What's Next for Mr. Tarver

I happened to get a few minutes to talk to Antonio Tarver tonight. Yes, the former Light-Heavyweight Champion of the World. Yes, the guy who played Mason Dixon in "Rocky Balboa."

Mr. Tarver was at the high school, where I work, to watch his son play in the first round of the state basketball playoffs. We are the district champs and hope to move forward toward the state title. At any rate, Mr. Tarver arrived early and we chatted for a few minutes.

He said that he never did as many interviews as he did while promoting "Rocky Balboa." He was very gracious about the praise he and the movie received. Antonio enjoyed working with Sly. Antonio's next fight will be at the end of April and will be televised on ABC. He's got another movie lined up which will be a comedy. As always Antonio was very cool, very approachable.

And, yes, our team won [and won big]!

Another "300" Trifecta

It's time for another "300" trifecta...

Click HERE and you'll get an interview with Spartan King Gerard Butler.

Click HERE and it's an interview with the "God King" Rodrigo Santoro. a

And finally, click HERE and you'll get an advance review of "300."

All of this low-cal, low-sodium goodness is brought to us from the good folks at ComicBookResrouces.com.

Batteries to Power...

If I was a rich man, this would be my ride.

Pics from the D.A.D, Launch Party

Remember when I first told you about the Drink and Draw Social Club? Then I told you about the launch party for their cool art book The Drink and Draw Social Club Vol. 1.

Now I'm here to tell you that you can check out some cool pics from the launch party posted by LeSean Thomas and Dan Panosian.

So check out the pics, order the book and thank me later!

"Big" John Checks In

For all of you following "Big" John Beatty's trip to Manila... we've received our first e-mail from him. He made it [despite a late connection from Japan].

He's met Bella. John said that the camera did lie to him... but it lied in the "opposite way"... she is even prettier than her pictures! John says that he'll write more later.

I just wonder if Bella thinks John's prettier than his pictures?

Don't Walk, Start Ronin

It's time for our hourly "300" update...

Newsarama is reporting that "300" producer Gianni Nunnari, was asked about other comic projects is working on and he responded by saying Frank Miller's Ronin!

Ronin was a six issue miniseries published by DC after Frank's initial run on Daredevil. It's the story of a young Ronin in feudal Japan who seeks to avenge his master who was killed by a demon.

If the story pans out and the producer can get a director with the same passion that Zack Snyder has shown in translating "300" to the big screen, we could be in for another great ride. To check out "Ronin" click HERE. To get the full details from Newsarama, click HERE.

A MAGICal Night

This evening I attended the Orlando Magic / San Antonio Spurs game. If you're a hoops fan, my guess is that you already heard about "THE DUNK."

Before I tell you about the amazing ending to one of the best comebacks ever, let me tell you that it was a perfect evening. My son is a Magic fan and for Christmas I got him tickets to see them play against San Antonio. Our drive to Orlando was smooth and we arrived exactly at the planned time. I had pre-purchased a parking ticket for the lot directly across from the arena. We drove right in [despite the game and all parking lots being sold out]. Before the game we were able to go down almost courtside and watch the players warm up. It's easy to forget just how BIG these guys are in real life. At half time, they brought out Chris Leak, the Heisman-winning quarterback for the National Champion Florida Gators [which just happens to be my son's favorite college team].

Now back to the exciting climax... Despite being down as much as 20, and behind most of the game, the Magic tied it up with less than a minute left in regulation. Then when Tim Duncan's attempt at a winning shot was rejected by Dwight Howard, the Magic grabbed ball and called a time out. They had 8/10's of a second left on the clock to win the game. They didn't even need that much time. Hedo Turkoglu lobed the ball towards the goal and Dwight Howard soared over Tim Duncan and slammed home a one-handed dunk to give the Magic the lead and the win.

It was an amazing ending to one of the most exciting basketball games I've ever had a chance to witness. More importantly, my son said it was the best game that he'd ever seen and he saw it in person. Talk about a Magical night...

9112 Miles to Graceland

"Big" John Beatty boarded a plane this morning for the start of a journey that may last him the rest of his days. You see, he's off to meet a young lady that may be the love of his life. John and Bella met nearly six months ago through the internet. They've been talking and e-mailing and video conferencing nearly daily since then. So they decided it was time to meet face to face!

This morning John boarded a plane that will fly him from Orlando to Detroit to Japan to Manila. Whew! That's one heck of a trip. Big J says that he'll e-mail when he can, and update his blog if possible.

Let's all wish the big guy a safe trip. If he doesn't scare off Bella when he meets her after spending all those hours on the plane, this thing may just work out!

Interview with the King

It's time for our hourly update on "300." This time we have a link to an interview with "300" star Gerard Butler brought to us from the kind folks at comicbookresources.com!

The Meaning of "Grindhouse"

You've heard me talking about "Grindhouse" a lot. Want to know where the term "Grindhouse" came from? Ok, but what if you were hearing it from Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez? Yeah, I thought that might change your mind. So click HERE.

FX, Day 2

FX, Day 2, got off to a much better start. I was able to breeze right in. John Higashi was already there and we met at Jason Palmer’s table. Then it was over to Matt Wagner. Matt said that he had finished my Jack Carter sketch, but wasn’t happy with it and wanted to re-do it. I told him that I didn’t want him to have to do double work, but he said it was no problem.

John and I decided to walk artists’ alley. We visited with Andrew Robinson, Mike Perkins [I set up a Judge Dredd Stallone sketch], Gene Ha, Whilce Portacio, Billy Tucci, Andy Smith, and others.

I swung by Miguel’s booth where I met up with some Stallone fans that were familiar with my site. Miguel and I talked about the Rocky Balboa card sets that he’s putting together. Stallone / Rocky fans are going to love them.



I saw that Matt Wagner was getting ready to have Q & A session and headed over. The 45 minutes flew by as Matt talked about his career in comics. It was interesting to learn that Matt postponed doing Mage when he learned that DC was doing a take on King Arthur with Camelot 3000. Then after seeing what they had done, Matt decided that Mage would still be a new spin on the legend… and the rest is history. It’s hard to believe that Matt has been in comics for 25 years. It’s cool to see how his style has changed and he has matured as an artist. It’ll be interesting to see where the next 25 years takes him.



After the Matt Wagner panel, I swung by Steve Niles' table to get a couple of books autographed. Steve said that the “30 Days of Night” movie is going to make a lot of fans happy. Of course, I can’t wait to see it! Then I made my way to Mike Higgins' table to pick up my Stallone Judge Dredd sketch.

Joe Pekar and I shot the breeze over a couple of Cokes. Joe’s a guy to keep an eye on! I hope to get a Stallone piece from him at some point.



Higashi and I met up again. We stopped by to talk to Andy Smith, Gene Ha, Bill Tucci and others. Although Bill is best known for his creation Shi and drawing the female form, he showed us a cool Sgt. Rock piece that he created for a proposed series. We stopped in for a visit for Dave Johnson and then back over to Matt Wagner’s table. Matt had started the second attempt on the Jack Carter sketch, but wasn’t happy with it and decided to take a third stab at it. Higashi agreed to pick up the piece for me since I wasn’t coming back on Sunday.



Then it was over to Miguel’s booth again to touch base. The "Rocky Balboa" card set will be out in March featuring 72 cards from the movie. Originally, the card set was going to cover all of the Rocky movies, but after seeing how well received “Rocky Balboa” was, Miguel worked out a deal for two separate card sets. The second set, out later this year will cover all five Rocky movies. Each will be sold as complete sets in custom binders. I’ve seen mock-ups of some of the cards and the binders. Stallone / Rocky fans are going to love them! I’ll premiere the items and post updates on the SZ as they become available.

FX 2007 was a worthy show. It had something for everyone. If they can get back artists like Dave Johnson and Matt Wagner, I’ll return next year. And who knows, maybe by then they'll have the opening day kinks worked out.

FX Day [A Long Day] One

FX 2007 billed itself as “the coolest show on Earth.” After looking at their guest list which included comic superstars: Matt Wagner, Dave Johnson, Michael Golden; film and tv celebs such as Michael Biehn, Lance Henrikson, and many others, I decided to check out the show for myself.

Unfortunately the convention got off to a shaky start. None of the con workers seemed to know their roles. The lines for “will call” tickets as well as the “day of show” tickets were backed up and it was long past the early opening time before things got rolling. I had purchased an advance three day ticket knowing that the odds of me attending on Sunday were slim, but because advance ticket holders were allowed into the show an hour early, I figured that the extra cost was worth it since I really wanted a sketch from Dave Johnson. Unfortunately advance ticket holders did not get in an hour early, nor did they get the promised “goodie bag” [which didn’t bother me]. To slow things even more, all advance ticket holders had to wait while a con employee stuck a temporary tattoo on them so that they could gain admission the following days. Sheesh!

When I got into the show I made a beeline for Dave Johnson’s table. I already had one sketch by The Potentate in my collection, [a cool Rocky Balboa] and was hopeful that I’d get another to compliment it. Reverend Dave arrived about 15 minutes later and seemed surprised that he had people waiting. I spoke to Dave about my admiration for his work and he was genuinely humble. As he looked at my Stallone sketches, he commented about ones that he particularly liked. I think it’s always cool to hear artists talking about their craft and other artists that they admire. We agreed on the price and Dave said that he’d do me a nice Jack Carter.


My next stop was Matt Wagner’s table. Matt, like Dave Johnson, is one of my favorite comic creators. I’ve followed Matt’s work since his Comico days. Mage remains one of my all-time favorite graphic stories. I knew that Matt’s sketches were out of my price range, but I still wanted to meet the legend. Matt was as down-to-earth as Dave Johnson. We talked for a bit while I was looking at his pre-done con sketches. They were all sweet. Of course there weren’t any of Stallone. ; ) During the course of our conversation though, Matt agreed to do a smaller Jack Carter sketch that would work with my budget.


Getting a sketch from both Dave Johnson and Matt Wagner made my show. I wouldn’t be looking for more sketches despite the fact that it was a slow day for the artists. Still, I did make my way around the show to visit with Miguel at his Rocky Balboa booth, Andrew Robinson, Joe Pekar, Andy Smith, and the guys at Cadre’s Corner. In fact while I was talking to Cadre another guy came up and had a couple of pictures taken with some of the crew. As the guy was telling them how much he enjoyed their work, I realized that it was William “The Greatest American Hero” Katt! He must have noticed me looking at him because he reached out to shake hands and say, “Hi.” Surreal.

I decided to walk around the tv and movie celebrity section. It was cool seeing Michael “Terminator” “Aliens” Biehn and Lance “Aliens” “Near Dark” Henrikson. They had huge lines of fans waiting to get their autographs. I’ve always liked Michael Biehn and look forward to his role in Tarantino and Rodriguez’s “Grindhouse” this summer. A couple of the stars of the hit series “Heroes” were there, but since I don’t follow the show, I can’t tell you about them. I also Peter “Mission Impossible” Graves, King Kong Bundy [not as big as I thought he’d be], Ron “Serenity” Glass and a few others.

John Higashi showed up and we hung out for a bit. It’s really hard to keep pace with Higashi when he is in full-con mode. He was like a shark in fish-infested waters as he made his way from artist to artist, setting up commissions, buying sketchbooks and laying the groundwork for later art deals.

Dave Johnson finished my Jack Carter piece. It was a knockout… absolutely perfect. Then to top it off, The Potentate presented me with an autographed copy of his latest sketchbook as a bonus! [Later that evening, as I was looking at my sketchbook, I was surprised to find that my Rocky sketch was in it! Too cool.] It was a great ending to a fun day.

Drink and Draw Launch Party

Remember when I told you about the Drink and Draw Social Club?

Ok. Do you remember when I told you about their cool art book [The Drink and Draw Social Club Vol. 1]?

Well, you won't want to forget this... especially if you're able to attend. [And if you do make it, be sure and tell Reverand Dave that the I sent ya!] Anyway, the Drink and Draw Social Club is having a launch party for their new book on February 10th from 6pm until closing at the Meltdown.

Drink and Draw Social Club founders Dave Johnson, Dan Panosian and Jeff Johnson will be joined by LeSean Thomas, Josh Middleton, Felipe Smith, Jim Mahfood, Tragnark, Michael Avon Oeming, Kat Von D and many others.

If you can't attend, you can still get a copy of The Drink and Draw Social Club Vol. 1 by clicking on the link. And if you do go, be sure and get some photos!

Wanna See A REALLY Big Ring?

Pretty cool picture, huh?

No, it's not a still from Star Trek or Star Wars or anything like that. It's truly a photograph of an actual floating ring that's the size of a galaxy! No joke.

Every day you can see a new image or photograph of our fascinating universe, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer simply by clicking HERE.

Thanks to Ernest "Jazzman" Resendes for providing the link!

Big Beatty Reveals All...

My buddy, "Big" John Beatty is back, baby!

He's started up his blog again, and if you check it out you'll learn:

• why John is flying half-way around the world


• about a comic book signing that John is doing


• how he got the name "Big Beatty"


• why he's no longer than man behind "Big Beatty.com"
  

Who knows what other vital info you'll learn just by clicking HERE.

Heroes Helped by Heroes

It's sad to say that many older comic book writers and artists end up financially strapped in their "golden years." An organization called Heroes Initiative works to "provide a financial safety net for yesterdays creators who may need emergency medical aid, financial support for essentials of life and an avenue back into paying work."

One of their recent efforts involved recruiting over 80 comic book artists [and even a writer or two] to draw a custom sketch on the blank cover of a specially produced issue of Ultimate Spider-Man #100.

Thanks to the good folks at ComicBookResources.com, you can see nearly all of the covers by clicking HERE.

Drink and Draw

Artists, for the most part, live solitary lives. They usually work alone, spending long hours at the drawing board. In an effort to combat this isolation, Dave Johnson, Jeff Johnson and Dan Panosian formed the Drink & Draw Social Club. Once a week these talented artists would get together to eat, drink, draw and socialize. The idea was such a great one that more and more artists began to join in. Soon talents like Andy MacDonald, Josh Middleton, Jim Mahfood, Lesean Thomas, Kat Von D and others began to swing by for some drawin' and jawin'.

The idea was such a natural that similar groups began to spring up around the country. Heck, even "Big" John Beatty started his "Sketch Society" last year wrapped around the same concept.

Can you imagine how cool it would be to hang out in a relaxed atmosphere with these talented artists as they drew stuff that THEY wanted to see? Well, you might not be able to hang out with these talented cats, but you can see some of the cool art that their Drink and Draw sessions produced! The Drink and Draw Social Club Volume 1 is now available. Featuring over 100 pages chock full of art, it is a bargain at the cover price of $24.99, but click HERE and you can get it for over 30% off! My order is in!

Want to see more before plunking down your hard earned greenbacks? Then click HERE for an interview with Jeff Johnson and Dan Panosian -- you'll also get to see several pages from the book.

So what are you waiting for? Get ta clickin'!

Nobody Lasts an Hour

I love a good scary movie. You know, the kind that's seldom make anymore. I'm not talking about the slasher, teenager in danger, or poorly-translated-foriegn-film-that-was-once-really-scary movie. So when a really good scary movie comes along, I'm in.

Looks like I'll be checking into 1408. Will you?

300: The Art of the Film

I received my Art of 300 book today and it's a beaut!

With 300: The Art of the Film you get to go behind the scenes and see how director Zack Snyder (Dawn of the Dead) translates Frank Miller's award-winning graphic novel to the big screen. The book includes more than 100 pages of production photos, concept art, and much, much more. What makes the deal even sweeter is that if you order using the link provided you can save over 33%!

Now if the movie's release date would only get here!

300: The Art of the Film rates an "A"

National Gorilla Suit Day

Mark Evanier writes one of the most entertaining blogs around... so when he asks that we support National Gorilla Suit Day, how can we refuse?

So quit monkeying around and get your suit!

Til Death Gets New Life

Are any of you watching Til Death? If the ratings are any indication, probably not, but I'm suggesting that you give it a try.

Brad Garrett from Everybody Loves Raymond stars along with Joely Fisher as a long-married couple who, once newlyweds move in next door, realize how much things change over time. The show is funny and a great way to pass thirty minutes, but it has yet to find a big audience. I think that part of the reason is it airs on Thursday nights and faces some stiff competition. Fox must feel the same. Starting on March 14th, Til Death will move to Wednesday nights and follow American Idol.

With American Idol as it's lead-in Til Death should find it's audience. If not, the title could be prophetic.

A "300" Tidbit

Here's a "300" tidbit for you diehard fans courtesy of Comicbookresources.com. It's a short interview with actor Rodrigo Santoro, who plays the Presian King Xerxes, leader of the army attempting to conquer the world.

Raise the Dead

Raise the Dead is a new comic book that I think will appeal to most ZONErs. The story follows a "disparate group of seven people forced to cooperate with each other in order to survive" a zombie infestation. Yeah, not an original idea, but one that works. I know how much we all enjoy "The Walking Dead," "Dawn of the Dead," "Night of the Living Dead," "World War Z," "28 days later" -

- Hey! How did that last one get in there? It's not technically a zombie story??

- Yeah, but that's not the point. The point is that we enjoyed all of those "zombie" stories and we ought to give Raise the Dead a chance. So check out the preview HERE and let me know what you think. I'll bet Chad likes it!

Muhammad Ali: Still the Greatest

Today is Muhammad Ali's 65th birthday. It's hard to believe that the champ is 65. It's harder still to believe that Parkinson's disease has been able to rob Ali of much of his health for many of these years.

I was five years old when Ali beat Liston for the title. Here was this brash young kid bragging that he'd beat this monster of a man. Then he did it. And then he did it again in a rematch. Ali was "the man." He talked a lot of smack, but he backed it up. Plus it was obvious that he was having fun, so much of what he said seemed to be playful kidding around [until you stepped into the ring with him]. Ali was as cool as The Beatles or Elvis. In fact, Ali was the greatest.

I can remember the controversy that sprung up when Muhammad refused to enter the draft. Although I was against the war in Viet Nam, I felt that it was wrong to not support your country. Still, I admired Ali for standing by his convictions no matter the cost. And cost him it did. He was stripped of the title and not allowed to fight during three of what could have been his most productive years.

When Ali was once again allowed to fight, I can remember staying up late to watch it with my dad. Ali was fighting a tough guy named Jerry Quarry. Ali won by TKO in the 3rd. I had just turned 12 and Ali was still the greatest.

Less than a year later Ali fought Joe Frazier in what was to be the first of three legendary fights. Although Muhammad lost the fight, the battle become the thing of legends. Ali continued to fight and win.

Two years later, Ali fought and lost a split decision to Ken Norton. I was surprised about the loss, but even more so when I learned that Ali fought most [if not all] of the fight with a broken jaw. Six months later Ali beat Norton in the rematch. I was 14 and Ali was still the greatest.

Ali fought again the following month for an easy win. and then two months after that beat Joe Frazier in their first rematch. Their battle was another classic that went the entire 15 rounds, but this time Ali came out on top. Nine months later Ali entered the ring to fight Big George Foreman. Foreman was undefeated and had knocked out Frasier early. Heck, Foreman knocked almost everyone out early. Ali wasn't given much of a chance. Of course we all know that Ali KO'd George in the 15th. I stayed up late listening to the results over the radio. I had just turned 16 and Ali was still the greatest.

In March of 75, Ali fought Chuck Wepner. No one gave Wepner ANY chance of winning. Still "The Bayonne Bleeder" went the distance in a losing effort and actually knocked Ali off of his feet at one point in the fight [although many say that it was more of a trip]. This fight, of course, is what inspired Sylvester Stallone to come up with "Rocky." Ali followed with wins against Ron Lyle [talk about a huge, tough, ex-con] and Joe Bugner. In October of 75, Ali and Frazier met for the 3rd and final time. Ali won. I was 16 and Ali was still the greatest.

Ali fought regularly defending his title, winning against name fighters like Jimmy Young, Ken Norton [again] and Ernie Shavers. The Shavers fight was especially exciting. It was September 29, 1977. I was 18 years old and watched the fight while in Orlando for one of my first comic book conventions. After the fight, I got together with a bunch of my friends and played some poker. Of course we talked about how Ali was still the greatest!

Ali's next fight was against a kid who had done well in the 76 Olympics. His name was Leon Spinks. The fight was televised on regular tv and I can remember watching it and seeing that the kid was winning. Spinks won with an upset decision. Ali later said that the loss to Spinks hurt more than any other of his career. Seven months later, at the age of 36, Ali beat Leon Spinks. I was 19 years old and Ali was still the greatest.

Muhammad didn't fight again for over two years. Larry Holmes, one of Ali's former sparring partners was champ, and Ali came back for "one last chance" to see him "dance." I was at the pay-per-view the night that Holmes beat Ali. It wasn't pretty. Still Muhammad gave it his all. As he did again when he came back 14 months later to fight a losing battle against Trevor Berbick. I was 23 years old and although Muhammad had lost, I felt he was still the greatest.

As the years have passed, Muhammad Ali's legend has grown. He earned the nickname, "The People's Champ" thanks to his popularity with folks of all races, soci-economic backgrounds and religions. Ali's fans weren't limited by borders. During his career he fought in 12 different countries; and was considered a true citizen of the world. Ali is probably more popular now than he was when he was in his fighting prime.

Today Muhammad Ali is 65 and he's still the greatest.

4 Hours Down 20 to Go

If you haven't watched the first four hours of 24, you may want to skip this post since there will be spoilers. Just in case though I'll "hide" them using invisotext. [If you want to know what's said simply scroll over the areas where the text is hidden.]

24 is back and with a vengeance. The show has always been fast moving, but these first four hours of the new season have flown by! Terrorist attacks have been going on for weeks, we have a new president, the US government has worked out a deal for Jack's release from a Chinese prison where he was badly tortured, the terrorist leader behind the attacks on our country has been identified and misidentified, a family has been held hostage, Jack has been brought back into the service of his country, and more... Each season seems to kick up the stakes a bit... in past years we've had Air Force One knocked out of the sky, a past US President assassinated, poisonous gas released on an unsuspecting public... the list goes on and on. Still it's going to be hard to top the nuclear bomb that was detonated in the final seconds of the last episode. Strange as it may sound, it really ticked me off more that Jack killed Curtis.

Books - Best of 2006

Last year I read a number of exceptionally well-written books. Of course there were old favorites such as Andrew Vachss, Barry Eisler, Robert Crais, David Morrell, Stephen Hunter and others. Surprisingly, the list this year is dominated by authors that I read for the first time. And when I say dominated I mean it! Literally all of the authors in this year's top five made it on my first exposure to their work.

5. Already Dead by Charlie Huston. Modern day vampire clans are at war and Joe Pitt has a missing girl to find. Huston's next Joe Pitt novel, No Dominion, is available now.

4. Persuader by Lee Child. I'm coming to this series late in the game, but that doesn't make me like it any less. Child has a winner with his Jack Reacher novels. In this outing, Reacher is working undercover with the FBI to catch an international gun-runner.

3. The Road by Cormac McCarthy. A father and young son journey south through a bleak post-apocalyptic world. Food is scarce and only what they can scavenge. They must make the journey to escape the brutal winter that is almost upon them. If they don't starve odds are one of the roaming bands of cannibals will find them. Still they press on.

2. World War Z by Max Brooks. A haunting book that Chad Hunt also recommends!

1. Stealing Home / Six Bad Things / A Dangerous Man by Charlie Huston. Yeah, he's the same Charlie Huston that wrote Already Dead. In this trilogy we meet Hank Thompson. When we first meet Hank he's ten years out of high school and working as a bartender in New York City. Had it not been for a badly broken leg, he would have been a big league baseball player. Now he's the nice guy who drinks too much and lacks real ambition. That is until the night two strangers yank him over the bar and beat him nearly to death. When he gets out of the hospital he gets more visitors and another beating. Soon he's on the run from crooked cops, mobsters and hit men. If he lives maybe he'll get a piece of the millions of dollars that they believe he has. Six Bad Things and A Dangerous Man complete Hank's story. I loved every page and wish that it didn't have to end.

2006 - 5 Movies

Last year I watched over 200 films and less than a dozen were seen in a theater. I used to go to the movies on a weekly basis, but I've found that as I've gotten older and dvds hit the market sooner, I will quite often wait to watch a movie in the comfort of my home. This has both advantages and disadvantages, but instead of discussing them, I thought we'd instead look at five of my favorite movies from last year.

5. "Running Scared" has more twists and turns than a rollercoaster. The movie starts in the middle of a drug deal that suddenly goes bad. An insane shootout takes place and we're off an running. Along the way we're going to meet drug dealers, pimps, crooked cops, child molesters, Russian mobsters, and other upright citizens. The movie constantly maintains a forward momentum as Joey Gazelle [Paul Walker] first attempts to retrieve a stolen gun used in a mob killing and then finds himself on a mission to save a kid. The supporting cast is first rate and writer/director Wayne Kramer is a talent to keep an eye on. This movie is not for kids. "Running Scared" rates an A

4. "The Salton Sea" was actually released in 2002 but qualifies for my list since I saw it for the first time last year. Like "Running Scared," "The Salton Sea" is full of crazy characters and plot twists abound. I hesitate to say anything about the movie, because the journey and discovery of who everyone is and what is going on is so much fun. Of course when I say "fun" I don't mean as in comedy fun. "The Salton Sea" is not for kids. The people in the movie are the kind that you'd want to avoid in real life [drug dealers, thieves, crooked cops and killers] but adults who don't mind gritty dramas won't mind spending some reel life with them. "The Salton Sea" rates an A+

3. "A History of Violence" was first released in 2005, but again because I didn't see it until 2006, qualifies for my "Best of" list. Here's what I had to say after seeing it. "A History of Violence" rates an A+.

2. I absolutely loved "Casino Royale." In fact I saw it twice during it's intial release and can't wait to put the dvd in my movie collection. Tom Richmond, best known for his art, perfectly summarized my thoughts on "Casino Royale," so if you want to know what I thought about it, click HERE and see what Tom had to say. "Casino Royale" rates an A+

1. I've been a Stallone fan since before the original "Rocky," but it was "Rocky" that sealed the deal and made me the Stallone mega-fan[atic] that I am today. When I heard that "Rocky II" was going to be made, I can remember thinking, "there's no way it can be as good." I was right, but "Rocky II" was a worthy continuation of the story. "Rocky III" was even better, but still not on the level of the orginal. Then came "Rocky IV" which was fun, and in turn was followed by Sly's mistep with the character in "Rocky V" and with each of these sequels we moved a bit farther from the original.

"Rocky Balboa" is a return to the spirit, the feel, and the essence of "Rocky." Sly's acting is some of his best work ever. The screenplay has the wit and charm of the original. "Rocky Balboa" was the perfect way to end the "Rocky" series.

"Rocky Balboa" rates an A+

Timberlake and Diaz Split

Bad news for for Justin Timberlake and Cameron Diaz...
Everyone knows by now that they have split up.
Almost everyone is speculating as to the reason
That after three years maybe someone came between them...
There is speculation that it was someone else but...
You would think that there would at least be some clues as to his identity!

FX or Bust

In just a little over two weeks I plan to attend the annual FX Convention in Orlando, Florida. This year the show looks to be the best ever due to the strong guest list that includes: Matt Wagner, Steve Niles, Michael Golden, Dan Brereton, Dave Johnson, Steve Niles, Whilce Portacio, Andy Smith, Phil Noto and many, many others.

The media guests include Michael Biehn, Lance Henriksen, Ray Park, Adam Baldwin, Hayden Panettiere, and a bunch of others. I usually don't get too excited with the movie/tv stars, but I have to admit that Michael Biehn and Lance Henriksen would be pretty cool to meet.

The best part of the show for me will most likely be hanging out with friends I seldom get to see [John Higashi and James Howell to name two] and hopefully picking up a couple of new pieces for my Stallone art collection.

If you can make the show be sure and say, "hi." I'll be the guy in the Stallone t-shirt. [With the success of "Rocky Balboa" I may not be the only one though!]

Smokin' Title Sequences

If the movie is near as cool as the title sequences, then "Smoking Aces" is going to be a fun ride. There's no doubt that writer/director, Joe Carnahan can deliver the goods. Add in a cast that includes Jeremy Piven, Peter Berg, Andy Garcia, Alicia Keys, Ryan Reynolds, Ray Liotta and a bunch of others and I think that we're in for a blast.

Oh, and just two more things before you watch the title sequence: 1] Mauro Fiore [who did the same job on Sly Stallone's remake of "Get Carter"] is the director of photography and Clint ["The Fountain"] Mansell is once again the man behind the music.

Click HERE then click on "Title Sequences," then click on "Smokin' Aces" and then click on "View Movie." [A tip of the hat to JoBlo.com for discovering it!]

World War Z

Over at his blog, my buddy Chad, was talking up what an awesome book War World Z is. And it is.

I read it a few months ago and regularly think about how cool it was. Chad had the great idea to get the audio version of the book. After seeing how much Chad enjoyed listening to it [and this is AFTER reading it], I may have to do the same. [It would be to fun listen to on a long road trip at night!]

Well, my post can't just be about how cool Chad's post was, can it? I guess it could, but I always like to bring something to the table. So HERE is a link to the official World War Z site. It has a lot of fun things to check out. For instance, I had a 34% chance of surviving the zombie war. Ok, maybe THAT wasn't the best example I could have used for a fun thing... but you get the idea.

Ok... you guys check out the World War Z site and I'll get to work on scooping Chad's next post.

Your "300" Fix

Now that "Rocky Balboa" has been released, the movie that I am most anticipating is "300." March 9th just can't get here fast enough.

If, like me, you're looking for your "300" fix, then this interview with Zack Snyder or these new posters might hold you over.

If It Weren't For Bad Luck...

I always try to keep my ZONE pieces positive and I don't want that to change. Generally things go really well for me... You can hear the "but" coming can't you?

For the last couple of weeks my luck has been terrible. [Before I go on, let me make it clear that the problems that I'm going to mention are minor compared to what some folks go through daily. I'm not looking for pity, only to explain why my posts have been scarce.]

It all started a few days before Christmas. My computer died. I know for some of us, that's worse than the death of a seldom-seen relative. Luckily I had backed up most things. Of course I lost a bunch of e-mails and the like, but not enough to wish harm to dear ole Uncle Sticky. The timing wasn't the best ["Rocky Balboa" had just opened and I had another week to go on the official movie blog], but I knew that I'd be able to work things out.

We'd been planning a family trip for the day after Christmas and I was looking forward to Christmas Eve with my wife and kids, my mom, my brother's family, my two sister's and their families, my cousin... well, you get the picture. Christmas Eve was great, unfortunately before the night was out my youngest son was throwing up and had come down with a major stomach bug. We postponed opening Christmas presents since he was so sick. [You KNOW a kid is sick when he doesn't feel liking opening gifts.]

We decided to put off our trip for a day to make sure that Chris felt well enough to travel. The next day I came down with it. I spent the day reliving Chris' losing battle to avoid the bathroom. I was throwing up and facing other aspects of the bug. Obviously we'd have to put off the trip again.

The next day I was still feeling woozey and my oldest son came down with the bug as well. Thank God we have two bathrooms. At that point we knew we weren't destined to go out of state and cancelled the trip.

After a few days of the entire family feeling healthy we decided that a short trip to St. Augustine [about 60 miles away] was in order. We all loaded up the car and headed off. We made it about two miles from the house when my car died! I pulled it over to the side of the road and contacted Triple A. One and a half hours later a tow truck arrived [my family had long since left with another family member] and it was off to the shop where I learned it was a problem with the fuel pump.

And my computer was still dead.

Still, there is usually a silver lining... the fuel pump was under warranty. We've all returned to good health. I'm writing this post from my NEW computer and Uncle Sticky is probably still alive and kicking.