 to 1952. Mysta is one of the most consistent serials in regards to art and story quality to have been published by Fiction House. Mysta originally appeared as a young woman in issue #35 of Planet Comics (March 1945) as a victim of the machinations of Mars, the God of War. Mysta, as the repository of the sum of all knowledge, takes it upon herself to fight Mars and assist humanity out of the ruins of civilization.
Mars was the featured character of an earlier and respected Planet Comics serial. In those stories, the evil Mars would travel the galaxy and possess different people, forcing them to commit horrific acts and spread terror and strife all in the name of conflict. What made this serial different is that often Mars would emerge victorious being defeated only after spreading widespread chaos.

In Planet Comics #35 Mars is waging a war against science and intellectualism when he crosses paths with Mysta and her brother. While this story details Mars' greatest success, effectively destroying human civilization, it also marks the marginalization of the Mars character as the far more visually appealing Mysta is brought to the forefront as the protector and savior of humanity. By the following issue Mysta headlined her own series and Mars was delegated to only a final cameo.

Out of all the female characters featured in Planet Comics it is Mysta of the Moon that was the strongest in terms of woman's empowerment and characterization equal perhaps only to Futura, also a Planet Comics feature. Unlike many other contemporary characters Mysta largely stood on her own in her adventures. It was typical of almost any comic book tale of the era even where a female would be the lead in a story it was not unusual to have a man show up near the end of the tale and take charge, wrapping things up as the woman character shed angst-filled thought balloons expressing gratitude and unrequited love. Among the Planet Comics entries this was most common among the Gale Allen serial. Mysta, being the most intelligent person in the Universe, would have none of that even though the creative team in the beginning used the "Diana Prince" trope and there is a greater than average amount of gratuitous cheesecake in the stories. Anyone interested in researching a good example of early female empowerment in comic books could do worse than reading the Mysta of the Moon series.

Like many superheroes Mysta, who was the repository of all knowledge, maintained a secret identity so the public at large would not know she was acting as their savior and defender. In her guise as an older and unappealing librarian or technician, Mysta fought criminals, mutant zombies and solved mysteries with the aid of a lab assistant and an unstoppable robot with which she shared a telepathic link.

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 1

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 2

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 3

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 4

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 5

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 6

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 7

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 8

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 9

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 10

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 11

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 12

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 13

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 14

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 15

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 16

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 17

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 18

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 19

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 20

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 21

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 22Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 23

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 24

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 25

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 26

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 27

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 28

1980s Planet Comics characters revival: The Star Fems

Further reading: Don't forget to miss Michael May's examination of Mysta of the Moon at Michael May's Adventureblog!

Vinylite plastic protects sleeping baby

I don't know what was worse; the parents that would have bought this product or the company that sold it.

From People Today (9-26-51).

But will it play in the Borscht Belt?

Today's musical video comes from an episode of the animated Batman: The Brave and the Bold series. The clip has been out there for a while and while I usually watch the show, I passed on that particular episode due to my general dislike of the Matches Malone character. That is a choice I now regret.

From September 2010 here is Catwoman, Huntress and Black Canary singing the Birds of Prey Song. Words by Gail Simone, sounds by Nika Futterman, Tara Strong and Grey DeLisle.

The entire act is pretty naughty for a show that is supposed to be for children and it was reported that the US release was delayed to reanimate some of the more suggestive scenes. I have no idea if this is the reworked version or not. For those of you who don't understand all the innuendo, the Birds are rating the male members of the DCU superhero club by size and stamina.

A lazy, kinda risque Sunday post.

Ow my back

I haven't posted anything since the 16th of March for a reason.

A little over two weeks ago I bent over to pick something up from the floor and when I straightened up my L5 went TWINGE TWINGE TWINGE. I knew right then that I had screwed up. The pain grew more intense as the day went on. Working made it worse since my job entails a lot of crouching, twisting and bending. I made it another three days hobbling about before I accepted that I needed more time to heal that particular wound.

Doing anything not related to laying down on a heating pad was pushed aside. I went to the doctor and they prescribed some pretty fabulous muscle relaxers and pain killers. I used up all my sick days doing little but laying in bed and sleeping. Yesterday was the first day I could walk without wanting to burst into manly tears. Still hurts a bit but I'm able to sit and get around without too much trouble.

Word of advice: Don't ever get old. It sucks.

Related post: How Did I Come To This?

I originally meant to post this yesterday

Ballpoint pens sticking out into the aisle at the perfect position and height to have a customer stabbed in the side or arm or, at worst, a child taking one in the face as they bop along with a parent. A fine example of what I have come to call The Culture of Half-Assedness.

Just duct tape a steak knife to the counter while you're at it.

In many industries, people often seem not to care and fail to think forwards for many reasons. In all cases the origin of that ethic is laziness. Doing things half-assed is a conscious decision. People feel they are too busy, perceive it doesn't matter because hard work doesn't pay off, doing the extra work or taking precautions are not appreciated or met with hostility by co-workers or managers.

Mostly this kind of work ethic does no harm and elicits only amusement. Poorly written signs and odd pricing are typically the result. Sometimes it is more serious and can be a work hazard.

Absurdly, I had to argue with people about the wisdom of placing the pens where they did. I mean ARGUE. I actually had to present a convincing case to people to reposition the pens. Overwhelmingly the response was 'What's the big deal?" from most everyone. Sure, say that later when your performance bonus is cut by a big percentage due to failing the workplace safety audits and increased injury reports being filed. Also, the big deal is people can be hurt. Duh.

Then I had to do so twice more when the pens were repositioned so that anyone moving groceries on the belt or attempting to pay for their goods would risk being stabbed. So I had the pens moved again and this time they were placed so they stuck out into the cashier's work area. Scrapes, minor stabbings and ink stained work shirts ensued as the cashiers moved their arms through a space now occupied by something pointy.

Pro tip: Don't have sharp things point against the flow of traffic. Turn the pens around so the blunt end is facing people. Finally realizing that if I want something done right I'd have to do it myself, I placed the pens under under the counter so they are out of the way while the lanyard is long enough to allow the customer to use the pen.

These pens were a stupid idea anyways. They are cheap, constantly in the way and cause problems for the workers. Even placed under the counter the plastic lanyard, while long enough to reach the counter for use are too short not to get caught on product moving down the belt. The lanyard pulls taut and then launches the pen haphazardly into the air like a ballpointed whip. The ideal length of the pen lanyard would be a foot and a half of chain of the kind used in banks but when we install those type of pens the customers tear them off and take them with them.

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 28

Planet Comics #62 (Sept 1949) is the final original Golden Age appearance of Mysta of the Moon. A stated previously, comic books and their content were changing and soon there would be little acceptance of grand, impossible space operas. The trend in newer storytelling would be just as bombastic and unlikely thematically but would be more acceptable in relation to what the public perceived as possible in science fiction tropes. Film and television would have a great influence on the appearence and plots of science fiction comics thereafter.

Planet Comics would mostly exist as a re-print anthology before ending in late 1953. While the serials ended with somewhat of a quiet whimper Planet Comics went out with a bang. The cover to the final issue, #73 (Winter 1953) is a Maurice Whitman classic. The lead feature, Cerebrex, is also no small accomplishment in both art and story. Cerebrex has been reprinted a few times over the decades and a few comic book blogs have also featured the tale of computer power gone right.

The last Planet Comics issue featuring Mysta starts to shake up the status quo a bit as another technician begins to delve into Mysta's true identity. For the uninitiated, Mysta is working undercover with the Safety Council, leaving behind her extra-planetary fortress and resident caretaker to live among humanity. The main plot is one typical of the last several chapters of Mysta and concerns a mutated race and the misuse of technology. It is a shame the series ended so abruptly because the subplot about Mysta's identity was interesting. It showed a growth of characterization in the serial that the rather disposable nature of the medium of the era was often bereft.

This chapter of Mysta of the Moon is shorter by one page than previous entries. The Mysta feature is also the only one among the other serials that signed off with a definite if unsatisfying conclusion. All the other series simply promised to return next issue and often did not reappear. I speculate that the creative team knew this chapter of Mysta would be the final one and wrapped it up very, very quickly even though many plot threads remained dangling, particularly in regards to Bron, exiled to Mysta's fortress moon. The final panel of the Mysta story depicts her breaking the fourth wall, an annoyed expression on her face. Indeed, throughout much of the story Mysta appears uncharacteristically bothered, unprepared and angry. In the final scene the reader is privy to her thoughts and she in effect communicates a final, perfunctory farewell to the audience. A text box in the panel displays the phrase 'The End!' something that the other serials did not include in their own final chapters. We may probably never know but it is as if the creators are expressing their own frustrations through Mysta.

But it is as a fan and not as a critic that I read Mysta and the other heroines of Planet Comics. As a reader of these Golden Age tales I am more of a Fan-Editor. In that certain way that comic book fans pick and choose what continuity or behind-the-scenes reality to keep or ignore I apply that same sensibility to Mysta, not allowing the changes at Fiction House that caused the various adventure features to conclude so abruptly. As a fan I can accept that Mysta, seeing no need to continue in her previous role as the final authority on the dissemination of science in a rebuilt human civilization would choose a form of semi-retirement. Instead of acting as a wrathful Science Goddess she would keep her hand in, acting as a government functionary while keeping watch via the Science Council. In abandoning her fortress on the moon Mysta is allowing humanity to once again control their own destiny and perhaps discover a new one of her own as well.

Mysta and the other Golden Age characters of Fiction House would vanish into obscurity until revived in the 1980s for a short-lived effort by Paragon Press called The Star-Fems, a time-tossed team of space-based heroines. You can find more info about the team and read the 1980 adventures of Mysta of the Moon, Futura and Gale Allen here: The Star Fems.

Another long delayed post

Today must be catch-up day. Here's a mash up of 2001: A Space Odyssey and Star Wars I've been meaning to do for about 15 years. Somebody tell I'm not the first to have done this.

I'd place Han in the monkey/monolith scene (which would be funnier) but the position of the block in all those scenes sucks.

You Can Count On Me, Eventually

Finally got around to creating my own fan-made Spider-Man movie main title sequence. I've been meaning to do this since 2002 and kept putting it off. Was it worth the wait? Absolutely.

Original title sequence created by Kyle Cooper of Imaginary Forces and copyright Columbia Pictures 2002. Original score by Danny Elfman replaced by Count On Me, performed by William Kirkland from the classic album Spider-Man: Rock Reflections of a Superhero. I was always disappointed that songs from the 70s album never made it to the big screen. This video corrects that error. Count On Me is a bit more exciting and upbeat than the fantastic though ominous Elfman score.

Sharp-eyed viewers may notice the omission of a certain someone from the credits.

A really, really, really lazy Sunday post nearly a decade in the making.

Mysta of the Moon - Chapter 27

Planet Comics #61 (July 1949) is the second to last original Mysta of the Moon story to appear in the long-running science fiction comic book.

In this chapter Mysta again aids the Safety Council against a gang of criminals with access to advanced technology. There isn't any politics involved to speak of and the criminals appear to be simple thugs out for a payday. One questions how inexpensive and available the technology is to allow criminals to transport and enlarge small creatures to giant size. It must be common knowledge and fairly economical at this point because Mysta has had to deal with tyrants and crooks using size-changing science several times over the course of her career.

Assistant Bron appears once more and again reveals his dissatisfaction with his lonely exile to Mysta's fortress moon. Having been released from a prison colony to spy on Mysta his life has surely been extended by improved conditions but Bron is still in a prison of sorts. Mysta certainly knows it and has undoubtedly restricted access to many of her devices including spaceships. Bron may not have been an innocent sent to the prison colony and Mysta could be allowing him probation of sorts by remaining on her moon. However lonely and isolated Bron may be the alternative would be to return to a short-lived existence of hard labor.

Two steps forwards, one step back, cha-cha-cha

Got a car! Paid a third of what it is worth thanks to a guy who knows a guy who hooked me up. Of course, since life is what happens when you are making other plans my Mom's car just broke this morning so I'm going to be driving her around until it is fixed. Maybe I'll have the wife drive her around on errands since they get along so very well.

A plus is that since this is a car my wife can operate I can get some uninterrupted sleep and won't be so exhausted all the time from ferrying people around.

Have not yet decided what I will call the car. Previously we referred to our various vehicles as 'Free Car', 'Red Car' or 'Dented Car'. There is a lot of short hand in sign language and those signs are easier than spelling our Jeep Cherokee or Taurus all the time. Maybe I will call it 'Supercar' from now on. I kind of dig the idea of striking a superman pose and then signing 'driving'. Doubt the wife will go for it. What's ASL for an exasperated eye roll?

SUPERCAHHHHHH!

Tow Away Zone

Dealing with vehicle issues this week so featured is a few car-related entries today.

Hey, Mom, can I borrow the car?
One of my worst fears has come to pass. Free Car finally died and the costs of repairs, with little guarantee that it would not fail again within a few weeks if not days are prohibitive. I am left with no choice but to purchase another car. This wouldn't ordinarily be a problem except for the lingering fallout from my time in Stupidlandia still doesn't enable me to get a reasonable loan. A few months ago the car breaking down would have been a disaster that would have left three people unemployed. Currently we are at a point where it is less an emergency and more of an annoyance. I know a guy who knows a guy so I should have a really good car for cheap by the end of the week.

Canyonero!

Because Calvin urinating on a cat attacking his groin would have been weird.
Check out the tow truck decal I printed out and stuck to the rear of my friend's Jaguar next to that symbol of a leaping cat. I think it is funny because his Jag is always in the shop. He doesn't see the humor.

Still better than the Stephen King novel.
Here is one of the truly scary scenes from the 1966 film The Bubble. The movie tells the story of the few people left self aware when they wander into a town that is covered by an invisible dome. Aliens are studying humans though how effective the test could be are in doubt since the captors have zombie-fied the townspeople, surely skewing the results. The aliens also hate broken down vehicles littering the scenic roads because they tractor field out of the dome any car with engine trouble. If the video looks a little blurry it is because it is presented in 3-D. Put on your red and blue specs for the entire experience!

There is another scene in The Bubble similar to this one featuring a woman trapped in a truck but that would have meant actually watching The Bubble to find it.