Black Rabbit Ink

Happy Thanksgiving!

AK Willett — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 10:47:08 -0500

A Macy's Thanksgiving Day blast from the past. Have a great holiday!

Frigidaire Refrigerator Ad 1957

AK Willett — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 09:29:00 -0500

Frigidaire Refrigerator Ad Originally uploaded by saltycotton I love old ads. They're quirky and nostalgic and awesome. And a lot of them can be found on Flickr. Some are so kitschy they just have to be shared. So I present you with this Flickr gem! Pink appliances, 27 ice cubes in 4 - yes folks, 4! - seconds, and TIARAS. So many, many things to love about this Frigidaire ad from 1957...

Happy Halloween! Motorola Halloween Newspaper Ad / Vaseline Hair Tonic Ad

AK Willett — Sun, 31 Oct 2010 08:27:00 -0500

Motorola Halloween Newspaper Ad Originally uploaded by Neato Coolville It's an ad, but all of the cartoon characters almost make you forget that! Very fun little bit of Halloween nostalgia. My pick would be Lil' Orphan Annie. Vaseline Hair Tonic Ad 1947 Originally uploaded by Neato Coolville It looks like this poor boy is getting his dating advice from the redheaded gal's little sis. Or maybe it's his little sis. Either way, she convinced him that dressing up like a ghost and scaring away Jean's other boyfriends is the way to go. Silly little sister! All Jean wants is a...

Quote of the Week

AK Willett — Sat, 30 Oct 2010 05:34:00 -0500

"Where there is no imagination there is no horror." Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

My New Favorite: Cornell Woolrich

AK Willett — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 17:49:26 -0500

Well, folks, another Halloween is upon us. For children everywhere, it means a night of sugar fueled fun. For a classic film connoisseur like me, it means good old scary movies on TCM. Specifically Val Lewton’s movies. More specifically, Cat People. But I digress, because this isn’t a post about Val Lewton’s screenwriting and producing genius or the mesmerizing images he conveyed in brooding black and white. No, this post is about someone else, whose name caught my eye recently as I watched The Leopard Man again. That name was Cornell Woolrich. I think his name originally caught my eye...

Fun With Vintage : 1936 Mother-Daughter Crisco Creamed Ad

AK Willett — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 08:12:00 -0500

1936 Mother-Daughter Crisco Creamed Ad Originally uploaded by captainpandapantsCreamed twice? Halloween mincemeat pies shaped like pumpkins? Digestable? Yummmmmm. Found on Flickr.

Another Thought on Diaries

AK Willett — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 07:48:00 -0500

Digital or classic hard copy? See, I love digital books and magazines. In a lot of cases, I prefer them now because, if they are right there on my iPad I am more inclined to find a moment to read them. I have so many magazines stacked up around my desk, unread and forgotten, that it’s pathetic. I guess I just get easily sidetracked with the actual magazine. With the digital versions, for whatever reason, it’s really simple to browse the latest issue of SmartShopper through my Zinio app. But… I have decided to begin the madness of recording the...

Here’s a Question

AK Willett — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 07:45:00 -0500

Is it ok to sell, buy, and/or read another person’s diary? I came across several on Ebay the other day. A few of the ads included excerpts, and one or two really intrigued me to the point that I almost bid. But I didn’t, because at the same time, I felt a little slimy. I was reading someone else’s most personal thoughts. Someone else’s pain, happiness, dreams. Granted, these were older diaries and the authors were more than likely no longer with us. Does that make it right though? Take me for instance. In Junior High and High school I...

You Tube: California Dorks

AK Willett — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 03:50:00 -0500

Shoes

AK Willett — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 07:42:00 -0500

Recently, Mr. Smartypants was at the beach with Big J’s mother. He rinsed the sand off of his feet at the outside shower and then totally walked off without his sandals. She assumed he would, y’know, put them back on his feet. He somehow concluded that she had picked his sandals up. And off both of them went - back to the car, back to the house, none the wiser until they stepped out on the very, very hot driveway. Now, that explains how that particular pair of sandals came to be left all alone along the boardwalk to that...

Quote of the Week

AK Willett — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 04:22:00 -0500

"The writer should never be ashamed of staring. There is nothing that does not require his attention." Flannery O'Connor

Bookshelf Review: ROOM

AK Willett — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 15:26:00 -0500

Title: Room: A Novel Author: Emma Donoghue From the back cover: To five-year-old-Jack, Room is the world.... It's where he was born, it's where he and his Ma eat and sleep and play and learn. There are endless wonders that let loose Jack's imagination-the snake under Bed that he constructs out of eggshells, the imaginary world projected through the TV, the coziness of Wardrobe beneath Ma's clothes, where she tucks him in safely at night, in case Old Nick comes. Room is home to Jack, but to Ma, it's the prison where she's been held since she was nineteen-for seven...

You Tube: Mary Poppins Remix

AK Willett — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 07:38:00 -0500

So hypnotic and sweet. Can't. Stop. Watching.

Hi. It's been a while.

AK Willett — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 19:35:15 -0500

So my dad died. He had been ill for a long time. The last 8 months were the worst. I won’t go into details, but it was very difficult to watch my larger than life father shrink closer to death each day. And for a long time now I’ve been in an emotional tailspin. One that left me more willing to lay on a couch watching music videos with the Princess than to do anything, I dunno, creative and proactive. Which is a really bad place to be, not only because you become this sad little lump molding the couch’s...

Quote of the Week

AK Willett — Sat, 29 May 2010 07:54:00 -0500

"My characters surprise me constantly. My characters are like my friends - I can give them advice, but they don't have to take it. If your characters are real, then they surprise you, just like real people." Laurell K. Hamilton

On E-Books

AK Willett — Wed, 26 May 2010 21:15:38 -0500

There’s been quite a debate in recent years on whether e-books will replace printed books. At BookExpo America (BEA), going on right now in New York, the topic was discussed in its Opening Plenary session yesterday. The subject, the Value of a Book, brought up many good points (from a publishing perspective) by publishers and authors regarding compensation rates and markets for digital publishing, as well as the future of books in general, printed or digital (read some examples here). Which got me thinking about which side I (as a reader) would choose in a battle between e-books and printed...

Quote of the Week

AK Willett — Sat, 22 May 2010 04:49:00 -0500

"A book is a gift you can open again and again." Garrison Keillor

On Reading

AK Willett — Wed, 19 May 2010 16:35:28 -0500

Big J does not read books. No interest at all. But me, I couldn’t imagine life without them. This is something I have passed on to The Princess and Mr. Smartypants. The other day I listened as they engaged in a heavy discussion on London Calling, the Percy Jackson novels, Twilight, and various other stories they had found interesting, didn’t like, or could care less about (Harry Potter, I’m sorry, they just aren’t that into you). And it made me smile, because, really, what book lover doesn’t want to raise little bookworms of her own? Knowing that they are able...

Quote of the Week

AK Willett — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 04:25:00 -0500

"I get an urge, like a pregnant elephant, to go away and give birth to a book." Stephen Fry, musicOMH Interview

Bookshelf Review: When Good Wishes Go Bad

AK Willett — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 03:45:00 -0500

Title: When Good Wishes Go Bad Author: Mindy Klasky From the back cover: Rebecca Morris is suffering from an excess of magic! Things that have disappeared: her boyfriend; her life savings; three-and-a-half million dollars from the theater company that pays both their salaries. (Coincidence? Um, no.) Also, the groundbreaking play she's been slaving over has vanished in a puff of copyright-colored smoke. Other, weirder things that have appeared: a magic lamp complete with genie wishes. A fully furnished (and paid-for) Manhattan condo and fabulous designer wardrobe. (The last two courtesy of the first one, obvs.) So Becca's putting that last...