Dr. Heather Piwowar

A science superhero
This week was full of references to Dr. Heather Piwowar, and deservedly so. In her work, the postdoctoral researcher at Duke University and the University of British Columbia (UBC) uses text mining, a method of finding previously unmade connections among subjects and ideas by “combing” aggregations of scholarship such as databases. She arranged with STEM publishing giant Elsevier that UBC researchers will be allowed to mine the company’s publications to which they already subscribe, access she previously thought was impossible to get.

As described in a Chronicle of Higher Education article by Jennifer Howard, Piwowar (who is also active in encouraging open access to research) recognizes that the new deal is a “win-win-win-win,” because Elsevier benefits from positive publicity it needs so badly lately. The reaction wasn’t all positive, though; the same article quotes Peter Murray-Rust, a chemistry professor at the University of Cambridge, who, taking a “fair-use” approach to the news, stresses that this access is something that should be taken for granted instead of requested. [See also Howard's paper from this week on an evolving project to make archival materials more available.]

The text-mining discussion moved beyond The Chronicle too, with coverage in The Guardian and discussion on the LIBLICENSE listserv, where librarians discussed their efforts to push the boundaries of publishers’ licensing agreements. Susan Barribeau, English Literature/Journalism/Media/Linguistics Bibliographer at the University of Wisconsin—Madison, described local efforts and noted that collaborative projects can be hampered when researchers are from different institutions, not all of which may subscribe to the content the group wishes to mine. Katie Fortney, Science & Engineering Librarian at UC Santa Cruz Library, discussed a project in which her library has “played an occasional support role.” A researcher, says Fortney, is “crawling for references to DNA sequences and incorporating them into our genome browser (http://genome.ucsc.edu/) so researchers…can more easily find articles about the segments they’re interested in.”

Researcher access to personal data
Related to Piwowar’s work on behalf of researchers, a New York Times article this week described issues around transparency, or the lack of it, in social scientists’ use of “big data.” The problem is that much social science research today depends upon the use of data such as aggregations of cell phone records and Facebook and Google usage. The issue was highlighted when researchers at a French conference, who studied usage of YouTube, stated that they could not release their data, even though doing so is standard when presenting scientific papers.

Reference publishers vs. Georgia State U: The verdict
In a copyright infringement case brought by Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, and SAGE Reference against Georgia State University, Judge Orinda Evans ruled that, within reason, college libraries may make electronic copies of reference-book excerpts available as course reserves, though practical guidelines on such use are needed. Duke University’s Kevin L. Smith and the Association of Research Libraries have studied the opinion and while the ARL notes that the decision broadly represents a win for libraries, Smith says that it’s necessarily over yet.

Vendor news
Elsevier had other news this week: it has expanded its medical licensing agreement with ProQuest. In a three-year contract, Lancet journals, already part of ProQuest’s offerings, will be joined by 36 more health science titles, which will be accessible through products such as ProQuest Medical Library and ProQuest Health and Medical Complete.

The NCCO teams readies a smoke-damaged manuscript for cleaning and scanning

Gale continues to add to Nineteenth Century Collections Online (NCCO) database, which digitizes rare materials from archives and libraries worldwide. This week, subscribers gained access to 2 million-page new file, “Asia and the West: Diplomacy and Cultural Exchange,” which includes material from the U.S. and the British National Archives and other collections.

Baker and Taylor worked with the National Federation of the Blind to make the latest release of its Axis 360 digital media platform compatible with leading assistive screen-reader technologies including JAWS, Window-Eyes, NVDA, and System Access To Go. The vendor explains that now, “the entire digital library experience—from discovering new titles to checking them out, to reading them on the Blio ereader—is available to blind patrons and students, and to others with reading disabilities.”

RUSA at ALA
Finally, I’ll be at RUSA’s open house at the Anaheim Convention Center, Room 203B, on Saturday, June 23 from 8:00 a.m–9:00 a.m. See you there!

IDW Publishing is rebooting a couple of fan fav comics this summer. Devotees of The Crow take note that the comic and the film incarnation are being reborn. John Shirley, the Bram Stoker Award-winning author who cowrote the Brandon Lee film version, has teamed with Eisner Award-nominated artist Kevin Colden (Fishtown) for a new Crow comic coming in July, which follows the plotline of an upcoming film, which is set in Japan.

Also being revamped is Gary Reed’s zombiefest, Deadworld in a new five-comic series titled Deadworld: War of the Dead written by Reed with Sami Makkonen providing the art. “It seems like everything with Deadworld over the years is culminating towards this storyline, yet at the same time, it is an opportunity to introduce new readers to the Deadworld saga. That’s why I’m so excited about this series, as it accomplishes both” said Reed. War of the Dead debuts in August.

 MIB III
Men in Black III opened today to respectable reviews. The first two films  in the series were a blast, so fingers crossed that this one is worthy. Josh Brolin as young K is inspired casting. This film probably will finally dethrone The Avengers as the weekend box-office winner.

A Long Time Ago…(Ok, so 35 Years)
A big, big, big Geeky Friday happy anniversary to Star Wars (before it was Episode IV:A New Hope and Greedo shot first) and Return of the Jedi, which hit theaters on this date in 1977 and 1983, respectively. Who would have believed that 35 years later the Force still would be with us?  I tell ya, kids, if you’re not old enough to have seen it on the big screen back in ’77 and instead grew up mainlining it on VHS/DVD then you just can’t fathom what it was like seeing this film for the first time when it was brand new. It really was like something from another galaxy; there had never been anything like it before (and, frankly, since). It was magic, pure and simple.

Right from the start with the incredible John Williams score blaring, the opening crawl, and then the big ship going across the screen…and going…and going…. You knew that this was something completely different. This right here put the hooks in me when I was 17 and never let go.

There’s a whole new generation of fans, and Star Wars shows no signs of slowing down. Here’s a teaser trailer for the fifth season of the Cartoon Network’s kickass Clone Wars series. If you’re a Star Wars fan and you’re not watching Clone Wars you’re missing plenty, especially if you thought the prequel films were bantha droppings, because this is the Anakin Skywalker backstory we’ve waited 30 years for. The Clone Wars Anakin is the man you can believe becomes Vader, not that whiny kid in the movies.

The best book on the subject is Jonathan Rinzler’s The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind the Original Film. His Making of…The Empire Strikes Back is equally good, and he’s working on a Making of…Jedi volume as you read this (we’ve talked). Rinzler’s Making ofs rock; there’s great info and tons of killer pix. Thery’re must-haves for every Star Wars geek’s personal library.

George Lucas catches a ton of crap, and maybe he has sold out and whored the thing away and raped people’s childhoods, blah, blah, blah, but once upon a time he gave us this remarkable thing that has brought joy to countless millions. Remember, kids, it’s George’s world, we just live in it (but Han still shot first!).

[Star Wars trivia: Lucas was so stressed out (only in his early 30s, he suffered heart failure near the end of the production) that he decided to ride out the film’s opening weekend in Hawaii with his buddy Steven Spielberg and find out on Monday whether SW sizzled or fizzled and if he still had a career. Of course, they talked movies and what they’d like to make. Spielberg confessed a life-long ambition to direct a James Bond film.

Lucas said he had something better. Straight out of the cliff-hanger serials they’d loved as kids, Lucas unfolded his idea about a nail-tough archeologist trying to prevent the Nazis from securing a religious artifact that would render them invincible. Named after his dog (who also inspired Chewbacca), the lead character was Indiana Smith. Spielberg thought the name too similar to the Steve McQueen flik Nevada Smith. Smith became Jones.]

The Original Street Lit?
Lastly, birthday wishes to the one and only Harlan Ellison, who turns 78 on May 27. Harlan, alas, has been pigeonholed as a sf writer, and he’s among the finest of that lot, but he’s a great writer, period, and one of the greatest short story scribes. He’s a sf god, but did Harlan invent what we now call street lit?

In the late 1950s, Harlan wrote a number of street gang stories under the pseudonym Paul Merchant (a guy’s gotta eat). A collection of theses long-forgotten shorts is being released May 27 by NYC-based indie-publisher Kicks Books as Pulling a Train (ISBN 9780965977753, pap. $14.95). The book sports 11 “violent stories of naked passions” and probably is seedy as hell, but it’s Harlan, so you gotta read it. The cover is a pip: a leather-jacketed punk cowering on the sidewalk and looking like he had the snot beat out of him by some chick in high heels and a short skirt rocking a switchblade in her left hand. So bad it’s good. I’ll try to get a copy for a proper write-up in my Classic Returns column.

Harlan wrote other gang stories that were published ages ago as The Juvies, which was reprinted under a new title, which if I can remember it I’ll die happy, by Severn House a bunch of years back. And I believe that one of them was made into an Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode starring James Caan and Walter Koenig.

So, does this mean that Harlan pioneered street lit? It’s an interesting question. 

Happy 73rd birthday to Ian McKellan. After 40 years of serious acting, he became an overnight sensation as Magneto and Gandalf. Never underestimate the power of the geek side!

Gotta go, daddyo. Have a wonderful long Memorial Day weekend. Even us LJ peons are off Monday. Get your geek on—see MIB III on the big screen, pop your Star Wars Blu-ray in at home, take in a ball game, or just catch some rays, but have fun.

He needed to get a book going and knew it, but to do that, as Scott Fitzgerald astutely observed, he had to have the emotional high of being in love with a new woman in order to produce top work. He did release Green Hills of Africa and To Have and Have Not during this time but both are far from his best efforts. Green Hills is of some interest as Ernesto’s initial tinkering with the concept of the nonfiction novel. To Have has some solid scenes but mostly is a piker.

Then along comes Marty and WHAM! But she was different than his previous wives because she was a writer and was as competitive and plain tough as he was. Their romance and eventual marriage was as explosive as the wars they competed to cover. She was Collier’s war correspondent, but Ernesto didn’t want to look like a wussy sitting home while the Mrs. was on the battlefield, so he went to the magazine and volunteered to cover the action and, of course, they jumped at the idea, so he shafted his wife out of her job—mister nice guy! Undaunted, she hitched a ride on a freakin’ munitions boat going to Europe and caught up to him.

Okay, that’s the setup, now have a look-see at the trailer. Director Philip Kaufman (The Right Stuff) seems to have nailed it. British actor Clive Owen initially might not seem the obvious choice for Ernesto, but he’s looking spot on. Lovely Nicole Kidman plays Marty.

The film airs May 28.

The mighty Avengers again proved triumphant at the box office, blowing Battleship out of the water to take the top slot for the third weekend running. Cap, Iron Man, and friends generated $55 million in additional ticket sales, while Battleship’s domestic debut gleaned a modest (that’s a nice way of saying sucky) $25 million—quite low for a $209 million production, although foreign business has been brisk. At $457 million domestic box office, The Avengers is just shy of Star Wars’s $460M total U.S. ticket sales and should pass that within days.

The Avengers obviously is enjoying mondo repeat business, so here’s good news for those diehards who can’t get enough: Avengers hits Blu-ray on September 25 with a slew of extra goodies:

• Audio commentary by director Joss Whedon
• Marvel one-shot: Item 47
• Second screen
• Gag reel
• Deleted scenes
• Alternate Opening—Maria Hill Interrogation
• Extended Scene—Loki & Barton Strategize
• Steve Rogers—Man Out Of Time
• Nick Fury & World Security Council
• Extended Viaduct Fight—Raw Footage
• Fury & Hill Discuss the World Security Council
• Extended Scene—Banner and Security Guard
• Alternate Ending—Maria Hill Interrogation
• Featurettes: A Visual Journey; Assembling the Ultimate Team; Soundgarden Music Video “Live To Rise”

Cool beans!

DC Comics keeps spreading the Batman love! On the heels of last week’s post on Chip Kidd’s upcoming Batman:Death by Design, comes news of the release of Batman: Earth One by writer Geoff Johns and artist Gary Frank. Another character reimagination, Earth One spins Bats as “a flawed and fallible young man fumbling his way through feelings of isolation by pinning them on a quest for vengeance. This Batman is no protector of innocents; he’s an angry vigilante with little interest in heroics and with a lot to learn about the city’s mean streets.” Isn’t he always “an angry vigilante with little interest in heroics?” I thought that was the core of his character.

This is Johns’s, who is DC’s Chief Creative Officer, first original graphic novel. He previously worked on Justice League, Aquaman, and Green Lantern comics, so the dude’s no newb. Batman: Earth One hits comic shops July 4 and bookstores July 10. LJ’s graphic-novel mistress Martha Cornog offered more on it in her April Graphic Novels Prepub Alert. Sounds pretty cool.

Harry in a Hurry
Harry Potter geeks humping it to the wicked city for BEA take note that Potted Potter just opened at the Little Shubert Theater (422 W. 42 St.). It’s a 70-minute parody of all seven Rowling novels presented by two actors in multiple roles. Seems very silly:

If that looks fun, treat yourself some night after walking your tootsies off at the Javits Center. And if it sucks, hey, at least it’s short.

You sunk my battleship!
Battleship opens in theaters today, and the reviews are atrocious. My favorite so far from NY Newsday: “A crass, hollow, hoorah fantasy best suited for nine-year-olds with weapons fixations.” OUCH! It’s already cleared over $200 million overseas, so could do well here, at least this weekend, despite the negative press.

iCancelled
The shockeroo of the week: Nickelodeon is pulling the plug on its über-popular iCarly. Despite being a ratings behemoth (four million views weekly!), the cast has gotten restless and want new career opportunities. Star Miranda Cosgrove, now 19, has enrolled in college—attagirl!—and several of the costars have landed other acting gigs. I’ve seen this show many times with my kid, and it’s by far the best tween fare on the tube. It’s funny rather than stupid and the kids are great—Gibby is the bomb! iCarly will end it’s five-year-run this November.

Daddy Dearest
Big Geeky Friday anniversary wishes to The Empire Strikes Back, which debuted May 21, 1980. I remember waiting impatiently for Empire and wondering if it possibly could be half as good as Star Wars or would just be a lame sequel done purely for profits. But then—OMFG—it’s better! Luke and Han riding tauntauns, the AT-AT attack (watch the cutest fan video ever), the Imperial March, Yoda (“Do or do not. There is no try.”), Boba Fett, “I love you”…“I know,” and the biggest bombshell in film history (sorry, Rosebud): “I am your father.” How many nerds dropped one in their drawers at that revelation!

[Star Wars trivia: Vader being Luke’s father was neither in the original Empire script, nor a back story in the first film, which was supposed to be a one-shot deal. Once Star Wars exploded and a sequel was planned, Lucas couldn’t decide whether to add the father/son element because it would completely alter the story’s dynamic from a simple white hat/black hat action flik to a more serious tale of redemption. Just before the scene was shot, he decided to go for it, and took actors Dave Prowse in the Vader armor and Mark Hamill aside to present the new mind-blowing dialog. Well done, George!]

Happy Birthday, Count
Lastly, Geeky Friday birthday wishes to actor Christopher Lee, who turns 90 on May 22. Although Lee found fame in a very successful string of horror films produced by Hammer Studios in the 1950s and 60s costarring Peter Cushing, and went up against James Bond as the title baddie in Man with the Golden Gun, he’s far better known today for his more recent turns as Count Dooku in the Star Wars prequels and especially as Saruman in the The Lord of the Rings trilogy, a role he reprises in The Hobbit.

To me, he’ll always be Dracula. All due respect to Bela, Lee was better because he played Dracula as a ferocious monster rather than a sophisticated aristocrat. This shot here is still one of the most shocking in film because it’s the first time audiences saw the Big D covered in lovely, red, technicolor blood. I remember seeing this as a kid and just about wetting myself. Despite low-budget productions, these Hammer films are craft to the tenth power, and Lee and Cushing rock together. Happy birthday, Mr. Lee!

Have a great weekend, gang. Get your geek on!

ProQuest’s Udini, which underwent a “quiet” launch at the beginning of this year, is now being trumpeted more widely by the database giant. Udini—the name refers to a certain escape artist as well as “you,” according to Rich LaFauci, Udini’s product manager—is a database of articles that is sold to individuals rather than to libraries. The target market, according to the company’s press release, is “knowledge workers without access to libraries,” and that includes, per the company, freelancers, workers in organizations that lack libraries, and unaffiliated authors.

Holdings and pricing
The cloud-based service, powered by ProQuest’s Summon discovery service, allows subscribers to search 150 million (and growing) trade and popular magazine, newspaper, newswire, and journal articles from more than 12,000 sources. Significantly, the Udini website claims that the product also offers “the world’s largest collection of PhDs and theses, totaling over 2.6 million.”

Articles may be bought individually, with standard articles ranging from 99¢ to $3.99, and specialty items starting at $4.99. Subscriptions are also available, at $30 for a 14-day project pass, or at $30 per month with a two-month minimum commitment. The company’s pricing plan doesn’t state the upper limit for specialty resources, but browsing the offerings reveals that some recent aerospace dissertations cost $37 each for unlimited access, which includes the ability to download and print the material. Trial access for dissertations only—“read full document, no print or download, expires after 72 hours”—is available for $4.99. If a user buys full access to a dissertation after paying for trial access, the trial cost is credited to the full cost. Unfortunately, there are no listings showing which titles are available through basic payments and which are premium, though LaFauci explains that 96 percent of the material in the database is accessible under the basic plan.

The articles portion of Udini competes with similar services such as Gale’s HighBeam Research, which costs $29.95 per month or $199.95 per year, and findarticles.com, which is a CBS Interactive product whose articles come from Gale. Another competitor is docstoc.com, where some articles sold for $3.99 in Udini cost $6.95 or $6.99. Udini also includes what ProQuest refers to as a “personal library,” where, as well as storing articles they’ve bought through the service, users can drag and drop PDFs from their desktop and save web pages from any site. These features compete with such web services as Evernote, Mendeley, Pocket (formerly Read It Later), and Zotero, which have free and premium versions.

Issues for libraries
While Udini is unavailable to libraries, it raises many issues for them, especially with regard to why users would choose this product over using their public library’s databases or free web access. Why, for example, would a prospective user pay $3.99 for “Obama and Romney Spar Over Death of Bin Laden,” an article that appeared in the May 1, 2012, issue of the New York Times? It is available at public libraries through databases produced by ProQuest and other aggregators, as well as free through Twitter and Facebook and other means, including the Times‘s own website. Google, is, of course, another source for finding free access to many of these resources, and it’s just one tool for creating alerts on subjects of interest, a convenience that isn’t available on Udini.

ProQuest correctly notes that its dissertation offerings are not available through most public libraries and stresses that the other materials offered through Udini are outside the realm of the core functions of the public library, such as providing material on genealogy and personal health, so the company doesn’t see the product competing with its main customer base—libraries. LaFauci also explains that while material such as dissertations can be bought outside of Udini, the service offers the “ease of discovering dissertations in a broader context.”

The service raises the problem, however, that those who buy it are paying twice for the same information—once using their tax dollars and again when they pay for their subscription. It also creates the situation that subscribers are buying the same “big deal” that libraries loath; Udini subscribers pay for many titles they don’t want and will never use, and there’s no option to buy subsets of the material, though users can buy individual articles. A greater danger, however, is that library boards and other funders will see the availability of Udini as an opportunity to defund library database subscriptions, and this would further lessen access for library patrons who cannot afford private research tools.

There are many cases in which the service provides a citation but lacks the full text of the material (according to LaFauci, this is because of limitations imposed by the verdict of the Tasini vs. New York Times case); there is little offered from before the 1980s, and much of it is citation only, but there is no alternative mentioned (though the company is considering offering access to its ProQuest Historical Newspapers database). In fact, there is no mention of libraries or librarians on Udini’s site, and the service bills itself as “the world’s article store for entrepreneurs, consultants, educators and everyone else who needs quality research,” a slogan that positions it as an alternative to public and academic libraries.  However, LaFauci points out that Udini’s “Support” link allows researchers to ask questions that will be answered in “near real-time” by staff who will point users to public library materials and other sources. At the support page, users may also mine previous queries, but a search for “African American Newspapers,” for example, returned a previous query titled “Shakespeare his work and life.”

Ease of use—including the time it takes to search, access, and read—is a selling point of Udini. Rather than sophisticated search possibilities, ProQuest’s market research, says LaFauci, reveals a user preference for a Google-like interface. However, the resource does not provide nearly the convenience it should when it comes to conducting a general or overview search about an unknown topic. Udini offers little search assistance, and the default search is a Boolean “or” (a bug that the company plans to fix).

This means that, for now, a publication search for the New York Times returns titles containing the words new, york, or times. The several pages of hits unearthed include the Australian & New Zealand Grapegrower and Winemaker and the Baluchistan Times, and users must page through them to find the requested title. There’s no way to jump to the results beginning with N, and attempting to find an exact match by using quotation marks around “New York Times” results in an error message. A related problem is that many trade magazines are listed as scholarly journals.

Though Udini is powered by Summon’s powerful metadata, that data is not visible to users as it is when using Summon. Descriptors, for example, are not linked to related material as they might be in a library-accessible ProQuest database, and few refinements are available once a general search is complete to help a user focus a query. Successful use of many library databases, of course, also has a learning curve, but help and even classes are available for prospective users.

Empowering users with skills to search on their own is what information professionals should be doing, be it in a group setting, one-on-one, or even casually with friends and family. Saving researchers time and showing them the best tool for their work shines a positive light on librarians’ professional skills and the library as a whole, not to mention creating invaluable word-of-mouth marketing.

Library marketing
The bottom line is that much of this material is available free through public libraries. The existence of a market for Udini may further expose libraries’ failure to market their database resources adequately (attend LJ’s upcoming webcast on this subject), not to mention to let the public know that many articles are available free on the web at the library or at home. Libraries have a precedent for creating demand in this way: many are actively and successfully promoting their ebook holdings to consumers who were not previously patrons. One solution is co-op advertising, in which vendors help to market their own materials. It also seems possible that, since ProQuest is marketing Udini to the public, it could also better market its library databases “out there,” at least on behalf of consortia if not on behalf of individual libraries.

However it happens, librarians’ task now is to show the public what databases are capable of and how they apply to their current and future research needs. End users don’t care where the answer comes from; they just want an answer. Shouldn’t libraries and librarians be the ones to provide it?

Gary Price is cofounder and editor, LJ‘s INFOdocket.com; cofounder and editor, FullTextReports.com; and an Information Industry analyst librarian.

Henrietta Thornton-Verma (hthornton@mediasourceinc.com, @ettathornton) edits LJ’s and School Library Journal’s reference review columns and covers ereference and digital databases for LJ.

YOWZA! A billion in less than three weeks! Like the Hulk, that’s a lot of green—geeks rule, baby!

For the record, Dark Shadows limped in at a pale second place with $28.8 million in ticket sales. I’ve already ranted about this film, but to give credit where it’s due, the reviews were better than expected. Still, its opening was weak and its intake likely will fall off considerably next weekend. With Battleship, another big FX extravaganza with a hefty marketing campaign, opening May 18, it will be interesting to see if The Avengers can do a hat-trick and hold the top slot.

“Alien DNA”
Ridley Scott gives Entertainment Weekly a few more crumbs of information about the heavily-guarded plot of his highly anticipated SF release, Prometheus, and its relation to his masterpiece, Alien in the current issue. Scott says the film may have some “Alien DNA” and “fans will notice some things, especially toward the end of Prometheus. Like 12 minutes from the end. But I can’t really say more than that.” There are a few more tidbits from the cast and some cool pix, plus some talk about Scott possibly doing another Blade Runner flik, so check it out.

Batman has been reincarnated so many times and been given so many personalities, that even the most stalwart fans can’t keep track. This month, DC is releasing Batman:Death by Design, an original graphic novel by noted designer Chip Kidd. Although Kidd has snagged the Eisner Award four times, this is his comics writing debut. According to the publisher, Kidd “combines elements of Fritz Lang’s Metropolis with a deadly mystery stemming from disasters happening all around Gotham City.” The book is drawn by Dave Taylor.

Avenger$
After last weekend’s smash debut, The Avengers keeps going strong, passing the $250 million mark domestically. Worldwide, it’s earned well over $750 million. Unbelievable, considering it’s only been open two weeks or so. They don’t look like they’re gloating, do they?

Harry Potter and the Land of the Rising Sun
In its ongoing endeavor to separate tourists from as much of their money as possible, Universal Studios has announced the construction of a Harry Potter pavilion at its Japanese theme park operation. The exhibit will include Hogwarts, Hogsmeade, and the accompanying rides. Sounds like Universal is simply replicating its Orlando Potter attraction, which is pretty damn cool. The Potter stuff is expected to open in Osaka in 2014. If you’ve never been to the Orlando Potter park, here are a slew of pix I shot there last December. I’m not a Potter guy at all, but it’s quite impressive.

Happy Birthday Uncle George!
Big, big, big Geeky Friday birthday wishes to George Lucas, who turns 68 on Monday, May 14. He catches a lot of crap in the geekosphere about his constant tinkering with the Star Wars OT, the Crystal Skull nuke-the-fridge mess, Jar-Jar, etc. I dislike Greedo shooting first as much as anyone, but we only have these things because of him, so cut the guy a break (I’m more pissed that he’s that old and still has a full head of hair). No Star Wars, no Indy—no thanks! What a lousy world that would be.

Hemingway said that all modern American literature comes from Huckleberry Finn. Not all, but a huge portion of modern SF/fantasy films and beyond comes from Star Wars and the numerous advances in film technology it sired.

So props to Lucas, warts and all. Happy birthday, Uncle George.

Happy Mother’s Day!
Don’t forget to call mom on Sunday. And if you haven’t already sent a card—you’re screwed, loser!

Happy weekend, all. Get your geek on!

So, for the gazillions who saw it over the weekend, how much did The Avengers rock? The writing was terrific, all the characters got screen time and their own piece of the action, there were great bits of humor, and no good-guy flik is worth a damn without an equally juicy villain and Loki was wonderfully evil (big thumbs up to actor Tom Hiddleston). Director Joss Whedon knocked it out of the park. Beautifully done, sir.

The Marvel people must be walking on clouds, especially since a little more than a decade ago the comics’ publisher was this close to going under. They were firing people in droves and it looked like the end. Then X-Men hit the big screen and it’s been skyrocketing since.

If you haven’t seen the film yet, listen up: there are two additional scenes embedded in the end credits, so don’t’ leave until the house lights come on!