Author: DOuG pRATt

No Static at All – 1

Something I failed to spot in 2015 was the 50th anniversary of the Master FM Antenna installation on top of the Empire State Building. There was a light show, commemorating the date, synchronized to Steely Dan’s “FM”.

The song was from the 1978 movie of the same name.

Ironically or not, we played “FM” on the AM station where I worked. In 1978, for a $15/week raise, I became a one-man news department, like Les Nessman on the fictitious AM station WKRP in Cincinatti, which premiered that same year. Loni Anderson was a breakout star on the show, but for me the one to watch was Jan Smithers.

https://youtu.be/gHNHj6Kg5gs?t=1094

Cartoonomics

“By Word of Mouse” is a Warner Brothers cartoon I watched as a kid. Perhaps it had more of an influence on me than I realized, beyond Hawley Pratt being the layout artist.

https://pinkpanther.fandom.com/wiki/Hawley_Pratt

This video cuts out part of the cartoon in an attempt to keep YouTube from deleting it.

This video includes the parts about Microeconomics that are missing. The 1950’s emphasis on mass production and consumption doesn’t mention the corollary, planned obsolescence.

What He Said

I’m in tough shape and laying low for the duration. A tooth extraction isn’t an appendectomy, but it’s still surgery. By the end of the lengthy procedure, the dentist was scraping infection out of my jaw bone. I’m taking an antibiotic to clear the rest of the infection. My jaw hurts from having kept my mouth wide open for so long, and I’m wondering if I had a negative reaction to receiving so many Novacain injections.

AI-eee and Ouch!

The Department of Homeland Security must be having trouble finding applicants for this job if LinkedIn’s AI considers me a good candidate for it!

Now here’s a job I know I’d enjoy doing.

Note that not all 70mm showings of Oppenheimer are in IMAX theaters, as is the case here. The interest, care, and attention to detail that is taken by Radioactive Drew isn’t necessarily shared by all projectionists. Not even for the limited number of IMAX showings, as happened at a theater in Canada.

So, what did I think of Oppenheimer? My short review is, I was hoping for another Dunkirk, and it isn’t.

I would like to see it again, this time in digital IMAX, but I’m not sure if that will be before or after I have a lower molar extracted this week. It depends upon whether or not I change my mind and decide to see Barbie instead. 😉