For ages, most of what I knew about the golden age of Hollywood came from figuring out the jokes on old sketches from The Carol Burnett Show, which I watched in reruns pretty regularly as a kid. Until about three or four years ago, this was all I really knew about the story of Gone with the Wind:
(From Nerve and IFC‘s “50 Greatest Comedy Sketches of All Time“, which is filed with genius.)
When worlds collide, eh? I love both Barbarella and Battlestar Galactica, but for very, very different reasons. Seeing them mashed together for a promo shoot makes my head hurt a teeny bit. If I were more of a straight persuasion, though, this would make me all tingly, though.
Of course, Apollo or Helo done up as Pygar would certainly do the trick.
Barbarella — The Bob Crewe Generation
Pygar’s New Wings — The Bob Crewe Generation
My favorite thing of the moment is this ridiculously fun song about cleaning your room:
(Performed by GOGO13, as seen on Yo Gabba Gabba!, by way of BoingBoing.)
At any point between 1987 and 1993 or so, this would have been my favorite song in the entire universe. Coincidentally, in 1987 my friend Neil and I published a zine called Kumquat Popsicle, which featured a drawing of a rudeboy by Neil’s pal Alex Désert, who’s doing the voice of the dad in that song. (I would scan that page of the zine, but it’s in my brother’s attic somewhere along with the rest of my old stuff.)
My pal Dave (who directed me to that clip in the first place) prepared an audio extract for your continued listening pleasure: Pick It Up.
Random pop-culture trivia about Reading that I learned today (with audio references):
Mod band Secret Affair played their first show at the University here in February 1979, opening for The Jam. (I would have loved to see either band.) Ten years later, I had a crush on a cute boy who introduced me to the first single, Time for Action
In 1981, The Human League‘s producer made them come to Genetic Sound in Reading to get away from the “unhealthy atmosphere” of the studio in Sheffield where they usually worked alongside their former band members who left to form Heaven 17. They recorded The Sound of the Crowd here.
