Monday, July 27, 2009

Cool Covers



While it doesn't match up correctly here, the clay figure covers were very cool back in 1992.

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Monday, July 20, 2009

Cool Covers

Justice League Europe #40
I'm remember getting this issue because Green Lantern Hal Jordan is featured so prominently on the cover. This is right around the time that GL was becoming my favorite character in the DCU and it was great to see him displayed strikingly on a comic cover that wasn't his own.

Sunday, July 19, 2009

New Additions

Meet Moose (nee Apple Jacks).
He'll be living with K-Dub and I come Wednesday.

Friday, July 17, 2009

Off the Shelf

George Sprott

I had written a nice piece about "George Sprott (1894-1975)" yesterday, but foolishly deleted it before I pasted the text into the blog. I've been trying to recall what I typed, but it's coming out wrong.

I don't want to try to recreate what I wrote as the authenticity of the original piece is gone. For a book like Sprott, it wouldn't be prudent to slight the depths this book possesses. Seth, creator of Clyde Fans, It's A Good Life If You Don't Weaken, and Wimbledon Green, has crafted a story that resonates strongly on themes of life, death, fatherhood, and fidelity. He does this by examining the fading limelight of George Sprott, star of the Canadian airwaves during the Golden Age of Television.

Seth plays with the chronology of the story, the structure of each vignette, and also interjects mixed media pieces that each help develop the story of Sprott, a personality who was really larger than life. The story is saturated with nostalgia. I was constantly reflecting on memories of locally produced television programs and the personalities that populated the broadcasts. I thought about establishments that had long since passed into oblivion: concert venues, restaurants, and book stores. Seth has proven he is adroit at hitting your emotion in just the right spot; I was drawn into the story more because of my own experiences.

This story has already become my favorite Seth piece, as well as my favorite book so far this year. There are a few books that will be released that hold promise, but George Sprott is going to be tough to top.

George Sprott (1894-1975) was released on May 26, 2009, by Drawn and Quarterly.

Thursday, July 16, 2009

Vampire Bites


Kara Wall, my wife of a month-plus, was accepted into the Master of Arts in Urban Affairs program in The Graduate School at SLU today. Rock on!

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Daily Recap

The incomparable Mark Bielik.

Fine Tuning

July has already proven to be a better month for blogging than June was. Aww, honeymoons.

I'm working on developing posts with more regularity - specific posts for specific days. There will still be plenty of oddities thrown in at random, but in an attempt to create more structure on the blog I want to try a schedule of sorts with the things I regularly post: What Shapes A Young Brian Spath?, Cool Covers, Off the Shelf, and Let's All Go to the Lobby. I already have a stockpile of books to review and I'll get that started tomorrow. Hopefully this works well...


It's here!

The Green Lantern-centric, DC Universe-spanning mini-series, Blackest Night, begins today!

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase

The 9th Annual St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase runs July 18-24 at the Tivoli Theatre, the Regional Arts Commission, and Blueberry Hill's Duck Room. Two videos that I helped out with, "The Rotten Corpse" and Jason and the Beast's "Street Preacher" will both be showing on July 19th. "The Rotten Corpse" will play as part of the 'Comedy Shorts' program at 7:30pm, while "Street Preacher" screens at 9:45pm in the 'Experimental Shorts' program. You can check out the rest of the Showcase schedule here. If you make it to any of the shows, be sure to say 'hello.'

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Interpretation

A portrait of me as drawn by my 11 year-old sister, Jaime.

Wednesday, July 1, 2009