Blue Moon Blog

A peaceful Saturday photo:

Ben and Johnny were always fighting so often, I figure there must be times they got along.

Another sketch that will be available at the MN Fall Comic Convention this weekend.

I was a fan since his first show, preferring Dave Letterman’s talk show to anything else out there. He was goofy and smart, a throwback, paying homage to and following in the footsteps of Steve Allen, the true trailblazer and pioneer of the comedy talk show format.

Just beneath the surface (and sometimes not so much), there was a bitter, weird and cruel edge to his monologues and interviews. As long as he kept it in balance and in check, things were good.

And in the aftermath of 9/11, and after his surgery, marriage and birth of his son, he shone. Dave spoke with passion and common sense and empathy. His bitter edge had softened, while his comedy was still on the mark.

But for some reason, that callous quality rose to the surface and took over. He’s been brutal with those he interviews, unrelenting and merciless, especially to those he obviously disagrees politically, all while fawning over those he sees eye-to-eye. With no balance, his show became less entertaining, and the worst – less funny.

Now with his latest revelation, it’s not so much a surprise. He and his actions are nor nearly on the same level of creepy (his word) as that of Roman Polanski, but he’s right, quite creepy. I’m going to find it hard to watch his show from now on, and haven’t watched much the last several years anyway.

Too creepy, Dave.

If I didn’t persuade yesterday that you watch more Alec Guinness movies, perhaps this additional sketch of the young and dashing Alec will nudge. Many links, info and reviews are to be found at the link provided above.

This one was done with a couple Copic markers and the Pentel Pocket Brush in about 10-15 minutes.

Long live Alec!

For all that worked and that Lucas got right in that first Star Wars movie, nothing was more fortuitous than his snagging Alec Guinness to play Obi Wan Kenobi. He lends legitimacy and weight the proceedings. There’s some hinky dialogue in the movie (which grew even worse in the later movies (episodes 1-3), about which Guinness famously complained. But he was so good, he made it sound natural and authentic. Lesser actors were unable to pull off this feat.

Thus began for me a love affair with this great actor, and through my teens and since, I’ve sought out every movie I could in which he appeared. I discovered he had a long and distinguished career. He was one of those actors, even moreso than Olivier and even Peter Sellers who could create totally new and various characters, many times bearing little resemblance to the actor himself. In one movie, Kind Hearts and Cornets, he plays seven separate but related characters, amazingly, of various ages and of both genders.

If you haven’t seen others of his movies, my favorites include:

• The Man in the White Suit
• The Ladykillers
• Great Expectations
• The Bridge on the River Kwai
• Oliver Twist
• Kind Hearts and Coronets
• The Captain’s Paradise
• Our Man in Havana
• The Horse’s Mouth
• The Lavender Hill Mob
• Lawrence of Arabia
• Scrooge
• A Passage to India

Do yourself a favor: start at the top of this list and see every one and revel in the genius of Guinness.

Star Wars was first released in 1977 when I was 13. I wasn’t a big science fiction fan, but walking into the theater as the movie was already playing, I knew what I was on the screen was like nothing I’d seen before. At that age, it was right in my wheelhouse and I became a Star Wars fanatic, seeing the movie multiple times that Summer.

All the stories I wrote and comics I drew were heavily influenced by Star Wars, for better or worse. I created a comic called Star Lords and drew tons of robots of varied shapes and names. I was enthralled.

I was about to start high school and for me that meant new freedom. Grammar school rules were more strict: no gum, no sneakers, no shirts with writing or images. That all changed in high school, so my wardrobe changed, too. I bought and had received tons of Star Wars items for my birthday and Christmas, and realized I owned five Star Wars shirts. This is the point, at 14, I started doing my own laundry, to ensure I had a different Star Wars shirt for each day of the week. I became known as the Star Wars expert, and a dork, what with my long hair and glasses.

After having attended many comic book conventions over the years I realize I’m a piker in terms of my Star Wars love and knowledge. Most anyone at the show would put me to shame in a Star Wars Trivial Pursuit challenge.

But even now when I pop in that DVD of Star Wars: A New Hope, it’s like I’m in that theater for the first time again, entering a magical world, familiar yet fully new.

Boy, this Beatles: Rock Band game is getting so much good pub, and so many of my friends and family seem to have gotten it and are totally hooked. Being such a Beatles Freak, one would think I’d already own one. Yeah, just what I need – something else to suck up my time!