from IMDB.com:

Big Bird Flies to Ad-Supported TV

Comcast plans to announce on Monday that it will introduce a new commercial 24-hour digital cable channel aimed at preschoolers that will feature reruns of many of the programs for tots currently airing on PBS, the New York Times reported today (Wednesday). Comcast is partnering with PBS, Sesame Workshop and HIT Entertainment, producer of Barney and Friends and Bob the Builder. In an interview with the newspaper, Sesame Workshop's Joan Ganz Cooney remarked: "I don't like pitching products to young children and I never have. ... But to some degree that is nostalgia for a time that is past. The whole society, the whole business is so commercialized, even public television. This is another way of getting PBS's excellent programming to children." Education professor Nancy Carlsson Paige, who is a consultant for PBS flagship station WGBH Boston, told the Times: "We aren't adequately funding public television and public programming for children. PBS doesn't have enough funds and so they are doing this."

This is fantastic. Thank you, Newt Gingrich, and other Republicans, for pushing quality education media into the murky, conservative sea of commerce. Thanks to your fear of Liberal ideas, our future generations will someday be able to click and buy toys right from their bedrooms. Soon, they'll be forced to watch Bill Nye the Faith Guy, discussing the "science" of how God created the world in 7 days, and colorful shows about intolerance.

Twisted Puzzle: Hapland

This is the strangest neighborhood ever.

Can you figure out how to light the torch?

Ecological Diversity = Innovation = Freedom?

I sure wish I'd written this. At least Cory Doctorow did.

"I wonder if these things break if I drop them?"


John Dykstra, Me, and Scott Stokdyk

(Naturally, I'm wearing my Sky Captain: World of Tomorrow t-shirt. Oops.)

Watch The Sketch Show on Fox!

A new show on Fox called Kelsey Grammer Presents: The Sketch Show is hilarious! Though the first thing I noticed is the "British" feel to it, and indeed, it is another British import. I'm really surprised it ended up on Fox of all places, though I suppose that's the home of Mad TV, which used to be hilarious.

My favorite, can't-stop-laughing sketch was a party for people with phobias. First we meet a woman who walks up to a guy, who says "hi" to her. "Aaagh!" she gasps, then explains that she has a fear of greetings. The guy explains to her that he has a fear of apologies. The woman he meets doesn't quite understand and says "sorry?" "Aaagh!" he replies. A woman shows up. "Hello." "Aaagh!" cries the first woman. "Sorry" says this new woman. "Aaagh!" cries the man with the fear of apologies. Awkward silence. "Aaagh!" cries this new woman, who announces she has a fear of awkward silences. A man and a woman show up. He tries to say "Hello" but they shush him. There's an awkward silence, after which the fear-of-silence woman cries "aaagh!". The guy cries out "Aaagh!" and says "sorry". ("Aaagh!" from the fear-of-apology guy). Then he explains that he's got a fear of the word spelled "A-A-A-G-H exclamation point". ANOTHER woman shows up. The chaotic cycle continues , worsened by the fact that this woman has a fear of repetition....

Hysterical!

Spider-man 2 wins Oscar (tm)!!

It is very surreal. I'm somehow part of the Oscar-crowd now, with Chris Landreth (whom I met years ago at Alias) and Charlie Kaufman (whom I met at his screenings at the Arclight). Accepting the Oscars for us at Sony Pictures Imageworks were VFX Supervisors John Dykstra and Scott Stokdyk.


The Spider-man 2 Production Services Technicians and Scott Stokdyk (center).