A few days ago I was headed to lunch in College Park but overshot my destination so I hung a right at the very next street, Hemphill, in order to loop the block and make another pass. As I drew near the end of that side street I was confronted by this big beautiful old lady. This morning I did a bit of searching and learned that this is listed on the Historic Register as The Palmour House, but the majority of search results are MLS listings from real estate companies and the top result rendered this interesting tidbit Continue reading The Palmour House in College Park
Tag: Atlanta
Remembering the Great Atlanta Fire of 2017
While the collapse of the elevated portion of Interstate 85 has been a major inconvenience for people traveling through the region around Atlanta, it can hardly compare to the devastation that affected our city 100 years ago this month.
May 21st will mark the 100 year anniversary of the Great Atlanta Fire of 1917 which raged for approximately 10 hours, burned more than 300 acres, destroyed more than 1,900 buildings (mostly wood-frame), wore out firefighters’ horse teams, and was only stopped by dynamiting Continue reading Remembering the Great Atlanta Fire of 2017
Cirque du Soleil’s Kurios VIP Experience Disappoints
A performance by the Cirque du Soleil is almost always a life-altering experience for someone in the audience, and it’s little wonder that fans tend to nominate their very first show as their favorite. My first cirque was Alegria, back in the mid-1990s when the Grand Chapiteau was set up across the street from the Cheetah 3 strip club, and to this day the soundtrack from Alegria is the first thing I think of when I hear the word ‘Cirque’.
For my second show (I think it might have been Dralion) I bought tickets for my parents, treating them to the Tapis Rouge experience – a magical tent overflowing with music, food, and drink. You couldn’t turn around without bumping into a server carrying a tray laden with some incredible work of edible art, and to this day my mom remains convinced that the Cirque du Soleil is the only place where you can order “that drink made with grapefruit and vodka” (she’s not much of a drinker).
The Tapis Rouge wasn’t just about the food though, it truly was an “experience” in its own right – an expression of everything that is unique about Cirque, from the fabric lining the tent to the stage lighting and the festive decor of the space, to the playlist of songs from current and previous traveling shows. There was a Cirque store where you could purchase clothing, knickknacks, umbrellas, celebrated Venetian masks, and of course Continue reading Cirque du Soleil’s Kurios VIP Experience Disappoints
Should Hollis Gillespie Apologize for Comedygate?
Hollis, Hollis, Hollis. I’m just now hearing about Comedygate. My friend, you are constantly getting into trouble. How many misadventures does this make since I’ve known you? Seventeen? My favorite is still the time that you were chased by a love struck garbage truck driver while you were glued to a purse filled with bees, but I guess this one’s pretty good too.
The message I received about Comedygate was excited and garbled and confusing as hell, so I clicked over to Paste Magazine and tracked down your article “A Beginner’s Guide to Becoming a Stand-up Comedian”.
Your article was nice and short. Pithy, like everything on the Internet these days. Remember when magazines expected writers to produce really long pieces so they could Continue reading Should Hollis Gillespie Apologize for Comedygate?
Footloose Shirt Logo
Several months ago my friend Barbara asked me to design a T-shirt for her husband (my former propmaster) Dwight and his prop crew, busy on the set of the remake of that Bacon-infused 80s dance hit “Footloose”. I confessed to Barbara that, while I knew it involved dancing and people wearing Chuck Taylors, I’ve never actually seen the movie. I looked at stills and screen captures from the original movie and I dropped by set of the remake a few times. Despite having “done my homework”, inspiration didn’t strike until the film was very nearly wrapped and let’s face it, the design you see here is pretty simple: just the word “Footloose” spelled out by one particularly long shoe string attached to a classic Chuck Taylor sneaker. As long as the movie has been around I can’t help but think some artist has done this same thing at some point in the past, but it was new to me! Since I’d had recently used discharge ink for another shirt design with great results that’s what we decided to do with the Footloose Prop Department shirts. I understand folks on the crew liked the design. What do you think?
Update: there were only 20 of these shirts made, so they’re super rare!
Love Ladder
I’d like to introduce you to a new product that I’ve only just recently invented called the “Love Ladder” – the newest erotic aid for loveplay since the…. um, well, I don’t know. But it’s a darned cracking sexy looking device, don’t you think? The box says that it’s fun for him and her! One size fits all! It’s hypoallergenic!! How can ladies resist? It’s runged for her pleasure for gosh sakes!!! Rrrrowwwrrr!!
“How do you get one of these things!!” you’re probably asking!!
Well, see, that’s where it gets kind of complicated.
Why don’t I tell you how I invented the Love Ladder first…..
Continue reading Love LadderIs Dragon*Con Broken?
Updated Sept 5th, 2010 at 7:02pm – thanks to all of you who have contributed to the discussion!
It’s the Sunday morning of Dragon*Con 2010 and I’m spending my morning recuperating from having walked 5 or 6 miles around the East Coast’s fan-driven answer to Comic-Con yesterday. I woke up thinking about how much my beloved nerdfest has changed over the past five years and thought that I’d jot down some notes for later discussions with my friends who are also attending this year.
Truth is, I suppose the old girl has been changing ever since I first started going in the late 1980s, but lately it’s becoming hard to see what first made me fall in love with Dragon*Con. During a stopover at Trader Vic’s I participated in an impromptu panel called “Dragon*Con Might Just Suck” regarding how this year’s convention has been particularly lackluster. My fellow panelists Carl, Joseph and Timmy made some very good points and I’m distilling that conversation into the following five points:
- Invasion by Non-Fans
- Economy & Events
- Social Networks
- Scale
- Age
Before I elaborate on what the ‘con has become, let me Continue reading Is Dragon*Con Broken?
Alice’s Grabby Grabber
I’ve recently joined the ranks of people brought to the crossroads of a life decision after being exposed to the squirm-inducing cable television program Hoarders. While grubbing around for my model-making tools I ran across a giant metal spider; the remnant of a plot by my friend Alice to Continue reading Alice’s Grabby Grabber
Zombieland Ate Katrina Rice
(Please Tweet this if you get a chance) Last night I went to see the new hit comedy horror film “Zombieland” with a bunch of my friends who were on the crew and I must confess right up front that I’m extremely jealous that I didn’t work on this show; what it lacks in plot it makes up for with style, and it’s certainly going to look great on their resumes. I am, however, disappointed about one thing this film left out:
Katrina Rice didn’t get a screen credit.
Now, those of you outside the film industry need to realize that this is something Continue reading Zombieland Ate Katrina Rice
Scars from The Cancer Grenade
I made the accompanying USA Today style illustration to show the location of my scars without grossing anyone out, and to tell the story of how I decided to let a surgeon and his robot use tiny little surgical tools inside of my body.
In the fall of 2008 I went to my new primary care doctor for a physical. My PSA levels were high so we ran a round of antibiotics to see if it was an infection of some sort. After two weeks we re-tested and the levels were just as high so I went to see a urologist, who suggested that everything pointed toward the need for a biopsy. I opted to wait until after the holidays.
On January 27th of 2009 I went into the hospital for a surgical biopsy. Three days later the doctor was on the phone telling me that I had prostate cancer. Somehow I knew that I was going to get that call, but it still shocked me to my core. On the way home that night I called an old friend to tell him the news, still trying to make sense of it myself. Later, I wrote a letter to a friend living out of state as I didn’t want to Continue reading Scars from The Cancer Grenade