Tag: Alan David Doane

July rambling: Phonus-Balonus!

VeggieTales’ creator Phil Vischer’s viral video on race in America

Trevor Noah: Maybe not a great idea to take a victory lap in the middle of a pandemic.

60 Minutes Australia: Inside the wicked saga of Jeffrey Epstein: the arrest of Ghislaine Maxwell.

Defund the Poice: What’s in a slogan?

Why a Struggling Rust Belt City Pinned Its Revival on a Self-Chilling Beverage Can.

ADD has updated the Comic Book Galaxy blog for the first time in five years.

Stop microwaving books: Michigan library frustrated by damaged books.

Appreciating Letty Owings; the Reason I’m Here, By Greg Hatcher.

Meet 8-time JEOPARDY champion, Jennifer Quail Part 1 and Part 2.

Local galleries are reopening! Part 1 and Part 2.

Phonus-Balonus: 1920s Slang We Need to Bring Back.

A Brief History of the Lawn Chair”.

Riddle of the Week: The Gold Chain Math Problem and The Hen and the Egg.

Stop Doomscrolling. Ah, too late.

Now I Know

The Job That’s a Riot and The One Thing You Can’t Do in IKEA and When It’s OK to Lose Your Head and The Sweet Mistake and The Robutts That Protect Your Phone.

Race in America

VeggieTales’ creator Phil Vischer releases viral video on race in America (17 minutes, and very good).

Elijah McClain played violin for lonely kittens. His last words to police are devastating.

Facial recognition: “Wrongfully Accused by an Algorithm”.

Racism, Disparities, and the Health of the Nation.

My denomination: PC(USA) General Assembly affirms that Black lives matter; pledges to work against systemic racism.

I thought I understood white privilege, then I married a Black man.

Man shares two lessons he learned from disrupting a racist joke in a group of white people.

Dr. Robin DiAngelo Wants White People to Stop Saying They’re Not Racist; she’s the author of White Fragility.

slave castles — and the weight of history.

Reparations.

Free online comic book – Henry Johnson: A Tale of Courage.

When The Klan Ruled In Freeport, Long Island.

This ‘Equity’ picture is actually White Supremacy at work.

Blackface: The Birth of An American Stereotype and Celebrities now apologizing for using the racist trope for laughs have no idea just how sorry they really are.

Frederick Douglass’ admonition on the moral rightness of liberty for all.

The rage and love of James Baldwin.

Diversity in business is about expanding networks

This Rocket Scientist Is Tracing Black Ingenuity Through Barbecue.

Blacklexa (at 1:28).

anti-racism

Full bibliography here.

IMPOTUS

In the Land of “No We Can’t”.

His ‘Roger Mudd’ moment augurs ill for his reelection. If he can’t explain why he wants another term, he shouldn’t expect voters to give him one.

Reverend reveals what evangelicals say privately about Trump.

Mary Trump: he is the product of a deeply dysfunctional family that makes him a uniquely destructive and unstable leader for the country; inside his psychopathology.

Family, Cronies Cleared For Millions In Bailout Funds, such as Elaine Chao’s family business.

A Shameful Moment: Formal Withdrawal From WHO as Covid-19 Cases Climb.

Lincoln Project: Benedict Donald and Comrade Trump and Whispers. More.

Randy Rainbow Devastates A “Poor Deplorable Troll”

Music

America by Rebecca Jade, Erik Canzona, and Alfred Howard. Rebecca Jade is the Artist of the Year at 2020 San Diego Music Awards.

Ennio Morricone, Prolific Italian Composer for the Movies, Dies at 91.

Coverville: 1314: Cover Stories for KT Tunstall and Steven Page of Barenaked Ladies and 1315: The Blondie Cover Story II and 1316: Ennio Morricone Tribute and Ringo Starr Cover Story.

Perdido, by trombonist Juan Tizol, performed by Wynton Marsalis.

Be Still – Beach Boys.

Ballade in A minor for orchestra by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor.

Adagio For Strings – Samuel Barber – conducted by Leonard Bernstein.

Fantasy on Themes from the Masque of the Red Death – David Baker.

Suzanne – Leonard Cohen.

Dancing in the Canebrakes by Florence Price.

K-Chuck Radio: Our Robot Overlords.

Music For The Movies: Bernard Herrmann (Documentary).

Have you evah? (Swell party)

Now I probably never will

Have you evahHave you evah? is a meme done by ADD. Here’s the Cole Porter song, performed by Bing Crosby & Frank Sinatra and Debbie Harry & Iggy Pop.

Driven 100 mph — No, I doubt I’ve ever done 65.

Ridden in a helicopter — No. BTW, there are scenes in the movie Catch-22 and the YV show ER that freak me out.

Gone zip lining — Heck No.

Been to an NFL game — Yes, on October 13, 2002, in San Diego, the Chargers against Kansas City. Also, sometime between 1964 and 1969, probably towards the latter, the New York Jets v. the Houston Oilers at Shea Stadium. The home teams won.

Been to Canada — Several times. To the Toronto area for five days, to Montreal twice (1991/1992), to Windsor for about five minutes, and to Niagara Falls at least a dozen times.

Visited Florida — Twice, both times to ASBDC conferences. Once in Miami; there was flooding on the first floor. And Orlando. Both in the 1990s.

Visited Mexico — Once to Guadalajara in 1987, once to Tijuana in the mid-1990s.

Visited Vegas — Never.

Eaten alone at a restaurant — Many times.

Ability to read music — A fair amount.

Ridden a motorcycle — I’ve been on the back of someone else’s once or twice.

Ridden a horse — I did. The first time was June 9, 1976, after I had suffered a hangover. Not recommended.

Stayed in a hospital — A few times. At five and a half – a nosebleed that wouldn’t stop. At 19, after a car accident. And at least one other time.

Donated blood — 170-odd times. Far less frequently in the past two years because of the increased scar tissue at the injection sites.

Been snow skiing — No.

Wishing upon a star?

jeop
Been to Disneyland — no Disney anything. Pricey!

Slept outside — My family used to go camping, Not my idea of a good time.

Driven a stick shift — My college girlfriend tried to teach me. Then she screamed because I was burning out her clutch.

Ridden in an 18 wheeler — Yes, a few times in the 1970s, when I used to hitchhike.

Ridden in a police car — Yes. In college, writing a story for a college newsletter. When I got arrested in 1972, I think we were put in a van.

Driven a boat — In the past two or three years in western Massachusetts.

Eaten escargot — If I did, I don’t recall.

Been on a cruise — No. And now I probably never will.

Run out of gas — Once, in Speculator, NY with my father when I was about 11.

Been on TV — Technically, several times. My church choir used to sing at telethons when I was a kid. I was on a kids’ show thrice. Ken Screven interviewed me for a benefit called Rock for Raoul in 1985.

There was an anti-racism workshop in the 1990s and I was asked some questions. When the Underground Railroad History Project used to give tours, I could hear me singing in the piece. I was interviewed about a 1987 snowstorm in 2017.

Probably a couple other times. Oh, yeah, I was on JEOPARDY! twice. Also, I was interviewed by the local TV affiliate before the shows aired.

Eaten sushi — A few times. At least once in 2020, at a restaurant in downtown Schenectady.

Seen a UFO — I think so, a couple times, though my recollections are fairly vague.

Been bungee-jumping — Not on your life. Or mine.

50 Things You’ve Never Been Asked….

WAY too labor-intensive

Roger.cartoonADD did this quiz, and I was feeling lazy. It says 50 Things You’ve Never Been Asked, but I HAVE been asked a few of these.

  1. What is the color of your hair brush? Where IS my hairbrush? I THINK it’s brown. Black? I don’t use it much.
  2. Name a food you would never ever eat: Anything still moving.
  3. Are you typically too warm or too cold? Too cold.
  4. What were you doing 45 minutes ago? Riding my bicycle.

  5. What is your favorite candy bar? Mounds.

  6. Have you ever been to a professional sports event? Often. Mostly minor league baseball.

  7. What is the last thing you said out loud? Oh, snap, which Catbird asked me about.
  8. What is your favorite ice cream? Strawberry.
  9. What was the last thing you had to drink? Water, mostly because I went bicycling then developed a cramp in my foot.

  10. Do you like your wallet? It’s OK. It’s a wallet!

  11. What was the last thing you ate? A grilled turkey and Swiss cheese sandwich.

  12. Did you buy any new clothes last weekend? I seldom buy new clothes.
  13. The last sporting event you watched? Quite possibly the Super Bowl.
  14. What is your favorite flavor of popcorn? Real butter and salt.
  15. Who is the last person you sent a text message to? My daughter.
Oh, the torture
  1. Ever go camping? Often as a child. I hated it.
  2. Do you take vitamins? D.
  3. Do you go to church every Sunday? Most of the time, although it’s been virtual since March 22.
  4. Do you have a tan? I burn, I don’t tan. And I worry about skin cancer because of the vitiligo.

  5. Do you prefer Chinese food over pizza? Generally.

  6. Do you drink your soda with a straw? Yes, though I have some organic straws I got via a Kickstarter.

  7. What color socks do you usually wear? Usually some oddball design that my wife bought for me.
  8. Do you ever drive above the speed limit? Never.
  9. What terrifies you? Being lost in a perilous place. It’s a recurring dream theme.

  10. Look to your left, what do you see? A painting of a dirt road bridge leading to some houses.

  11. What chores do you hate? Cleaning the toilet. And I used to do it as part of a job I once had.

  12. What do you think of when you hear an Australian accent? A didgeridoo.
  13. What’s your favorite soda? Diet Cherry Pepsi, which I’m trying to avoid.
  14. Do you go in a fast food place or just hit the drive thru? I philosophically hate the drive through.

  15. What is your favorite number? 37.

  16. Who’s the last person you talked to? My daughter.

  17. Favorite cut of beef? Ribeye.
  18. Last song you listened to? Solitary Man by Neil Diamond.
  19. Last book you read? Six and Eleven by Ed Dague.
  20. Favorite day of the week? In Coronaworld, they’re very much the same.
Z, Y, X, et al.
  1. Can you say the alphabet backwards? I could, but it would be contrary to my sincerely held beliefs.
  2. How do you like your coffee? As an ingredient in Kahlua.
  3. Favorite pair of shoes? My sneakers.
  4. Time you normally go to bed? 10:30 or 11 p.m.

  5. Time you normally get up? you mean the second time? About 7 a.m.

  6. What do you prefer, sunrise or sunset? Sunrise.

  7. How many blankets on your bed? One.
  8. Describe your kitchen plates? They were wedding presents.
  9. Do you have a favorite alcoholic beverage? Rye and ginger ale.

  10. Do you play cards? Not as often as I would like.

  11. What color is your car? White.

  12. Can you change a tire? I’ve helped to do it, but it was WAY too labor-intensive.
  13. Your favorite state? New York.
  14. Favorite job you’ve ever had? Working at a comic book store.
  15. How did you get your biggest scar? I slid while riding a bicycle when I was 16.

Sept. rambling: “I want you to panic”

Dustbury on Kim Kashkashian

1973 male entertainers
1973 benefit. Larry Karaszewski tweet: “We Are The World”. From HERE

Don’t Use These Free-Speech Arguments Ever Again

Follow-up to “How Should We Rewrite the Second Amendment?”

The spy in your wallet: Credit cards have a privacy problem

The Focus on 1619 as the Beginning of Slavery in the U.S. Damages Our Understanding of American History

The White Power Movement From Reagan to Trump

Pediatricians reveal that racism can negatively affect children’s health

#MeToo-era study says Women facing ‘massive increase in hostility’ in workplace

Government Cannot Select the Right Immigrants

On climate change, “I want you to panic”

Alaska’s Sea Ice Completely Melted for First Time in Recorded History

The legacy of ‘boys will be boys’ on American life

Trump is Abnormal, It’s His Superpower

Trump’s Scottish resort: Air Force crew made an odd stop on a routine trip

Dumber than a box of markers

Unions make us strong

I learn something from criticism because when it comes from sources you respect you always examine it and learn. – Maurice Strong

How Do You Decide What’s Right and Wrong?

In defense of reading the same book over and over again

The language rules we know – but don’t know we know

AP Stylebook Changes Hyphen Guidance, Ushering In Total Chaos

Outraged Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Mayor bans comic due to kiss; kiss plastered over international media. STORY

It’s OK to Cry

Appreciation: Valerie Harper and the timeless cool of Rhoda Morgenstern

Howie Morris would have been 100

‘Dustbury’ blogging pioneer Charles Hill completes final tour

Ken Levine: Meet Corporal Klinger – Jamie Farr

Mark Evanier: 100 things I learned about the comic book industry

Welcome to the World of Competitive Wiffle Ball

The new old people

Dustbury: Amusement is where you find it

How to Increase Your Laptop Battery Life

Now I Know: New York City’s Late Pass and The Man Who Beat the Scratch Lottery and The Crime-Busting Pizza Topping and Let There Be Lighght and The Man Who Beat the Scratch Lottery and The Russian Plot to Replicate the Moon and How Not To Use a Very Fast Internet Hookup

The Perfection of the Paper Clip

NOT ME: In Kibler, Police Chief Roger Green rescued an elderly woman from her flooded home about 4:30 a.m. Saturday

MUSIC

Sleep by Eric Whitacre – VOCES8

Dustbury: Several short works by György Kurtág, performed by Kim Kashkashian

Coverville: 1276: The Elvis Costello Cover Story and 1277: Cover Stories for Barry White and The Stranglers

It’s Quiet Uptown – Kelly Clarkson

2011 Tony Awards, hosted by Neil Patrick Harris. show close with a rap number summarizing the evening, written by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Tommy Kail

How Hamilton Works: 10 Reasons 10 Duel Commandments Is Amazing

Michael Kamen’s score for Highlander

Something – The Beatles: Take 39 /Instrumental/Strings Only and 2019 Mix

K-Chuck Radio: Taylor Swift’s not so new idea

Dustbury: An emo version of Baby Shark

Jazz Is a Music of Perseverance Against Racism and Capitalism

What if the FantaCo Chronicles had continued?

We did magazines about the X-Men (Dave Cockrum cover, edited by me), Fantastic Four (John Byrne cover, mine), Daredevil (Frank Miller cover, edited by Mitch Cohn), the Avengers (George Perez cover, Mitch’s), and Spider-Man (Byrne cover, mine).

spider-man chroniclesAlan David Doane, who was a regular customer at FantaCo, the comic book store/publisher where I worked from 1980-1988 asked:

If you could have edited five more FantaCo Chronicles volumes, what comics/characters would you have chosen, who would be the main interview subject in each, and who would you have chosen to draw the covers?

First, a review: we did magazines about the X-Men (Dave Cockrum cover, edited by me), Fantastic Four (John Byrne cover, mine), Daredevil (Frank Miller cover, edited by Mitch Cohn), the Avengers (George Perez cover, Mitch’s), and Spider-Man (Byrne cover, mine).

I was happy to get almost anyone good to do the covers. Owner/publisher Tom Skulan didn’t want Cockrum to do the X-Men cover, not out of artistic taste. He believed Dave was also doing that Official Marvel Index cover for the X-Men. We tried getting several others, including Wendy Pini of Elfquest fame.

Byrne was great for the FF front cover, but Perez was late for the back, which is why the front and back were the same, and for no additional charge. Miller was supposed to do Spider-Man but he found that he could not, and Byrne did that cover extremely fast.

After getting chewed out by Marvel’s Jim Shooter, we were steering away from doing any more of their titles. In fact, a Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers Chronicles (and other “underground” titles) was even announced but never released; that would have certainly been edited by Mitch Cohn.

I was in early conversations with Denis Kitchen about doing something with Kitchen Sink Enterprises, which surely would have been driven by Will Eisner’s Spirit.

To your question about future Chronicles:

The Defenders, with an emphasis with Doctor Strange. Writer Steve Gerber, for sure. Cover by Sal Buscema.

Captain America and Iron Man, who of course, shared Tales of Suspense; this would make indexing easier. Cap writer Steve Englehart; I LOVED that run. Cover by John Buscema.

Characters related to the Fantastic Four: Silver Surfer, the Inhumans and Black Panther, for sure. She-Hulk? Luke Cage? Oh, what the heck – Stan Lee. Cover by Byrne.

The Hulk and Sub-Mariner, who were in Tales to Astonish for a time. Bill Bixby, because I was a big fan of My Favorite Martian. Cover by Herb Trimpe.

Thor plus any Avengers not covered – Ant-Man/Giant Man, et al. The underrated Marie Severin. Walt Simonson turned the Thunder God upside down.

Of course, I have no idea if I could GET any of those artists, save for Byrne. Maybe we would have asked Fred Hembeck, who was friends with a number of artists in the Mid-Hudson. And he could have done a great take on Tales to Astonish #100.

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