Trailer Park

Cloudy with A Chance of Meatballs


Planet 51


Year One


The Taking of Pelham 123

Red to Blu

Didn't listen to me when I said Blu-ray would become the industry leader over HD DVD? Did you take the confederate side in the Format War? What were you thinking? I told you not to. I am ALWAYS right. Now you are stuck with a small, awkward collection of HD DVDs that you don't know what to do with. You spent money on that silly HD DVD player and NOW you want to switch to Blu-ray? Well at least Warner Bros. feels guilty for selling you that garbage. This month they've launched "Red2Blu", a new program that allows HD DVD owners to trade up their obsolete discs for beautiful Blu-rays. You select which HD DVDs you have that you want to trade up, you pay $4.95 for each one ($14.95 for those discs with 4 movies on them), you send them the cover art from your HD discs, pay an additional $6.95 for shipping, and they will send you a new collection. It's a lot cheaper than going out and buying them all again at retail. It's a great idea for WB. Not only does it benefit your obsolete collection, but it also helps WB get your BD collection growing. BD sales are up this year, but they are not growing at the speed the industry would like. Any gimmick that can encourage sales is good for Home Entertainment. "Red2Blu" isn't the only program Warner Bros. are putting forward this month to hype Blu, "Warnerblu Buy 5, Get 1 Free" is exactly what it says. You buy 5 WB BDs, they'll give you 1 free. Just register on the site, register each participating title you purchase between now and April 2010, and for every 5 you buy you get 1 free (just pay S+H). Pretty simple and encouraging. I like.

So basically, my point is Blu-ray is awesome, HD DVD is for people who lose, and WB has some clever people in their marketing department. Cool? Cool.

Gearing Up For Earth Day

Disney Nature
Tomorrow Disney's newest production division, DisneyNature, will release it's first film "EARTH". This is a perfect Earth Day launch because for every ticket purchased opening week, Disney will plant a tree in your name.
"EARTH" is directed by Alastair Forthergill and Mark Linfield. Alaistair is the genius director behind the 11 part BBC/Discovery Channel Emmy Award winning mini-series "Planet Earth" (and the upcoming sequel series "The Frozen Planet). The film uses some footage from the epic "Planet Earth" as well as new footage to tell 3 main storylines revolving around the polar bear, the humpback whale, and the African elephant.
"EARTH" was produced and distributed by BBC and released in Europe back in 2007 with narration by Patrick Stewart, then in Japan in 08 with narration by Ken Watanabe. Tomorrow the DisneyNature banner will be releasing it in the US and Latin America with James Earl Jones as the narrator.


Disney formerly produced Nature documentaries under the title "True Life Adventures". Between 1948 and 1960 they produced 17 documentaries and won 8 Academy Awards. DisneyNature echoes the ideals of Walt's "True Life Adventures" series. In the pipeline already are 6 feature films to follow "EARTH".

First, "The Crimson Wing: Mystery of the Flamingos". Pretty self explanatory, this is the story of the lives of Flamingos in Tanzania. It released in France in December of 2008, is scheduled to release next month in Australia and New Zealand, and should make its way over here sometime before the end of the year.


"Oceans" will release domestically Earth Day 2010 and document the battles between Man and those dwelling below the surface of the sea. Update: Here is the teaser that premiered with "Earth", most of the footage relates to the Disney History of "True Life Adventures" but the 2nd half has some good footage... check it out...



"Orangutans: One Minute to Midnight" will release Worldwide in 2010 and is the story of a brother and sister Orangutans trying to make their way back to their family.

In 2011, Alastair Fothergill's 2nd film for DisneyNature will be released Worldwide. "Big Cats" is the tale of 3 mothers - a lioness, a leopard, and a cheetah - raising their cubs.

"Naked Beauty: A Love Story That Feeds The Earth" will also release Worldwide in 2011. Macro photography is used to delve into the worlds of flowers and pollinators, in particular bats, hummingbirds, butterflies, and bumblebees.

The final film scheduled so far will be another film directed by Alastair Fothergill and Mark Linfield entitled "Chimpanzees" (YES! I can't wait!). Being shot over 3 years in the tropical jungles of Uganda and the Ivory Coast, it will be an intimate look at the lives of Chimps. This is scheduled for release in 2012.



Helping Honeybees
I really love the "Help The Honeybees" campaign from Haagen-Dazs. Go to the site for tons of info on the Honeybee crisis. Without pollinators we wouldn't have most of our diet, bees are vanishing at alarming rates and there are many ways YOU CAN HELP.

For one, you can make a donation to UC Davis' department of Entomology. They are in the process of building a Bee Sanctuary in an attempt to rebuild the Bee population.

Another passionate research department that is in need of donations is over at Penn State.

Also "The Great Sunflower Project" encourages planting Sunflowers in your yard for the Bees. They will send you seeds to plant and all they ask is that you send them info on how often you see bees at the flowers. This will help them get an understanding of the lifestyle of average bees.

Some other seeds you can plant in your garden that are needed by bees: Lavender, Glory Bushes, Jasmine, Rosemary, Coreopsis, Violets, Thyme, Wisteria, Bluebells, Trumpet Vines, Sunflowers, Cosmos, and Cone Flowers.

Buy from Local Beekeepers. You can get Honey, Honeycomb, and Beeswax products from your local beekeeper, usually at Farmer's Markets. Plus you can save money buying there as opposed to SuperMarkets.

Here is a great segment on 60 minutes regarding Colony Collapse Disorder



Haagen-Dazs has been a champion in this campaign for the bees. They will donate money to Penn State and UC Davis when you purchase the following Honey Bee dependent flavors: Banana Split, Carmalized Pear and Toasted Pecan, Cherry Vanilla, Chocolate Peanut Butter, Macadamia Brittle, Rocky Road, Strawberry, Strawberry Cheesecake, Vanilla Swiss Almond, White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle, Hawaiian Lehua Honey and Sweet Cream, and the Limited Edition Vanilla Honey Bee.

Up until the beginning of the year Burt's Bees was giving away Seed packets if you contacted them. Some stores are still selling the Burt's Bees Plant-a-Seed Kit or they are online here. The set comes with All-In-One Wash, Beeswax Lip Balm Tube, Honey Lip Balm Tube, Hand Salve, Res-Q Ointment, and a Packet of Wildflower Seeds. A portion of profits go to Honeybee research. There are also some "Beeswax lip balm" tubes that are marked to donate 5% of the sale to research. So if you are buying Burt's Bees, look for the notice on the packaging.


Melting Ice and No Food
The Ice is melting due to Global Warming. Polar Bears are either drowning in the cold seas or starving from a lack of food. They are even resorting to Cannibalism. The world is heating up and we've got to help these majestic creatures survive.

World Wildlife Foundation is a leader in Polar Bear Conservation. WWF lists the Polar Bear as a VULNERABLE animal, meaning that it's existence is threatened. To Make a Donation to WWF click HERE.

Take the National Wildlife Federation's Good Neighbor Pledge. Help lessen the impacts of Global Warming. Here are some suggestions NWF has for reducing your carbon footprint:

• Replace Frequently Used light bulbs with compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFLs).
• Purchase Energy Star Appliances.
• Turn of Lights when you aren't using them / Install Automatic Timers on Outdoor Lights.
• Turn of your PC and Monitor when not in use.
• Unplug electronic devices or put them on a power strip and switch it off when not in use.
• Replace Water Heaters made earlier than 1998.
• Install a low flow Shower head.
• Run Dish Washer and Washing Machine only when completely full.
• Drive The Speed Limit.
• Keep Your Tires Fully Inflated / Keep Car Well Maintained.
• Carpool / Take Public Transport once a week.
• Recycle / Buy Recycled.
• Bring Your Own Reusable Bags to the Market.
• Drink Tap Water / Buy a Water Filter and use reusable Bottles / Don't buy bottled Water.
• Eat Locally Grown Produce once a week. (Check for local farmer's markets or see if your local University has an agriculture department. You may be able to buy locally grown and help out a University.)

Here is a video from NWF about the Polar Bears' current status

Don't Like Pollen? Do Like Planet of the Apes??

Dear Japanese People,
You Complete Me...

New on Blu

Just got a very exciting email from Amazon.

"Lord of the Rings" is FINALLY coming out on Bluray! Yay!
I've been waiting patiently, so I'm pretty stoked.

The theatrical trilogy will be available most likely during the holiday season. No street date has been announced but Amazon is taking preorders. Word on the streets is that the extended trilogy will get an over the top "Ultimate Collector's set" treatment closer to the release of Peter Jackson and Guillermo Del Toro's "The Hobbit" in theaters.




Also releasing finally on Bluray, "Ghostbusters" on June 16. I freaking love this movie and I can't wait to see the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man in HD. If you already have the DVD, this bluray's got all new special features to get you ready for "Ghostbusters 3" in 2010.


"Lost" Seasons 1 and 2 will hit Bluray June 16, Seasons 3 and 4 are already available, and Season 5 will be available December 8th.






Disney's next glorious Blu-ray ressurection comes out October 6th. "Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs" was the first feature length film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, and as the 3rd classic released on Blu-ray it promises to be the most stunning transfer yet. Snow White is getting the full Platinum treatment. This release will have it all. Completely restored audio and picture, tons of special features, everything you could want in one package. It will include 2 blu-ray discs (the movie and special features) as well as a DVD copy of the movie (for in the car, or if you haven't upgraded yet it is a great way to future proof your collection). I'll get a more in depth blog up here as October 6 approaches, but this is looking to be a very interesting release.




Not only will there be the Blu-ray packaged 2BD + 1DVD combo pack, but in an attempt to penetrate the DVD market there will also be a DVD package with the 1DVD + 2BD set. The identical product in a DVD package that will appeal to those who are turned off by the smaller BD cases. This is an industry first and seems to me like a genius idea. Especially, because the 2 disc DVD set will not be released until 7 weeks later, another industry first. Those seeking the DVD on October 6 will be encouraged by the packaging to pick up the Combo pack. The 2 disc DVD set will hit shelves November 24th.
Disney is STRONGLY behind the blu-ray format, it seems now even more than Sony. They are releasing stunning films on Blu-ray (Sleeping Beauty and Pinocchio). Once you've seen them in HD you'll never want to go back. Disney knows they have a remarkable product, they just need customers to know. So it is a smart push for the Home Entertainment Giant. The original Platinum DVD release of Snow White was the first DVD in history to break 1 million copies sold in its first week of sale. I'm anticipating the princess can do it once again for Disney on Blu-ray.

The Muppet Whatnot Workshop

This Muppet Whatnot Workshop has been open since October of last year, but for some reason I have failed to blog about it. This week the online store re-launched on FAO.com, and it is basically the coolest thing ever.
The Muppet Whatnot Workshop is inside the FAO Shwarz in New York City, but now you can fully customize your own Muppet Whatnot from the privacy of your home and have it shipped to you. What is a Muppet Whatnot? Well, they are essentially the extras in a scene of a Muppet production. Muppet Wiki describes a whatnot as

"blank Muppet heads, onto which facial features, bodies, and clothes are added to make any kind of character in the Muppet Show universe. A similar group of Muppets known as Anything Muppets appear on Sesame Street.

Notable recurring characters made from Whatnots include Lew Zealand, Marvin Suggs, and Bobby Benson.

There were many different Whatnots. In the first two seasons, the Whatnots were mostly shaped like Fraggles. Later in the series, more humanoid Whatnots were added, often with sculpted noses."

If you go on the FAO site, there is a really cute video of Kermit explaining what a whatnot is. I think its a very cool idea to be able to make your own whatnots. In 1993, Playskool had a line of toys called 'Muppet Workshop Puppet Kits', that were based on the idea of personalized whatnots. But this line from FAO is on a whole nother level. The FAO Muppet Whatnot Workshop allows customers to choose from 3 body types, 12 eyes, 12 noses, 13 hairstyles, and 14 costumes to make Whatnots that are the size and texture of real puppets used in Muppet productions.

For $90 plus shipping, you can go on the site (or if you are in NYC you can hit FAO in person) and create your own personal Muppet. It's pretty cool. I've been meaning to get one for myself. Also, if you follow any of the links to the FAO site through Muppet Central, a percentage goes to keep that site up and running. Muppet Central is a great site that I've been following for years, so if it interests you, you can help them out and use one of their links.

I def wanna do one of these soon, I'm just holding out to go do it in person in NYC. So...coool...

San Diego Comic-Con 2009 Sells Out!

So, its not completely sold out yet, BUT SDCC is 4 months away and 4 day passes are already sold out. Saturday tickets are sold out and Friday is about to be there too. This is nuts. 4 years ago you could still be buying tickets the day of at the venue, now you can't even get in. It's nuts. It looks like Katho and I will have to find something else to do on Saturday, but we are def gonna still try and go. Comic-Con is the biggest event in pop culture. You'll never understand unless you are there. It is amazing. If you have any desire to go, get those tickets now. You don't wanna be buying them off ebay in July for 5x the price (it happened last year). Wow, I can't believe this!

Check the Comic-con site for a live ticket sales tracker.

Update, Just went on today, April 19 and Friday is Sold out now too.

Day Man Cover

I found this badass cover of "Day Man" from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Its by this band called Downtown Brown. If you are a nerd and love IASIP like I do, then you will totally appreciate this!

The Hangover

AHHHHsome!

The Tauntaun Sleeping Bag

I want this! Tauntaun sleeping bag, too bad it is an April Fool's gag on thinkgeek.com. But it looks like there was such a good reaction to this that the online store is gonna try and make it happen. It's just really clever. Why did this not already exist? Probably because Lucas has no original ideas left. Look at the lining, it's intestines. Ha and the zipper is a lightsaber! So funny.