Swords, Specters, & Stuff
Welcome to My World
I started this blog in January 2012 for one simple reason: I love to write. I named it “Swords, Specters, & Stuff” because I especially love to write about writing, about books and movies in my favorite genres, about authors that mean a great deal to me. But there’s more to it than that, which is why I included “Stuff” in the title. It is “Stuff” that gives me carte blanche to write about anything, which is why you’ll see stories about special trips to Cooperstown, Sedona, and other places; about getting older; about baseball; about the otherworldly way in which I met my soul mate; about the loss of good friends, and so much more. Enjoy! And feel free to leave a comment.
Yo, Mama Is One Scary Movie
I, for one, am glad that in recent years, horror filmmakers have decided that scaring the crap out of people is more important than grossing them out by spilling buckets of blood. The 2013 gem titled Mama, starring Jessica Chastain—a talented actress—is a prime example of this.
Guilty Pleasures: Van Helsing
I guess the 2004 monster/horror film, Van Helsing, qualifies as a Guilty Pleasure because not a whole lot of folks liked it—especially the reviewers. (Fie on them!) It grossed over $300 million, so no problem there. This fun flick is an homage by director Stephen Sommers to the wonderful Universal horror movies of the 1930s and ’40s. It is easily one of the fifty (sixty?) movies in my personal Top Ten.
Zeus’s Butthole…More Unforgettable Movie Lines
My favorite movies—of which there are many—contain countless memorable lines that retain a permanent place in my brain and even haunt my sleeping hours. Here are some more of them.
“How in the name of Zeus’s butthole did you get out of your cell?”
Guest Post: Between Now And When
Dr. Richard House approached me via a referral a little over a year ago—just about the time I teetered on the cusp of full retirement. He had a non-fiction manuscript that needed a ton of work—his assessment—a true story that was kind of “out there,” he said.
Blowing Shit Up: Dante’s Peak And Volcano
Being a guy, it’s in my DNA—like all guys everywhere—to love movies in which they’re blowing shit up. Lots of shit; the more the better. In this new occasional series I’ll be exploring films that shake the theater—or your living room—and cause premature hearing loss.
Films About Books: The Ninth Gate
Thus begins a new series on my blog. Just to clarify, there are countless films “adapted from” or “based on” one book or another. That is not what I’m doing here. As the title says, these movies are “about” a book or books. For example, on my to-do list are The NeverEnding Story, The Book of Eli, The Princess Bride, and The Book Thief.
Where No One Has Gone Before
This should be an easy one for you. What sci-fi show am I thinking about? It involves a starship traveling the galaxy on a deep-space exploratory mission. The captain is usually found in the company of his first officer and the ship’s doctor. Its plot is as much a morality play as it is a space adventure. Easy, huh? That has to be Star Trek, right? Wrong-o!
Ugly Precursor To Auschwitz: Hitler Said To Have Been Inspired By U.S. Indian Reservation System
It was seventy years ago today (1/27/15) that the imprisoned and starved and viciously battered victims of Hitler and his Nazi thugs were liberated by Soviet troops. Hitler—the coward, who’d later commit suicide rather than face the music—was incontrovertibly one of the world’s most brutal and bloodthirsty bastards to ever walk the globe. Yet, little is it known that he was also a plagiarizer.
The Island: When Science Goes Too Far
As far back as Dr. Frankenstein creating his monster, there are many stories about the gross misuse of science and technology leading to disastrous results. Perhaps Ian Malcolm, the chaos theorist in Jurassic Park, said it best. When addressing John Hammond, whose vision brought cloned dinosaurs to life, he said, “…your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could that they didn’t stop to think if they should.”
Myths And Legends: Coyote, The Trickster
The Coyote myth is well known in many Native American cultures, especially out here in the western U.S. In the Creation stories of some tribes he represents the Creator himself, but for the most part Coyote is known as a messenger, a trickster, or a clown. In the latter guise, he may begin by entertaining folks but ultimately tricking them and stealing their stuff.
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