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Mom Can I Please Have the Keys to the Flying Saucer?
Posted by Michael Pinto on May 1, 2010 in Pulp Fiction
This wonderful illustration is from a 1959 ad in Newsweek magazine for America’s Independent Electric Light and Power Companies. The headline for the ad is Your Personal “Flying Carpet” and the copy that follows sounds quite silly until you get to the last line which reminds me a great deal of the internet today: Read more… Grahame-Smith Ups the Stakes With Abraham Lincoln: Vampire HunterI must admit that I’m not exactly a historical fiction buff, but when I heard about Seth Grahame-Smith’s recently released novel, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, I must admit that the concept piqued my interest. Of course, it wasn’t until I stumbled across this amazing trailer for the novel that I found myself compelled to buy a copy. I’m still in the process of reading it, so I can’t comment too much on the content, aside from my assurance that it isn’t Twilight. Read more… Cthulhu Craves Carnivorous Delights
Posted by Michael Pinto on Mar 24, 2010 in Hobbies and Collections, Pulp Fiction
At over $200 this Nightmares of H.P. Lovecraft Dagon Statue is not for the casual fan looking for a bit of Cthulhu decoration for the library. Although looking at statues like this takes away the joy of H.P. Lovecraft for me — you see I was lucky enough to read a dusty old copy of At the Mountains of Madness and what I love about the style of writing is that it’s so packed with detail that your mind paints its own pictures. So seeing a Cthulhu hanging out in your living room takes away a bit of magic from those mountains of madness. The Treachery of 2010 (The Film, Not the Year)
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jan 3, 2010 in Cinema, Pulp Fiction
On paper 2010 has all of the ingredients of a great film: A story by Arthur C. Clarke, a cast that includes A+ actors like John Lithgow, Helen Mirren and Roy Scheider — and then add to that you’ve got a visual genius like Syd Mead working on the production design. Even more impressive is the fact that as a genre hard science fiction films represent a blank canvas of possibilities. Yet as a film fanboy (who loves science fiction) I hated every frame of it. Read more… This Holiday Season Please Support Your Local Bookshop
Posted by Michael Pinto on Dec 22, 2009 in Pulp Fiction
There’s only a few days left before Christmas, but if you’re still doing your shopping please consider supporting your local independent bookstore or comic book shop. The recession has hit these folks hard and they need your love more now than ever before. Of course if there’s only a big chain bookstore near you, please go there as you’ll be helping the publishing business as a whole as well as giving the gift of reading. Read more… What Was the Hardest Book for Isaac Asimov to Write?
Posted by Michael Pinto on Dec 12, 2009 in Pulp Fiction, Tech
Talking to my old friend Marc Thorner I got an interesting insight on legendary author Isaac Asimov: It seems that as a younger fanboy he was professing his admiration to Asimov for one of his lesser known treasures An Easy Introduction to the Slide Rule which was written in 1965. Asimov then confided to my friend that it was the hardest book that he ever wrote. This is somewhat shocking given the sheer range of subject matter that Asimov tackled — every subject from Lecherous Limericks to a complete guide to the works of Shakespeare! Asimov’s reason for the difficulty? It seems that the book was very graphics intense and required a great deal of input into the illustrations. Here are two covers from this classic: Read more… The Forlorn Frazetta Art Heist
Posted by Michael Pinto on Dec 10, 2009 in Pulp Fiction
Sadly it seems that Frazetta’s son was caught trying to steal paintings from a museum honoring his father. Police report that Alfonso Frank Frazetta was caught loading up to 90 swiped paintings while loading them into his vehicle. The son claimed that his father told him to take the paintings, but his father claimed no knowledge of having said that. A source claims that Alfonso may have been motivated by a family feud. I suspect that’s the case given how easily he was caught, and my sad guess (and it’s only a guess) it that it’s a cry for help. My sympathies to the Frazetta family. The Road: Can It Escape My Gloom & Doom on Silly Post-Apocalyptic Films?
Posted by Michael Pinto on Nov 8, 2009 in Cinema, Pulp Fiction
This is the second trailer for The Road which is due on November 25th. Normally I’m slightly pessimistic about post-apocalyptic films recently, however any film that’s based on a novel by Cormac McCarthy has a great deal of potential. In fact my understanding was that the film was moved to its current release date because it might be an Oscar contender which is also a good sign. Read more… Don Ivan Punchatz: The Realistic Look of Magic
Posted by Michael Pinto on Oct 29, 2009 in Pulp Fiction, Videogames
If you came of age reading science fiction in the late 60s, 70s or 80s you may have come across the illustrations of Don Ivan Punchatz who sadly just passed away. Punchatz’s illustrations were best known in the fantasy and science fiction genres and graced quite a few paperbacks, although his work covered other genres and he even did a cover or two for Time magazine (which is as good as you can get). Videogame fanboys however might best know him for his package art for the original Doom game (shown above), although his paperback cover art for the Isaac Asimov Foundation triology was my first encounter with his artwork: Read more… And Another Thing: I Really Miss Douglas Adams
Posted by Michael Pinto on Sep 14, 2009 in Pulp Fiction
I missed the announcement last year that there would be an authorized sixth book in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series: However recently I came across a link in the sci fi section of reddit simple titled Fucking Blasphemy… which got my attention. This new book is coming out in october this year and is by Eoin Colfer, and of course pretty much every serious fanboy has already condemned the series. Although I find myself with mixed feelings which are just a bit more complex than condemnation. For starters this book was authorized by Adams’s widow Jane Belson so you get the feeling that his family isn’t against it. Next I don’t think anyone is trying to hide the fact that book isn’t by Douglas Adams; in fact I suspect that the readers will be his hard core fans more so than the general public. Read more… |
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