Frank B.
Elmer Dessens
Between 1996 and 1998, Elmer Dessens was 2-8 for the Pittsburgh Pirates, with an ERA above 6.00. He didn’t pitch all that often, but for some reason, probably because of his first name, I seized on him as emblematic of the team’s futility. Ten years and five teams later, at age 36, with a lifetime […]
Jami Attenberg reads at Book Soup
That’s right, tomorrow, Sunday, at 4 p.m. Come on out!
Isaac Asimov’s Super Quiz
As of the new year, Isaac Asimov’s Super Quiz was dropped from the Albany newspaper, reducing the number of dead authors on the comics page by one. There have been daily letters to the editor ever since. Today’s begins:I read, with amused interest, the outcry over the pulling of the Super Quiz from the daily […]
Friday round-up
It really has been quite a week. First we had Frank’s mirthless situation, we had our poor pregnant marine labeled a ‘compulsive’ liar who actually turned up buried in a backyard, and now this: a scrapbooking tale of woe.
Boredom Lands Me On Wonkette
So last night I was bored, and Amanda and the baby had already gone to bed. For whatever reason I decided to follow up on a notion I’d formulated a few days earlier: Ron Paul resembles Ian Mckellen. I took a still of Sir Ian as Gandalf in Lord Of The Rings and superimposed Ron […]
AND mean?
From Nikki Finke: NBC Entertainment co-czar on Monday told his new best friend, the no-talent Ryan Seacrest before the Golden Globes awards show was officially scrapped that, “Sadly, it feels like the nerdiest, ugliest, meanest kids in the high school are trying to cancel the prom. But NBC wants to try to keep that prom […]
Mirthless
Such a week. I’ve already described a mirthless luncheon (A recursive link, for you recursion fans out there). On Wednesday, it was announced that my entire office would be relocating to an industrial suburb of Albany. My commute will go from about 2.5 miles to 7.5 miles. It’s still bikeable, but most of the extra […]
Everyone’s A Critic
I picked up the Hollywood Reporter last week (Jan. 4-6 weekend edition) and on the front was the usual “For Your Consideration” Oscar full page cover ad. This time it was for the foreign film “Bella” which I have yet to see. The lone review listed to bolster the case for Oscar worthiness was bizarre […]
Isa Meets Pete Rose
A couple summers ago, Isa and I were in Las Vegas for my mother’s birthday. We went to the mall near Caesar’s Palace where there’s a light show with sculptures of Greek Gods moving and speaking. The show is pathetic, and Isa and I like to go for the contrast between the weak effects and […]
Goose!
Congratulations to Goose Gossage for his election to the baseball Hall of Fame. He has no business there. In fact, the only relievers who belong and aren’t already in are Mariano Rivera and Trevor Hoffman, and that’s because they’re still playing. Jim Rice just missed and should make it next year. He shouldn’t, but he […]
Jack Silbert, curator