kellener.com/steve

Happy Birthday Salma Hayek!

... — 2008-09-02T18:31:21-07:00

That’s what I’m talkin’ ‘bout!

-steve

Why so serious?

... — 2008-07-27T00:18:00-07:00

Saw Batman: The Dark Knight today and it was awesome. Everything worked. The set ups, the pay offs. The movie delivers. It’s no wonder it’c cleaning up at the box office. It deserves to. Heath Ledger was perfect as the Joker. After his performance it’s hard to maigine anyone else doing it. Big thumbs up! Go check it out!

-steve

I want to believe

... — 2008-07-26T02:13:09-07:00

You’d think all the geeks had left town to go to the San Diego Comic-Con. When I checked the movie schedule this morning for both Batman: The Dark Knight and The X-Files movie, I found out that many of them were still in town playing hooky from work. Every show was sold out until the evening of both films! I did get to see The X-Files though. All in all pretty good. It didn’t blow me out of my seat but it was a fun ride. Nice to see another case for Mulder and Scully to follow.

-steve

New site design

... — 2008-07-24T23:37:03-07:00

Finally got around to updating the site. Used Rapidweaver 4 with a cool theme called Cosmic. After a week of hell at work, hopefully I’ll have some more time to work on the site. I’ve added some new photos of Ev & Sam.

Still looking forward to seeing Batman: The Dark Knight. No one has had any negatives about it. I think it’s that and The X-Files movie this weekend for sure!

Enjoy the new site!

-steve

Hellboy II: The Golden Army

... — 2008-07-13T22:40:13-07:00

This summer is turning out to be really good for movies. Along with Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk, Hellboy II: The Golden Army delivers action as well as story with some fantastic characters. Much better than the first installment, this film offers up a much more entertaining story with a more interesting villian. Everything in this film is an improvement over the original. Check it out if you get a chance.

-steve

Ahhh...another year....

... — 2008-06-27T07:16:46-07:00

Well, another lap around the sun has gone by. I definitely find that I’m not as stoked about birthdays as I used to be. I am looking forward to spending the day with my nephew and niece. Somehow, it makes it more fun when they’re around.

I did a little searching online. Recognize any of these people? I guess 1966 wasn’t such a bad year afterall. Happy Birthday J.J. - Star Trek better be good....

....and god bless Salma Hayek!

-steve

Absolutely incredible!

... — 2007-12-02T02:32:52-08:00

I happened to be in a Best Buy today and saw a demo of one of the Samsung 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTVs. They were running the new Blu-Ray release of Pirates of the Carribean - At World's End. I can only describe it as - WOW! I don't think I have EVER seen a picture that amazing on any HDTV before.

The display in the store was a 40" . I think I'd have to go for the 57" myself! I think I found my next TV!

-steve

End of an era

... — 2007-11-25T10:15:20-08:00

So it seems that The Wiener Factory in Sherman Oaks (the absolute best turkey dogs ever made) will be closing by the end of this year. This is probably the worst news since George Bush was re-elected. They're not sure if they will open again somewhere else. I urge anyone in the vacinity of Sherman Oaks to get down there and have one of their awesome turkey dogs before they close.

In place of The Wiener Factory will be a PinkBerry yogurt stand. Now, the Wiener Factory has been in that location for at least 30 years. I've been going there since I was a kid. PinkBerry? I give it 6 months and it will be gone. I certainly won't be going there.

It is truly a dark day in Sherman Oaks.

-steve

We're fucked!

... — 2007-07-22T10:46:15-07:00

I urge everyone to go see Michael Moore's new documentary Sicko. I challenge anyone to see that movie and say the U.S. medical care system isn't completely fucked! In countries like Canada, England and France doctor's are not hindered by bureaucracy and whether or not a patient can afford care. Everything is simply provided. Obviously it comes from taxes, but the money seems well spent. All I can say about the system here in the U.S. is WTF??

-steve

Grindhouse

... — 2007-04-10T23:17:23-07:00

2007 is turning out to be a really good year so far for movies. First Zodiac, then The 300 and now Grindhouse. Saw this movie last night and it, or rather...they, are awesome! Pretty darn over the top and a lot of fun! Really long though since it's two whole movies. The first film was Robert Rodriguez's zombie film called Planet Terror with Rose McGowan and her machine gun "leg" mowing them down with lot's o'blood. The second film by Quentin Tarantino, Death Proof, had a lot of yaping, but turned out to be really good after. Once it gets going with the car chase, it's awesome! Also, one of the big treats in the film are the fake movie trailers. They're hilarious! Go see this film! It rocks!

-steve

Bad-ass!

... — 2007-03-15T23:00:34-07:00

Saw The 300 last night at the IMAX theater up at City Walk. It may not be the most accurate movie based on historical events, but it was pretty cool. It looked amazing. From what I've read, it was shot entirely on a stage with blue/green screens. Quite an undertaking. This was much more involved than the work done on Sin City. It was however very entertaining. Violent, yes, but entertaining. Lots of blood and limbs flying through the air in slow motion. Always a plus!

Check it out if you get a chance.

-steve

Zodiac

... — 2007-03-01T19:58:23-08:00

The film Zodiac comes out tomorrow. It's based on the book by my friend Aaron's Dad - Robert Graysmith. Robert is a real nice guy. While he was down here watching Aaron's house, he took Jerry and I to see King Kong since none of us had seen it. In the film he is played by Jake Gyllenhaal. They've been working on the film for like the last year and a half. The trailer looks pretty cool. Aaron was heading to a screening tonight at Paramount. Looking forward to his review. I'm sure the film will look cool with David Fincher directing. I'm gonna try and see it with Aaron tomorrow night.

-steve

*Update - Mar. 4
Got to see Zodiac tonight. I really enjoyed it. Thumbs up! Go check it out!

Which Superhero are you?

... — 2006-12-30T13:57:54-08:00

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Test!

My results:
You are
Spider-Man
You are intelligent, witty, a bit geeky and have great power and responsibility.

Niiiiiiiice!

-steve

Nice.

... — 2006-12-05T08:57:47-08:00

The media can talk about the Playstation 3 or the Wii all they want. I don't really care. Neither of those systems can deliver what the XBOX 360 will deliver in 2007. That's right, HALO 3 !!!! Click on the image to see the HALO 3 TV trailer!

-steve

Happy Halloween!

... — 2006-10-20T08:31:12-07:00

I know it's a little early, but why not? Saw this crazy customized Lego online. Looks cool. Some people just have waaaaay to much time on their hands!

-steve

Just see it.

... — 2006-08-08T23:06:07-07:00

Clerks II - one of the funniest films I've seen in a long time. Click here to see the trailer.

-steve

Brutal.

... — 2006-07-22T12:20:54-07:00

Went to ComicCon today. Just dude..... It was waaaaaaaaaay too crowded!! I don't know how people can put up with that for 4 days! It was truly unbearable. And you'd think it might have been cooler down in San Diego than up here in the valley...WRONG!!! It was blistering hot outside! Like ridiculous, crazy, stupid, Jessica Alba hot! Between the crowds and the heat, I don't think I could take that ever again!

The adult swim panel was ass. Those shows suck donkey balls! Except for DETHKLOK and Robot Chicken, the creators on the panel were all assholes that just love to hear to themselves talk. I used to like Morel Orel until I saw the guys who created it it. What a bunch of losers screaming for attention.

On the plus side, I got to see The Chiodo Bros. They were down there this year which was cool. They have a book they put out that may go in to production as a feature. That would be awesome! The floor was definitely split into mainly two categories. One side with artists with lots of their own stuff to promote, and the corporate side with gigantic booths that were filled with a whole lot of nothing. Of course, that was the side that was the most packed. Lame.

It's probably time for San Diego to either expand their convention center or really crack down on how many people can attend the con. It was just brutal this year.

-steve

Nice pic.

... — 2006-07-11T21:43:16-07:00

OK, I can't take credit for this. Rick actually took this picture of Samantha with my new camera. I did touch it up a bit later in Photoshop though. Came out great!

-steve

Fun with the fisheye!

... — 2006-07-08T23:17:30-07:00

Been wanting a fisheye lens since high school. Just had to buy one with the new camera and all. Here's some pics from work at my desk. Took these as soon as the lens came in. I'll do more.

Give me some time!

-steve

Thanks!

... — 2006-07-02T01:23:59-07:00

I had a great time at my 40th (yes...40th) B-Day party today! I didn't even want to have or do anything for my B-Day, but it turned out great and now I'm glad I had it! Thank you Rick and Dee for throwing it. Thank you to everyone who came!

Seeing Superman Returns with everyone was a lot fun fun too! I think Evan really enjoyed it (even though it was a bit long). The food at the party was great! The big sandwich, the mac & cheese and the cho all hit the spot! Seemed like they hit everybody else's spot too!

The gifts were extremely generous, you guys really shouldn't have. I can't wait to try them all out. I will definitely be posting some new pics with the new camera once I figure it out, and get a memory card for it.

Thank you Rick, Denise, Evan, Samantha, Mom, Harry, Aaron, Sow, Ray, Scott, Sara, Eric, Marissa, Alex, David, Denise, David, Lilah, Chris, Nisha, Sophia, Greg, Jon.

All I can say is you guys made turning 40 a lot more fun than I thought it would be!

Thank you!

-steve

Two fun summer movies

... — 2006-06-11T23:45:57-07:00

I had a good time at two summer movies so far this year;
X-Men 3 and Cars. I'm not really sure what other people were expecting, but I enjoyed watching X-Men 3. Lots of great mutant action. As for the other, Cars is not a NASCAR movie as many people have been led to believe. The basic story is reminiscent of Doc Hollywood. I enjoyed it much more than Finding Nemo (PIXAR's biggest hit to date) yet I think The Incredibles is my favorite PIXAR film.

I recommend both movies. Go check them out!

-steve

Backyard Fort

... — 2006-05-29T23:03:19-07:00

Helped Rick with his Memorial Weekend project. We built a fort for Evan and Samantha. First day was pretty rough. Second day went much smoother. There's still a set of swings to set up, but for the most part, the structure is finished and Ev is one happy camper!

-steve

Cool short

... — 2006-05-04T08:59:07-07:00

Very cool short film for "It hurts" on the official Angels & Airwaves website. Can't wait for the full album due out May 23. Hopefully there will be a DVD as well.

-steve

Everyone Stares

... — 2006-04-05T23:21:38-07:00

Tonight I got to see one of the coolest documentaries of all time, Stewart Copeland's Everyone Stares: The Police Inside Out. Two of the three Policeman were there; Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers. Sting was in Italy and could not make the screening. Basically the film is made up of all of the Super 8 footage Stewart had shot during the time he was in The Police. You get to see the small time band become one of the biggest bands of all time, from one of the members' perspective. It's a remarkable film with some incredible music, much of it from live performances. After the film Stewart did some Q&A with the audience which was a treat. He talked about having the footage digitized and editing in Final Cut Pro. I can only hope some of it will make it to a DVD release along with the film. I give this film a big thumbs up!

If you get a chance to see it, don't miss it!

-steve

Aaron Goes Hollywood

... — 2006-03-23T23:47:01-08:00

My good friend Aaron and his partners will be screening their new film at MethodFest on April 1st, 2006 at Carlson Family Theatre, Viewpoint School 23620 Mulholland Hwy, Calabasas, CA 91302. Here's a link to the festival, the movie site and MySpace site, Daily News article and Aaron's blog.

MethodFest
Bangkok - The Movie
Bangkok on MySpace
Daily News Article
ChimpTested

Good luck guys! See you there!

-steve

2006 Winter Olympics

... — 2006-02-13T14:42:31-08:00

Been watching the Winter Olympics in HD on NBC. Coverage is a million times better than it was in 2002. There was barely any HD back then. Just Hockey and Figure Skating. This time we've got everything from Snowboarding, Downhill Skiing, Ski Jump and Luge (I'm sure they'll have Bobsledding as well). It makes a huge difference when watching this stuff in HD. It's amazingly clear! I've always liked the Winter Olympics more than the Summer. I don't know, it just looks like more fun to me. I caught some of the preliminary snowboarding trials last night. Shaun White (aka "The Flying Tomato") who is pegged to be the champ almost didn't qualify. He pulled it out on his second run. Bode Miller didn't medal in the downhill. According to the results on NBC's site, looks like Shaun White took home the gold as expected and Danny Kass (previous medal winner) took home the silver. Also, the women's snowboarding team took the top two spots as well. Hannah Teter took gold and Gretchen Bleiler (mmmm...Gretchen...) took silver. I hope they air this stuff in tonight's broadcast. Looking forward to the rest of the coverage over the next week and a half.

-steve

P.S.
If you noticed the white cords coming from the ears of the U.S. Olympic Snowboarding Team, yes they all were wearing iPods during their runs. The specially designed pinstriped uniforms by Burton, are "already wired for the machines, with a nifty iPod-size pocket, speakers in the hood and a control panel on the left sleeve that allows the athletes to select songs". Read more about what the athletes listen to while in the halfpipe here.

-steve

Underworld underwhelmed

... — 2006-02-09T00:11:33-08:00

Saw Underworld: Evolution. Let me start by saying, I never saw the first Underworld film. I tried to rent it a couple of times, but it always seems to be out. Must be a good film if it's always out, right? Well, maybe. I can only speak about the second film at this point.

The film tells the story of a world in which vampires and werewolves are at war . I'm not 100% sure why they are at war. Each has a leader. One brother who was bit by a bat, the other brother who was bit by a wolf. Interesting premise. There are a few interesting things in the film, but mostly things seem to happen just for the sake of happening. There doesn't seem to be any great plan here. Just lots of mediocre eye candy (special effects).

Now, speaking of eye candy, there is one redeeming quality in this film. That is watching Kate Beckinsale (possibly the hottest looking vampire of all time) run around in her rubber suit for 104 of the 106 minute film. The other two minutes are even better because she isn't wearing the rubber suit. Not the greatest actress in the world and not the greatest script in the world, but I could have easily watched this film on mute the entire way through just watching her. Might be worth having a look when the DVD comes out. I wouldn't really rush out to it in the theater unless you really enjoyed the first one.

-steve

Return of The King

... — 2006-02-04T09:34:59-08:00

Yes everyone, that is the "real" Jerry Lentz, back on his throne at Roman's. He arrived back here in L.A. last week after conquering the radio market in Fresno. The guy beat Stern for Pete's Sake! He has now begun his takeover of L.A. media. Look and listen for him soon on radio, television, movies, and podcasts!

-steve

Disney rebirth

... — 2006-01-24T23:31:35-08:00

Today the Walt Disney Company bought Pixar Animation Studios. Steve Jobs is now largest single stock holder in the Walt Disney Company. Amazing! Steve Jobs basically owns Disney! He can call all the shots! Amazing!

I hope that Steve and the boys from Pixar gut the animation studio like a fish! Remove the layer upon layer of management that exists over there! Why are these people there anyway? Compared to what they used to do, there's almost no animation being done there these days. If there's no animation being done, why are there so many managers? Why do they need assistants? What do they do all day?

Maybe now, they can actually hire back actual animators in the animation department. They can now bring back the real people behind creating the best animated films on the planet! The artists! They obviously know a little something about how to do that at Pixar. I can only hope they will bring that magic spark back to Disney.

-steve

Kong

... — 2006-01-18T21:02:27-08:00

Finally got to see King Kong. Saw Jerry and Aaron's Dad today. None of us had seen King Kong, so we went to see it. Actually Aaron's Dad treated us. It was pretty darn good. A little long, but really well done. The acting/animation of Kong was amazing! At some point, the Academy may have to go ahead and add a "Best Achievement in Animation" category. Simply having "Best Animated Picture" and "Best Visual Effects" just isn't going to cut it with such great performances as this. Naomi Watts is no slouch either. She did a really great job. You really believed she was right there with the giant ape. Kudos to Peter Jackson bringing a classic back to the big screen and remaining true to the original.

Go see this movie in the best theater you can!

-steve

Put it on your Video iPod

... — 2006-01-18T10:38:19-08:00

No, I don't have a Video iPod. That doesn't mean I can't convert stuff to play on it! Here's one of the most comprehensive online guides on how to do it whether you want H.264 or MPEG-4.

The Last iPod Video Guide You’ll Ever Need

-steve

ROQ of the 80's

... — 2006-01-17T11:59:12-08:00

If you are as old as me, you can remember a time when local radio station here in L.A., KROQ used play some of the best music around. You would also remember the DJ's at the time. Dusty Street, Freddie Snakeskin, Swedish Egil and of course Richard Blade. While Jed the Fish is the sole survivor still currently on KROQ, you can find the rest of the 80's crew on Sirius Satellite Radio. They have their own channel called 1st Wave - Ch 22. Scott had them on in his car the other day and I picked up on Dusty's voice right away. Sirius has a 3 day free trial plan that you can test out and hear on the net. So check it out if you get a chance.

-steve

Cool new Mac stuff

... — 2006-01-11T09:17:48-08:00

Steve Jobs gave his keynote speech at Macworld yesterday. You can view the whole thing here. Among the things he introduced were the cool new iMac and MacBook Pro both with duel Intel processors. My only gripe is that Apple makes such good computers, my current Mac (almost 4 years old) works just fine, and I can't really see buying one of those 20" iMacs just yet. Damn you Apple, you make the computers too good! Well, there's always next year!

-steve

Hooray for Santy Claus!

... — 2005-12-27T18:57:40-08:00

Found this at the bookstore today. Not only is it a copy of the movie Santa Claus Conquers The Martians on DVD (one of the worst movies ever made!), it has the novelization by Lou Harry as well. Oh sure, I could simply download the movie off the net, it is in the public domain after all, but then I wouldn't have this cool book to go along with it! I think my niece and nephew will get a kick out of it. As a kid I really liked the movie. Boy, it sure didn't age well! However, along with the MST3K version, I think this makes one hell of a unique set!

-steve

Shearing of the lamb

... — 2005-12-21T11:12:51-08:00

This is a picture of Samantha at her 2nd haircut. She sure looks happy doesn't she? What you don't see are any pictures of her first haircut. That was given to her by Evan over the weekend. D'oh! Never a dull moment over at that darn Kellener household!

-steve

Shark bait!

... — 2005-12-21T10:46:27-08:00

OK, so I bought myself one toy while doing some Xmas shopping. Found the Griffin radioSHARK super cheap. In the past I had used my old boombox and some software to record off the radio. Not the greatest, but it worked... sort of. Now with this, it's all hooked up through USB. No power cables needed. Tried it out this morning. It automatically recorded the KROQ morning show and dumped it right into iTunes. Sweet!

So now if Jerry ever gets a gig on a local L.A. radio station, I'm all set to record it! So when you comin' back Jerry?

-steve

Flux is good!

... — 2005-12-17T21:58:01-08:00

What more can I say? Thank God for Charlize Theron's DNA! I just don't mean for those amazing looks either! It's all part of the cool story line in the film Æon Flux. It takes place 400 years in the future in a utopian city known as Bregna, the last city on Earth . I didn't really care much for the original animated version of Æon Flux. While it had some great layouts, I thought the designs were really ugly. The fact that it used to run on MTV's Liquid Television didn't help either since they used to break up episodes making it really hard to follow the story.

The new live-action film is surprisingly good. It's got a great look, cool sci-fi story, interesting characters, cool effects and one amazingly hot star. Yes, she looks good in black! I'd recommend seeing this film. You may be pleasantly surprised!

-steve

Tape is dead!

... — 2005-11-26T12:15:45-08:00

Yeah sure, tape has been dead for years now, but for me, it's really dead now! Went to digitize something for Denise off a VHS tape. Haven't used VHS tape in years! I still had my VCR hooked to the computer so I popped in the tape. The VCR then proceeded to eat the tape! D'OH!

I think Rick and Dee still have an old VCR they don't use anymore. I'll have to try that. Other than that, my days of VHS tape or over! There's no way I am going to go buy a new VCR! Even if they are $12 brand new it's a waste of dough!

Tape is dead!

-steve

My Name Is Earl

... — 2005-11-12T22:48:00-08:00

My favorite new show! Didn't catch it when it first came on awhile back. There was some kind of "Earl" marathon on tonight on NBC. This show is great! It's very funny. Earl (Jason Lee) has taken one too many wrong turns on the highway of life. However, a twist of fate turns his life into a tailspin of life-renewing events. Earl wins a small lottery, and, after an epiphany, he is determined to transform his good fortune into a life-changing event as he sets out to right all the wrongs from his past. Much in the vein of H.I. McDonnough from Raising Arizona. Add Jamie Pressly to the mix for the perfect trailer park ex-wife. I'm sill not sure when it's regular time slot is, but hopefully I'll find out. Now I want to catch it every week!

-steve

Party at Anton's!

... — 2005-10-31T19:51:00-08:00

In honor of Halloween , I suggest you check out the movie Idle Hands. This is a perfect Halloween movie. It's got spooky-gory stuff as well as a sense of humor. It's got stoners, zombies, a possessed hand and let's not forget the stunning Jessica Alba as well! So if you can't make it to that costume party, check this movie out!

-steve

The World Famous Jerry Lentz

... — 2005-10-26T19:57:00-07:00

Today Jerry found out that he and Brad of KRZR's now defunct Front Row Morning Show were #1 in their market for men 18-34, their target audience with 10.3 Share. They beat Stern! They beat everyone! They were #1 and they were still laid off. Unfucking believable!

To quote E. Curtis Johnson, KRZR program director, from the article KRZR's 'Front Row' clears out after 14 years,

"'We live and die by ratings," Johnson says.

Guess it will be a slow horrible death for Clear Channel and KRZR! THE FRONT ROW BEAT FREAKIN' HOWARD STERN!

I have tried to encourage Jerry to start his own podcast. I even made him the artwork here to use royalty free! If you want to hear Jerry do a podcast write to him at lentz2001@yahoo.com and don't ask him, tell him!

-steve

The Holy Grail !

... — 2005-10-12T12:07:00-07:00

Yup, the Video iPod is here.

It's pretty cool. Of course, it makes my 3 month old iPod outdated! It's ok. The video capabilities are brand new on this iPod. Only three hours of battery life while watching videos. I'm sure they will get even better and hard drive space will get even bigger on future models. I still wonder why they didn't go with a widescreen? As of today. Apple is now selling music videos on the iTunes Music Store for $1.99 with DRM. I wonder how many people realized that before today you could get all of the videos Apple posted for free with no DRM? Interesting. Now what I would like to see is a preset in iMovie to export the proper format for the new Video iPod. That will make it easy to create your own content for it.

With all this cool stuff coming out, looks like there's no stopping Apple now!

- steve

*Update - Apple has released Quicktime 7.0.3 with built-in preset to export MPEG4 files ready for the new Video iPods! Sweet!
*Update 2 - NO FIREWIRE support for the Video iPod!

As predicted...

... — 2005-10-08T00:12:00-07:00

I predicted that the movie Serenity would rock. Well it came out last week. I finally had a chance to go see it tonight. Wow! Great movie! Good story, great characters, and a lot of fun! Can't wait to go check it out again! Go see this movie! You won't be dissapointed!

- steve

KRZR Sucks!

... — 2005-09-23T07:31:00-07:00

Well, my buddy Jerry was fired yesterday.

Jerry, Jen and Brad of The Front Row Morning Show at radio station KRZR in Fresno were all canned. Why may you ask? Well, let's see...because they did a good job that's why! When the ratings came in after Jerry had started at the station, they were number one in their market. As far as I know, they have remained number one the whole time which has been almost a year. So what do they get for it? A raise? A pat on the back? A new car? Nooooo....They got the axe. Yes sir, that's what you get from corporate America in this day an age. You get the boot when you do a good job.The Front Row was the only reason I listened to that station. Their music sucks. KRZR Sucks!

On the whole, this could turn out to be a good thing. With the rise of podcasting, you don't need a radio station. This could finally be the end or corporate radio! A mic, a computer and some talent will get you far these days. Look for Jerry to return to the airwaves with his own podcast soon. Contact him through his website and let him know you want to continue listening to him. Donations will be gladly accepted.

The World Famous Jerry Lentz

I have some of Jerry's classic bits from The Front Row. Just click on the Funny Radio section on my site and re-live the experience.

Oh yeah, KRZR Sucks!

- steve

iPod nano

... — 2005-09-11T17:03:00-07:00

Well Apple released the latest iPod on Wednesday. The iPod nano. Probably the coolest looking and coolest form factor yet for the iPod. Without a doubt, this thing will be a hit. There are a few caveats you should know about though...

• There is no firewire support with the iPod nano. You can still charge your nano through firewire, but you can only connect and sync it through USB 2.0. Not such a good thing if you own an older Mac without USB 2.0.

• There is no TV out support on the iPod nano. Although you can now store pictures on the nano, you can only view them on the nano's color screen. The only iPod with video out is the regular 20GB and 60 GB iPod with the color screen (formally known as the iPod photo).

• The headphone jack is located on the bottom on the iPod nano. Not a huge deal, but it means that none of the previous iPod peripherals will work with the nano. Not a big deal if you are new to the iPod. However, people who have invested in a previous iPod and peripherals might balk at spending more money.

If all of these items don't ruffle your feathers, by all means pick one up! It's a slick little toy!

- steve

Ahhh...pain'ball....

... — 2005-08-22T09:18:00-07:00

Good time on Saturday with everybody at the paintball field. Check it out!

-steve

Can't wait!

... — 2005-08-14T23:13:00-07:00

This movie is gonna rock September 30th!

- steve

Hot Day

... — 2005-07-18T11:28:00-07:00

Sure was hot yesterday! Glad my brother and sister-in-law have a pool! Aaron came by and we had a blast with Evan and Samantha. Sammy's turning into quite the thrasher in the water, while Ev has perfected his flying "Marvel" pose.

-steve

It could have been a lot worse...

... — 2005-07-09T11:07:00-07:00

I'm speaking of course about the new Fantastic Four movie that came out yesterday. Aaron and I went to see it. My expectations have been below ground level since I first heard they were making this film. The FF is my all time favorite comic book since I was a kid. I wanted to see a big budget special effects version of FF for a long, long time. Trouble is, more often than not, these Hollywood blockbuster's almost always suck! So it was a mixed blessing when I heard the film went into production.

No that I have seen the film, all I can say is, it could have been a lot worse. Most of the effects were pretty good. There are a few right towards the big finale at the end that could have used a few more weeks of work. I think Michael Chiklis as Ben Grimm (aka The Thing) really pulled it off. Even though the design of the mask really needed much more of a prominent brow, I thought he really brought the character to life. The banter between him and Johnny Storm (aka The Human Torch) worked well and reminded me a great deal of the wisecracks they would exchange in the comic. This is by no mean a great film. It has a lot of problems. Some of the dialog is excruciatingly painful. Other things, like the way they get their names seem like throw aways.

I was one of the people who got a hold of the Corman version of FF back in 1994. Don't believe what people tell you. It was horrible! As far as this new version of FF? Overall this new film is a mixed bag. It's no Spider-man or X-Men. It's much closer to the Daredevil, Hulk and Hellboy movies. Great stuff mixed in with some not so great stuff. It's mediocre at best. As far as recommending it? I'd say if you are a FF fan, go see it. It you are not a fan, skip it.

-steve

What a surprise!

... — 2005-06-16T22:41:00-07:00

Saw Batman Begins last night. Originally I had no plans to see this film. I just didn't find the trailers all that compelling. Well, a friend bought some tickets ahead of time and I was in the area so I went. I did not have low expectations, I had no expectations! So when we went the the Chinese to see it, I really didn't have any opinion on this film. Well, to my surprise, it's actually really good! This is not a continuation of the earlier WB franchise. This is a completely different telling of the story of Batman. A lot closer to what the original comic was. The story is good and the story telling is really good. Everything seems to have a point and lead to other things down the road. If I have one criticism about the film, it is that the action scenes are not clearly defined. Many times it's hard to tell what is going on. This seems to be in line with some of the reviews the film has been getting. I would still recommend the film even with this small criticism. I will say this, the film is definitely poised to start a new Batman franchise. If the next one is as good as this one, I would absolutely go see it. Maybe they'll have a better second unit director to take care of the action sequences next time! ;-)

This week I also had the luck to see a second really good film. I missed it when it was in the theaters last year, but if you get a chance, check out Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. As advertised, it looked like the typical vehicle for Jim Carrey to do his thing. I think maybe that's why I missed it first time around. I caught this on High-Definition Pay-Per-View. All I can say is wow! What an amazing looking film! Especially in Hi-Def! An incredible transfer! The film itself was really enjoyable. Yet again, I was pleasantly surprised! All of the characters were interesting and so was the story. The film could easily be mistaken for Tim Burton's, but Tim did not direct it. His long time Art Director, Rick Heinrichs, did work on it though. I am a huge fan of his work (along with most of Tim's). if you get a chance, do see Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events.

-steve

Mac - Intel inside - D'oh!

... — 2005-06-07T23:13:00-07:00

Yup, yesterday it all came true. Apple is switching to Intel processors over the next 2 years. No matter, it's Mac OS X that's the jewel. As long as I can keep running that, I don't care what chip is inside the box! Lots of naysayers out there. But having seen this all before with NeXTSTEP and Openstep, it should be a pretty smooth transition. I think my current Mac should be able to last through the transition, and I'll need a new one right around the time the transition is complete. Hope there's some cool stuff out by then! For more info about the big switch check out Steve Jobs Keynote at the WWDC 2005. Now, Hoops and I will have to work on getting Cambridge to compile Animo for Mac OS X Intel! Heheheheheh....

-steve

Lords of Dogtown

... — 2005-06-03T22:31:00-07:00

Saw Lords of Dogtown today. Overall I found it very entertaining. While I think some of the acting and dialogue weren't as good as they could have been, the story is still compelling. I am a big fan of Stacy Peralta's documentary Dogtown and Z-Boys. His script for Lords of Dogtown hits all of the main points covered in the documentary. The movie however lets you into the world of Dogtown in the mid-seventies. You get to experience significant events right along with with the Z-Boys. Events like riding on urethane wheels for the first time and skating an empty swimming pool for the first time (and getting chased away by the cops as well). During the skate sessions in the film you really get a sense that they were creating something original. Some of the weaker moments are during the home life sequences. They felt uneven and sometimes too forced. There are some great cameos in the film. See if you can find the real Z-Boys in the film when you see it. I'd recommend seeing the documentary first to anyone interested in the history of skateboarding. But after that, if your thirst hasn't been quenched, check out Lords of Dogtown.

-steve

Sith schmith....

... — 2005-06-02T00:16:00-07:00

Just got back from the latest and last Star Wars movie, Episode III - Revenge of the Sith. Wow! This movie is bad. The last two Star Wars movies were bad so I am not surprised. At least George Lucas is consistent. My recommendation? If you are a hardcore Star Wars geek, and you liked the last two, then go see it. Anyone other than that, skip it. No matter what anyone else tells you, it was not worth the wait. Instead go watch the last 15 minutes of the original Star Wars (any edition) be it on Laserdisc, DVD, VHS, or Super 8. There's more excitement in those 15 minutes than anything the combined 415 minutes of the three prequels have to offer.

-steve

Grrrrrrr....

... — 2005-05-29T10:12:00-07:00

OK, So I installed Mac OS 10.4 Tiger the other day. It's been two days now. I'm not all that impressed. The way I normally do searches for stuff on my own computer is by name anyway, so Spotlight really has not impressed me. I could have done without it. Dashboard = eye candy. Sure it looks cool, but how useful is it really? I found one really useful widget. It's called Marquee and gives you your local movie times in what looks just like a theater marquee! OK, so I like that one. You can do the same thing with ol' Sherlock, but it's really slow and a pain to use these days. Apple has let it fall by the wayside. Hoops and I still haven't been able to get Brewster online to try out iChat AV 3.0 the multi-video chat so I can't comment about that. Overall I'd say the system seems slower than Panther. So all in all, worth the $129 upgrade? For a few widgets? Nah... I would have rather simply paid around $29 for iChat 3 to try it out and kept Panther instead. I'd say anyone who wants the eye candy go for it, other than that, stick with Panther.

-steve

Has hell frozen over?

... — 2005-05-24T23:24:00-07:00

I never thought I would see the day. My brother Rick, a Wintel man through and through for as long as I have known him, bought a Mac today! I guess there truly is a first time for everything!

-steve

Moving along....

... — 2005-05-17T09:15:00-07:00

I think the site is coming along pretty good.

-steve

Hey Guys!

... — 2005-05-21T10:59:00-07:00

Welcome to my new home page. After paying 99 bones to Apple for three years, I had enough. I'm doing it myself! I am using the same program we created Animation Meat in. It's called Rapidweaver and it rules!

-steve