Visit the following sites with time to spare. The banner does not lie: It really is darn cool. Be sure to block out a nice chunk of time so you can roam this sprawling site undisturbed.
Visit the site, buy the magazine. FilmFax and its sister magazine Outre are consistently great.
A great place to wallow in Kong-speak with like-minded souls.
Shelly Winters. 50-50 HINDSIGHT DEPT. A tip for anyone out there planning to do business with anyone: Pay for a background check on that person's name and business name immediately. I used KNOWX.COM, (after I'd already had to file a lawsuit, unfortunately) but there are any number of online services that'll give you a public records search for $45-$65. Take it from someone who learned the hard way: It is money well spent to learn ahead of time that a potential business partner is financially strapped, has leins or judgements outstanding, or is misrepresenting the worth of their business.
Recommended Links
& Diversions
"The Fun We Can't Remember." The Gobler Toys site is the funniest thing I've ever seen on the internet. Two Steve's (Casino and Fink) have created a fantasy centered on the toy empire of Ira Gobler, creator or classic palythings like Gobler's Wobblers, Louie the Cheese Shark, and the lawsuit-bedeviled Marble Mouth game.
KINGDOM KONG webmaster Jeffrey Blair Lotta shares my obsession with Dino De Laurentiis's 1976 mega-remake of KING KONG. However, Mr. Lotta's mission is to force a new evaluation of a film that is commonly tossed on to the Golden Turkey heap. You'll find well thought-out essays here along with sound clips and pics from the film.
Sound Effects designer STEVE LEE is rapidly building a terrific site with the goal of locating lost props and relating legends from the history of movie-making. My favorite feature on his new site is the sound effects lore he's assembled on his SOUND EFFECTS PAGE. He's included some sound clips as well so you'll know exactly which cliched thunder-strike he's talking about.
Remember the very first episodes of HAPPY DAYS - the ones shot on film, before Fonzie moved into the apartment above the Cunningham abode? There are people who will tell you that the show began its slide to Chachi-and-Joanie crappiness when Arthur Fonzerelli took on a dare to water ski over a shark in a Very Special Episode of the show, hence the title of www.jumptheshark.com.
JUMP THE SHARK examines the turning points of classic TV shows that started on the right foot (think Wayne Rogers-era M*A*S*H) only to morph into a shadow of its former self (now think latter-years "sensitive guy" M*A*S*H episodes). These guys have discovered that most show-wrecking occurs as the result of one or more of 13 specific factors ("A Very Special," "Death," "Puberty," "Moving," etc.), and voluminous message boards allow fans to debate the crapification of nearly every TV show known to man.
Kudos to the site's creators for recognizing and exposing the TED McGINLEY factor, as well as acknowledging the fact that THE SIMPSONS has yet to Jump the Shark.
My fevered recollection of a terrifying Movie of the Week: Shelly Winters digging frantically at the ground, haunted by the voices and screams of a woman buried beneath. No one will believe her. Finally, she enlists the aid of a strapping young man to help "dig a ditch." He hears the voices and runs away. Winters falls to her knees and completes the task herself - - and out slithers the buried woman, muddy and hugging her around the ankles.
Shudder. I've asked around about this film, searched Winters's credits. Nothing..
TV PARTY to the rescue. I stumbled upon their monsterously huge site to enjoy RealAudio clips of ABC's Movie of the Week promos - - and there it was!!! A chilling promo for "THE SCREAMING WOMAN," and it was Olivia De Havilland in the lead, not Shelly Winters (hey - I was a little kid). Amazing to think that the last time I heard the ABC Movie of the Week promo or saw that disturbing movie I didn't even know where babies came from.
Go to TV PARTY with lots of time and a RealAudio Plugin. You'll be treated to at least one moment like the one above. The wealth of audio and video material is awe-inspiring, and you'll see slick articles like THE DAY SUPERMAN DIED: WHO SAW WHAT? and an entire section of features dedicated to EMBARRASSING MOMENTS. Great, great stuff.