First up, the official Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/wa...z4RLWo&feature=feedu
Link to an article giving us some general info: http://massively.joystiq....leashes-the-animal-pack/

Hey, folks, it's that time of the year when I make mention of a little-known, very relaxed speculative fiction con that takes place in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. ConDFW is happening on February 18-20, and we've got a cracking list of guests and panelists this year. Brandon Sanderson has decided to come into town, as has Tim Powers. Jack McDevitt is joining us because he couldn't make it last year, due to Snowpocalypse 2010. And lots of our regulars, including Lee Martindale, Selina Rosen, Brad Foster (who is our Artist GoH this year), P.N. Elrod, and lots more. Check out http://www.condfw.org for details. If you're in Dallas the weekend after Valentine's Day, feel free to swing by and hang out.
Ebony the Black Dragon
http://ebony14.livejournal.com

"Good night, and may the Good Lord take a Viking to you."

As should be obvious from the title, today's Google logo is about Jules Verne's Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.  Go take a look.  See if you can find the narwhal.
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Stand between the Silver Crystal and the Golden Sea.
"Youngsters these days just have no appreciation for the magnificence of the legendary cucumber."  --Krityan Elder, Tales of Vesperia.

Apropos of nothing in particular...
Because I put a copy of Taco's 1983 version of Puttin' On The Ritz on a mix CD I made over the weekend, Peggy and I got to talking on the ride home tonight about just how old the song was and how it was that something that first hit the screens in the early thirties mentions Gary Cooper.  So while I was assembling dinner she hit YouTube and Wikipedia and discovered that the version everyone knows -- Astaire from Blue Skies in 1948 -- is a rewrite.  That's not too unusual for an Irving Berlin song; Berlin reused and rewrote his material almost as much as Jim Steinman does -- just compare the movies Holiday Inn and White Christmas.  
So, curious about what it originally sounded like, we went and found the version that first appeared in the movie of the same name in 1930.
And dear god, is it racist.  The version everyone knows now is about going to Park Avenue and watching the rich people all dressed up.   The original version is about going to Harlem and watching poor black folks spend their last cent to put on airs and look fancy, with a not-quite-subtle air of mockery at their pretensions to being stylish.
That's all, just me venting at the shock and surprise.  Nothing important here.  Because, yeah, I know, Hollywood, 1930, what else should I expect?  But the differences blindsided us.
Oh, and if you want to hear the very un-PC original, it is.
(And for nicer giggles, Young Frankenstein version.)
-- Bob
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Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

Original Star Trek pitch in .pdf form.

Somewhere in the future, possibly the year 1995, Robert M. April is Captain of the United Starship SS Yorktown on an 5 year mission of Galaxy Exploration and Class M Investigation . At his side, the dark skinned 'Number One' a woman of incorruptible professionalism and intellect. First Lieutanant Mr. Spock, a man from Mars with an appearance like the devil himself and the curiosity of a cat. Navigator José Ortegas, a Latino in humour and temperament and in danger of becoming quite the ladies man. Philp 'Bones' Broyce, the humorously cynical ship's doctor and Yeoman Colt, the Captain's sexy secretary and bookeeper. Together, they fight crime...

Interesting. I can see why the network executives of the time would've exploded over it.

Also interesting are some of the story outlines posted which go on to become known episodes of Star Trek, and others which don't make the grade (One has a rather Christian lense to it too)

Just think "Robert M. April, Captain of the Yorktown"
In Shatners voice, it could work....
________________________________
--m(^0^)m-- Wot, no sig?

The newest thread in Shadowjack's Evangelion IWIW has had a number of songs posted that readers think of as related to the show.  It might be something to take a look at, assuming you haven't already seen it.  (They start at post #11)
Also, I was wondering, what would Komm Susser Tod, from End of Evangelion, do if Doug heard it?
-----
Stand between the Silver Crystal and the Golden Sea.
"Youngsters these days just have no appreciation for the magnificence of the legendary cucumber."  --Krityan Elder, Tales of Vesperia.

Damn.
First Ingrid Pitt and now Tura Satana has died.

In searching the internet for an audiobook version of Stealing Harry, as mentioned in the Newest Eyrie thread, I stumbled upon a website dedicated to archiving fanfiction audiobooks called http://audiofic.jinjurly.com/]Audiofic. It's remarkably extensive, though I can't speak for the overall audio quality of the books and, frankly, the layout needs some work. Each podfic (as they are referred to) is a zipped MP3 file, though some are in iTunes own audiobook format.

From the CoX Facebook page, a little hint of whats coming up.

So can we get one to cough on the other guys and make them sick?

For those of you who don't know, I recently rolled a toon called "Unknown Test Hero" to answer some questions I have that has cropped up regarding some things in COH.I have based this character's looks on the Top Gear persona "The Stig" and herald him as "The Stig's super-powered cousin".
For those of you who don't know ANYTHING about the Stig, his Wikipedia page is here.
Now, as mentioned in the article, whenever the Top Gear announcers introduce The Stig, they say some rumors about him, known as Stiggisms. These rumors always start with start with "Some say" and always end with "All we know is, he's called the Stig!" I find these amusing and make it a point to come up with one every time I bring him out or mention him in chat.
Because people asked for it, this post is going to include all the "Stiggisms" I made thusfar for Unknown Test Hero. I will keep addng as I come up with new ones. Enjoy.

• "Some say that he was created by Crey to fight the oncoming Praetorian threat, and also that he's the only guy that we could find to fit in the suit."
• "Some say that without his helmet he bears a striking resemblance to David Bowie, and that he once won the International Weight Lifting Championship using only his penis."
• "Some say he eats Hellions roasted on a spit, and he once thought Statesmans's Mask was used for contraception."
• "Some say his secret weakness is Cheez Whiz, and he once thought "The Leak Song" was a form of bathroom behavior."