Born on August 14

Hey folks,
Did a quick peek at IMDB.com to see who else was born on my birthday. That they're listed on IMDB suggests they've done more from this common starting date than I have but... so be it.
Anyway, born on my birthday were:

Spencer Pratt (25)
Mila Kunis (25)
Ana Matronic (Scissor Sisters) (34)
Catherine Bell (JAG) (40)
Halle Berry (42)
Brannon Braga (Star Trek writer/producer) (43)
Andrew Kevin Walker (screenwriter) (44)
Emmanuelle Béart (45)
Susan Olsen (aka Cindy Brady) (47)
Sarah Brightman (48)
Marcia Gay Harden (49)
Magic Johnson (49)
Jackée Harry (52)
James Horner (55)
Carl Lumbly (57)
Gary Larson (The Far Side) (58)
Danielle Steel (61)
David Schramm (Wings) (62)
Antonio Fargas (Starsky & Hutch) (62)
Steve Martin (63)
Wim Wenders (63)
Lynne Cheney (ugh) (67)
David Crosby (67)
Arthur Laffer (right wing economist) (68)
Earl Weaver (78)
Alice Ghostley (82)
Lina Wertmüller (82)
Russell Baker (83)

Not a bad line-up, hm? Anyway, hope that all of YOU out there have had or will have a great birthday. I'll probably be offline most of the day, so enjoy the weekend!

Grading the Comics: Week of August 10

Okay, let's see what's (hopefully) in the comic book box this week:

• ACTION COMICS #880
• ADVENTURE COMICS #1
• BATMAN #689
• BLACKEST NIGHT #2 (OF 8)
• BLACKEST NIGHT BATMAN #1 (OF 3)
• BOOSTER GOLD #23
• GEN 13 #31
• GREEN LANTERN CORPS #39 (BLACKEST NIGHT)
• MARVELS PROJECT #1 (OF 8)
• RED HERRING #1 (OF 6)
• SUPERMAN SECRET FILES 2009 #1
• ULTIMATE COMICS AVENGERS #1
• ULTIMATE COMICS SPIDER-MAN #1
• UNCANNY X-MEN #514 DAX
• UNWRITTEN #4
• WALKING DEAD #64

As usual, the italics are for books I am not committed to buying but hope to glance over on the stands. Odds are good that if I like what I see, it'll go home with me.

In the meantime, what are YOU reading? Comment away!

Political Note

I know a few of my readers have, in the past, said they do not like the political stuff. Fair enough (and I'm not even sure if those readers are still reading).

I'll just post these two links and let you read or not.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0809/25991.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/08/11/olbermann-slams-palin-for_n_256207.html

John Hughes, RIP

Don't let him be remembered for "Drillbit Taylor," that's all I'm asking.

Perhaps the landmark filmmaker of the 1980s, John Hughes died yesterday at age 59 in New York City of a heart attack. Creator (writer and director) of such hits as "The Breakfast Club," "Pretty in Pink" and "Weird Science," he made stars of Molly Ringwald and Anthony Michael Hall, not to mention providing invaluable career springboards to Ally Sheedy, Andrew McCarthy, Robert Downey Jr., Judd Nelson, John Cusack, Alan Ruck, and even John Candy (who knew Candy and Steve Martin could be such a great "dramedic" duo?). He launched the "Home Alone" and "Beethoven" franchises and lent his talents as a writer to a surprising number of movies (including the aforementioned... aw forget about that one).

I was in college when the majority of his films hit the big screen, but I loved his stuff greatly. Even his near-great films like "Some Kind of Wonderful" had something going for them. I was a huge fan of "Weird Science" and "Breakfast Club" in particular, seeing both in the theater more than once.

When he stepped out of the business (or so it seemed), I missed his point of view tremendously. There weren't many (heck, ANY) writer-directors who could capture the essence of being a teen the way Hughes did. Shermer, Illinois seemed like a modern Oz, where Ferris Bueller could bump into Lisa on his way to a party at Claire Standish's house. It takes a special kind of magic to make that happen, and Hughes had it in spades.

RIP, Mr. Hughes, and thank you.

Grading the Comics: Week of August 3

Hey there, seems like forever since I graded my comic book purchases.
Having a baby in the house will do that. I have books from two or three weeks ago that I haven't even read yet.
=sigh=
Anyway, here's what I'm planning to buy today:

• AGENTS OF ATLAS #9 - Darn it, I forgot to pick this up. Will try to snag a copy today.
• BOYS #33 - Sick, what Butcher does to Payback, but very entertaining. And there's material besides that sets up some interesting stuff ahead. B
• CAPTAIN AMERICA REBORN #2 (OF 5) - Good stuff. Steve Rogers is on his way back (slowly) and yet--will he be Cap when he finally returns? A-
• DOOM PATROL #1 - Side by side with Metal Men, this is one wacked-out book. A must-read. A+
• HULK #13 - Bruce says bye to A-Bomb and we're thinking Ol' Jadejaws is gone...? B
• JUSTICE LEAGUE CRY FOR JUSTICE #2 (OF 7) - Haven't read it yet.
• SAVAGE DRAGON #151 - Geez, for a dead guy, Dragon sure can carry a book. B
• SUPERMAN: WORLD OF NEW KRYPTON #6 (OF 12) - Didn't have a copy at the store, hope to have it tonight.
• ULTIMATUM: FANTASTIC FOUR REQUIEM #1 - Ditto.
• ULTIMATUM: X-MEN REQUIEM #1 - Ditto.

As I've said elsewhere (I think), I'm probably going to let the WildStorm stuff fall by the wayside. "World's End" has been an interesting direction for the books but I'm ready to let it go.

Ditto the Ultimate line of books. I wasn't thrilled with the last issue of ULTIMATUM (see below), and now seems like a good time to let those titles slip off my reserve list. I'll keep an eye on the line to see what's happening, and reserve the right to change my mind, but... we'll just have to see.

Man, I sure didn't have a lot to say about the books this week-- but I'll fix that soon enough.

later!

Fan Fatale

My friend Sherin has created a site to discuss (and, let's be honest, promote) her work. It's here, but the URL is www.fan-fatale.com. Give it a look; her stuff is real good and those of you who like urban fantasy will get a kick out of it.