Archive for February, 2009

Circus of the Stars.

Thursday, February 26th, 2009

Here are a few clips of stars stepping out of their element to shill somethingorother.

First up, William Shatner. The good Captain appeared on WWE’s “Monday Night Raw” in the mid-90s to promote his short-lived TekWar series. Here he mixes it up with Jerry “The King” Lawler. The result? Let’s just say that Shatner’s no Andy Kaufman.

Next up is Governor Arnold in a commercial from Japan. Before you watch, a word of caution: the images you are about to see WILL haunt your dreams. You’ve been warned.

Here’s John Travolta, refreshed from guzzling an ice cold Tokyo Drink, in the gym.

More to come.

An Open Letter To Winter.

Tuesday, February 24th, 2009

Dear Winter,

Let’s be honest; I don’t like you and you don’t like me. But if we’re going to get through this mess (and by “mess” I mean “every hellish day of 18 degree temps and 50 mph winds that you make me suffer through”), we’re going to need to work together.

Okay, let’s deal.

Whaddya say you cool it with the snow, ice, hail, and freezing rain? C’mon, enough is enough. In turn, I promise to not only stop bitching but will also stop cursing your very existence on a regular basis.

See? It’s a win-win. I anxiously await your response.

Rob

P.S. Oh, in the meantime, if you could do something about that whole “permanent grey sky that seemingly sucks the life and soul right out of you” thing, I’d appreciate it.

Mickey Rourke: A Hand-In-Pants Retrospective

Monday, February 23rd, 2009

Courtesy of our friends at The Huffington Post:

Mickey Rourke: A Hand-In-Pants Retrospective

Well, gooooooood for you.

Monday, February 16th, 2009

That’ll be $200, please.

Tuesday, February 10th, 2009

That’s what the secretary at the doggie opthamologist’s office said after our appointment on Sunday. See, our regular vet suggested we bring Chloe the Wonder Shih Tzu to a specialist for, what he called, “some hairs on the insides of her eyelids.”

So we had our appointment with said specialist on Sunday where, after a five minute exam, we learned that Chloe has “some hairs on the insides of her eyelids.”

hairy eyelids

$200 to find out what we already knew. Well, that’s not entirely true. We also learned that, to correct this problem, there’s a special surgery. The cost? $1,000.

“It’s a simple in/out procedure,” the opthamologist said. Not sure if he’s referring to the surgery or the movement of swiping my credit card.

Greetings from Duluth.

Tuesday, February 10th, 2009

From pop culture maven Matt (proprietor of Alert Nerd.com), comes this gem:

Telly Savalas shilling for Duluth, Minnesota.

Who loves Duluth, baby?

Click. Here. To. Watch. Comic. Gold.

Behind the felt.

Tuesday, February 10th, 2009

muppetsFrom CNN.com and MentalFloss.com, 20 background stories on 20 Muppets, including Kermit, Piggy, Statler and Waldorf.

Check it out here.

And speaking of Statler and Waldorf, here’s a piece I wrote for McSweeney’s not so long ago.

You are an obsession, you’re my obsession.

Friday, February 6th, 2009

Chloe The Wonder Shih Tzu is known for many things: her crooked teeth, her so-loud-it-actually-has-woken-up-the-neighbors snoring, and, of course, her life’s ambition: to seek out and destroy all squirrels.

But there’s something else you should know about “Everybody’s Favorite Shih Tzu” (which, incidentally is the name of the Chloe-centered pilot I’m going to pitch to Animal Planet):

she’s prone to developing obsessions.

Over the past few months, Chloe The Wonder Shih Tzu has been obsessed with:

Our bed (specifically, underneath the bed). She’d spend hours under there. Sleeping? Sniffing? Dancing? Who knows.

The front door. She’d sit four inches from the door and stare. Just stare.

The microwave. Words can’t express the sheer amazement in her eyes when Chloe discovered the lights, beeps, and spinning motion (!) of this appliance.

But all these pale in comparison to her latest obsession: the humidifier.

She sits directly in front of it and, well, stares. Not sure if she’s waiting for it to do something (give her a treat, perhaps) or if she’s just trying to intimidate it, but something about this device has captivated her attention. The weird part? It’s not even on.

chloe's obsession

As much as Chloe loves the humidifier, sources say she’s already expressing interest in the air filter (pictured above, on right). What will ultimately win the obsession battle? Stay tuned.

 

The Emperor’s New Clothes.

Thursday, February 5th, 2009

From WhiteHouseTapes.org:

LBJ ORDERS SOME NEW HAGGAR PANTS
August 9, 1964 1:17 PM

In this telephone call, the President asked a leader of the Haggar clothing company for some custom-made pants, providing specific (and sometimes graphic) instructions on how they should be customized for him.

Excerpt:
LBJ: “See if you can’t leave me about an inch from where the zipper (belches) ends around my—back to my bunghole.”

To hear the entire conversation in all of it’s ridiculous glory, click here.

A Story About Giant Russians, Mirrored Walls, and Self Tanner.

Wednesday, February 4th, 2009

 

nervous breakdown
I’m back on The Nervous Breakdown today with a brand new (and 100% true) piece titled “A Story About Giant Russians, Mirrored Walls, and Self Tanner.”

A Story About Giant Russians, Mirrored Walls, and Self Tanner

A Story About Giant Russians, Mirrored Walls, and Self Tanner.

 

 

 

 

Click here to check it out.