firehose

Published in 1944, mapmaker Sally De Long's "Our New Neighbors" beautifully depicts projected air routes of the mid-20th century. The dawn of the Air Age, the 1940s were when many airlines first began making international flights.

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Every day, Watch This offers staff recommendations inspired by a new movie coming out that week. This week: Instead of pegging our picks to a new release, we’re running through the best movies of 1993.

Groundhog Day (1993)

Despite a couple earlier flirtations with drama, Bill Murray’s career as a “serious actor” didn’t really begin until 1998, when Wes Anderson brought out a uniquely weary quality in the SNL alum. But Rushmore, for all the doors it opened, wasn’t the first sign that Murray had more to offer than deadpan one-liners: Five years earlier, he proved his real worth in Harold Ramis’ cyclical comedy of comeuppance, Groundhog Day. In fact, while much of Murray’s latter day work—including his Oscar-nominated appearance in Lost In Translation—has relied on a sustained note of melancholy, his turn in this 1993 masterwork demonstrates the actor’s complete range ...

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LGBTQ Nation

Same-Sex Couples Sue Idaho Over State's Ban on Gay Marriage (1) Businessweek Idaho's bar to gay marriage was challenged by four same-sex couples in a lawsuit filed in federal court in Boise. Two couples, married elsewhere, seek recognition of their status in the state, while the other two want to establish their right to wed. The plaintiffs ... 4 couples sue Idaho over same-sex marriage banWestport-News all 15 news articles »

dodgeball -

Nekketsu Koukou Dodgeball Bu: Soccer Hen

(Technos - Famiom - 1990)

original Japanese version of Nintendo World Cup

requested by m0rmon-jesus

The Onion is ending print publication of its weekly paper, which was once available in 17 markets but due to low advertising revenue is now available in just three cities. The last print editions will be published on December 12, 2013—after that date, The Onion and The A.V. Club will be available solely online. Onion fans need not worry though: a spokesman for The Onion said that the company has experienced rising profits over the past four years, due to its success on the Internet and in advertising services.

photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

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Last year, you might remember, myself and Mercury Editor-in-Chief Wm. Steven Humphrey took one lucky Blogtown reader to Denny's! Becuase Denny's had a Hobbit-themed menu, you see, and if there's one thing Steve and I will do at any given second—just say the goddamn word—it's eat a bunch of terrible food that is in some way tied in to the release of a major motion picture.

Well, guess what, motherfuckers: Denny's is going H.A.M. pretending they're in Middle-earth again, which means me and Steve will be eating a Hobbit-ified breakfast there again, and because we had a tolerable time so much fun last year, we're going to take all one of you with us! Denny's new and improved (?) Hobbit-themed menu is out, featuring such mouth-watering, beard-greasing items as...

• The "Build Your Own Hobbit Slam"
• Bowman's Brew Pumpkin Coffee
• Smaug's Fire Burger with X-Sauce
• Elven Woodland Pies
• The Hobbit Hole Breakfast
• Dwarves' Turkey & Dressing Dinner

I don't want to eat any of those things! What the fuck is X-Sauce! But I will.

HERE'S THE DEAL: If you win this contest, the Mercury will take YOU out to Hobbit Breakfast at a Portland-area Denny's of our choosing, where you'll be treated to (1) scintillating converstaion with me and Steve, possibly featuring Steve's dramatic synopsis of The Lord of the Rings films*, (2) whatever item off of the Hobbit-themed menu you can talk yourself into ordering, and (3) probably some mean looks from the scary teenagers who hang out by the door at Denny's, smoking and glaring at anyone who actually goes inside! Such delightful mornings are rarely found outside of Rivendell!

So what's the contest, you ask? Well, since it worked out so well last time, and as it's pretty humiliating for everyone involved, we shall once again delve into everyone's least favorite art form... poetry. The person who writes the "best" Hobbit-themed poem (judged by ME) and posts it in the comments below by 3 pm on Wednesday, November 13, will be deemed the winner. Repeat entries are allowed, and you can write your poems as long as you want, though keep in mind I have a very short attention span and there are probably better things you should be doing with your time. I think that's it! Start writing some nerd poetry, Blogtown readers... and start preparing for the most magical morning of your crappy life.

*Steve has never seen and will never see any of The Lord of the Rings films.

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There are certain days that late night host Jimmy Kimmel cannot do anything wrong... and there are certain days that Kimmel cannot do anything right. THIS IS ONE OF THOSE DAYS. From HitFix's daily TV news roundup:

A nationwide protest against ABC and Jimmy Kimmel is planned for 27 cities on Saturday

An organization representing 100 Chinese American organizations around the United States says it isn't satisfied with ABC's apology or Kimmel's apologies (on his show and directly to protesters) for the sketch in which a kid says "kill everyone in China." "We know ABC has issued an apology, but that is not enough," says Charles Lu, who is chairman of the Roundtable of Chinese American Organizations. "We want ABC to make a formal apology to all Chinese and do something in the future to avoid terrorist violence."

Petition will force the White House to address Jimmy Kimmel's "Kill everyone in China" segment

More than 100,000 people have signed a White House petition asking the Obama administration to comment on the Kimmel segment in which a little boy says "Kill Everyone in China." The White House has to address all petitions that gathers 100,000 signatures in 30 days.

Psychology prof denounces Jimmy Kimmel's Halloween candy prank on children

"Pranking your own children is not harmless fun, but is cruel and potentially damaging," says Mark Barnett, a psych professor at Kansa State University. "A parent who would violate this trust for a big laugh or 15 minutes of fame is, in my opinion, acting irresponsibly and not looking out for the best interests of the child."

Jimmy Kimmel edits out a boy genius rejecting his gift of a Sony tablet — he's already getting an iPad.

Kimmel likely didn't want to upset his sponsor. On the broadcast version, Arden Hayes said thanks, but no thanks, to the Sony Xperia Z tablet, saying he was getting an iPad instead. But the rejection has been removed from Kimmel's YouTube version of the segment.

RELATED:

Letterman won't do viral videos

"We are no longer fighting for recognition," says "Late show" producer Rob Burnett, adding: "Part of Dave’s genius is what he doesn’t do. If he was still putting on a Velcro suit and jumping on a wall, he’d be the television equivalent of Gallagher."

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Authorities say Kendrick Johnson fell into the mat and suffocated while trying to retrieve a sneaker. His family suspects the 17-year-old was murdered and that someone has tried to cover up evidence in the case. "I was not notifedi n (sic) this death until 15:45 hours. The investigative climate was very poor to worse when I arrived on the scene. The body had been noticably (sic) moved. The scene had been compromised and there was no cooperation from law enforcement at the scene. Furthermore the integrity of the evidence bag was compromised on January 13, 2013 by opening the sealed bag and exhibiting the dead body to his father," wrote Lowndes County Coroner Bill Watson in a report dated January 22. "I do not approve of the manner this case was handled. Not only was the scene compromised, the body was moved. The integrrety (sic) was breached by opening a sealed body bag, information necessary for my lawful investigation was withheld," he said.

At a demonstration of the Xbox One this week organized by Microsoft, the new version of the company's voice-and-motion-detecting Kinect sensor didn't work nearly as flawlessly in real life. The Xbox 360 successor, which is scheduled for release Nov. 22, required several commands to be repeated for the response to pop up on screen. During a private 45-minute presentation showcasing the console's media and entertainment capabilities, about 10 of 45 voice commands issued had to be repeated by a Microsoft spokesman — some as many as four times. Kinect didn't immediately detect such orders as "Xbox, watch ESPN" and "Xbox, Bing movies with Sandra Bullock" during the demo.

Slacktory shares ten easy steps to making a hit superhero movie in this video edited by Alex Coulombe.

‘Iron Man 3,’ ‘Man of Steel,’ and ‘The Wolverine’ didn’t match up to the superhero blockbusters of 2012. What did they miss that ‘The Amazing Spider-Man,’ ‘The Avengers,’ and ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ got right?

music by Mat Coulombe

submitted via Laughing Squid Tips

Garrison Bespoke, a custom tailor in Toronto, recently unveiled a bulletproof suit lined with a carbon nanotube material that can stop a bullet or blade. In a media demonstration earlier this week, the suit successfully withstood several rounds from a 9mm handgun. The suit is built to order and starts at $20,000.

via The Globe and Mail

photo by Mark Blinch/The Canadian Press

A screening of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope was dubbed into the Navajo language at the 38th Annual American Indian Film Festival on November 6, 2013. It was shown at the Delancey Street Theatre in San Francisco. Topless Robot writer Sherilyn Connelly was lucky enough to attend the screening. She has compiled a list of the five coolest things about the Navajo translation of Star Wars.

Other than the English language being translated into Navajo – and that was done seamlessly – nothing else about the movie has been changed: the music and sound effects are all the same, CGI Jabba still speaks Huttese, and Greedo still speaks whatever Greedo speaks, though they’re both also subtitled into Navajo at the bottom of the screen.

It was a remarkable experience, and one that’s long overdue: Star Wars is the first major motion picture to be translated into Navajo, and the producers of the translation say it will not be the last.

image via American Indian Festival

videos via Revolt1680 and Indian Country Today

via Topless Robot

BBC News

Jury finds Pinkberry co-founder guilty of beating homeless man Los Angeles Times The co-founder of frozen yogurt giant Pinkberry was convicted Friday of beating a homeless man with a tire iron while the victim panhandled on the side of an East Hollywood street. Young Lee, 49, became upset in June 2011 that Daniel Bolding had flashed ... Pinkberry co-founder convicted of assaulting homeless man in LAFox News Pinkberry co-founder found guilty in 2011 beating of transientabc7.com all 48 news articles »

The United States routinely spends more tax dollars per high-school athlete than per high-school math student—unlike most countries worldwide. And we wonder why we lag in international education rankings?

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Rapidly running out of ubiquitous TV presences it hasn’t already cast, Community has reached all the way back to the 1970s to find Paul Williams, the songwriter and actor who was turning up in random guest spots when Community was just a crude crayon drawing on Dan Harmon’s wall. Yvette Nicole Brown tweeted a photo of herself with Williams that declared today her “FAV day on the Community set EVER!” (sorry, every single other guest star), adding the hashtag “#RainbowConnection” as a nod to Williams’ famous song (but definitely not Miss Piggy). There aren’t any other details as to who Williams might be playing yet—though given how crowded the Community halls are going to be this year, perhaps he’ll be making a nod to The Phantom Of The Paradise by just haunting them all from the air ducts.  

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QCF Design's IGF award-winning roguelike RPG Desktop Dungeons is now available on Steam, capping off an extended development period and years-long beta testing phase.

Billing itself as "the perfect coffee-break game," Desktop Dungeons condenses the roguelike genre's complexity into a series of single-screen, randomly generated dungeons. Players can expect to die quickly and frequently, but QCF notes that all of the game's dungeons can be completed in around 10 minutes, making it an ideal fit for genre veterans who no longer have the patience (or free time) for NetHack and the like.

Desktop Dungeons is currently available for 10 percent off of its regular asking price on Steam. A Special Edition that includes the game's soundtrack and add-on "Goatperson" DLC is also available for purchase.

Quickfire roguelike Desktop Dungeons out now on Steam originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 08 Nov 2013 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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CBS "Eyewitness" Admits He Lied About Benghazi Attack While Bashing Critics:

Crucial.

“When I was younger it was popular for my leftie friends to ask “Why can’t we be like Western Europe?” We probably can. A good first step, it seems, would be fighting a genocidal war which results in massive relocations, more ethnic homogeneity, the near-extermination of one of our minorities (one guess at who that would be) and the reduction of our major cities to rubble.”

- Ta-Nehisi Coates, on war, welfare, and the aftermath of the Second World War. (via theatlantic)

Several pieces of original artwork by the late Westport artist and illustrator Bernard “Bernie” Burroughs (1912 -1993) will be auctioned off on Sunday by Black Rock Galleries in Bridgeport with previews beginning today.

The preview and auction will take place simultaneously online and live at 1720 Fairfield Ave., Bridgeport. Phone (203)335-0000.

Bernie Burroughs was renowned as a men’s fashion illustrator during the “Mad Men” era of advertising art, with his work for Van Heusen, Fruit of the Loom, Arrow shirts, MacGregor, and many others, appearing in national magazines throughout the 1950s and ‘60s.

Insidious scrutinization of that which is expressed lyrically

This is a content summary only. Click on the story to read the whole thing at InvisibleOranges.com

Studio Mono needs your help in bringing its new online roleplaying game to the masses, to the tune of $70,000.

Dubbed "Insomnia," the game is described as "a co-operative online role-playing game with tactical elements and unique game mechanics in a sophisticated universe designed with a dark retro-futuristic dieselpunk style." Players will be presented with non-linear story options, many of which ask them to join forces with other players. That said, the Insomnia Kickstarter claims the game is more akin to traditional roleplaying games than their online counterparts.

"Players will be free to choose if they want to tackle the single player quest lines alone, or in co-op with two or three friends taking on the online PvP content, such as faction wars or global quest lines where more than 60 players could be taking part at any one moment," reads the game's description.

With 48 days remaining in the Insomnia fundraising effort, the game has accumulated $1,181 of its $70,000 goal. If your interest in this project has been piqued, you can find full information on Insomnia at its Kickstarter page. Assuming the game is able to raise the necessary funds, Insomnia will hit the PC, Mac and Linux platforms at some as yet undetermined point in the future.

Online RPG Insomnia seeks to build 'dieselpunk' universe originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 07 Nov 2013 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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At this stage in his late career, really for the whole season-plus he's been with Denver, Manning makes being a midlevel IT manager look like a form of ruthless conquest. It's as if he wrote a script to install automatic PC updates, and somehow it made him the god-emperor of hell. (Again, this is a guy who has been compared to an atom bomb about 176,000 times on the Internet and whom you can absolutely believe would have a special room in his house for folding socks.) This is how he plays football: He goes out every week with a graphing calculator and a stack of forms, and he just audits teams to death.

bolgarur:

happy november 7

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