Scans of all three issues of Army Man Magazine, the legendary late 80s humor zine put together by future Simpsons' writer George Meyer (an excellent New Yorker profile of Meyer) which also included material from Jack Handey, John Swartzwelder, Bob Odenkirk, among many others. Another contributor, Ian Frazier, talks about Army Man in a Believer Interview. Sadly the scans are small (but the jokes are still big) and of poor quality. For a non-eyestraining introduction, Maud Newton transcribed a good bit of material and posted it at the end of an appreciation of Army Man on her blog.
posted to MetaFilter by Kattullus at 8:19 PM on March 17, 2010 (25 comments)

Incredibox -- a capella beat-boxing flash toy
posted to MetaFilter by HeroZero at 4:17 AM on March 11, 2010 (26 comments)

How fast would you have to throw a baseball in order for it to catch fire?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Cool Papa Bell at 11:23 AM on March 11, 2010 (19 comments)

In the United States, “we tend to want to use every inch, to fill; up with color, and to get it to do as much as it can do. Everything here is bigger, more commercial, more targeted to sell and to advertise. In Europe, the covers are geared to look more like the way they dress: very simple. Their use of negative space goes along with the theory of less is more."
posted to MetaFilter by stratastar at 10:00 PM on March 4, 2010 (74 comments)

Integrating EDI with PayPal and QuickBooks and OH I CAN ALSO HAZ PONY? (i.e. this is asking a lot, I know)
posted to Ask MetaFilter by bitter-girl.com at 10:17 PM on February 25, 2010 (4 comments)

Economists vs. philosophers: Is investing in the stock market (specifically mutual funds) a net good or evil? And the bonus question: Where should a socially conscious man of means put his money so that he can retire comfortably without contributing to a growing wealth inequality?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Popular Ethics at 1:13 PM on May 5, 2009 (23 comments)

J. J. Cale is one of those artists* who has been more influential among other musicians than well-known to the public. Here are some live performances of J. J. and band playing Clyde, Cajun Moon, After Midnight, Magnolia, Drifter's Wife, Birds' Song, and Tijuana. Today's Nilsson posting made me think that fondness for these characters is one of the things that binds me to the MetaFilter community.
posted to MetaFilter by dylanjames at 4:22 PM on February 6, 2010 (21 comments)

The Fan History Project documents the history of science fiction fandom. The site covers it all: local histories, professional art, fan art, fanzines, and photos. Yes, the photos. Lots more inside.
posted to MetaFilter by marxchivist at 4:19 PM on February 4, 2010 (20 comments)

Carly Fiorina, perhaps best known as the former CEO of Hewlett-Packard, is attempting to become the Republican candidate for Barbara Boxer's long-time Senate seat. But her nomination isn't sewed up yet; her potential GOP challenger is former Congressman and Stanford Law professor Tom Campbell. So earlier today, Fiorina's campaign released this political attack ad against Campbell. It features her newly-minted acronym "FCINO", it's about six times longer than most political ads, it makes copious use of stock photography, and it stars demon sheep with red glowing eyes. Wait, what?
posted to MetaFilter by Asparagirl at 6:11 PM on February 3, 2010 (153 comments)

He invented or popularized a startling array of the fundamental elements of film: the dissolve, the fade-in and fade-out, slow motion, fast motion, stop motion, double exposures and multiple exposures, miniatures, the in-camera matte, time-lapse photography, color film (albeit hand-painted), artificial film lighting, production sketches and storyboards, and the whole idea of narrative film.

By 1897, in a studio of his own design and construction – the first complete movie studio – his hand forged virtually everything on his screen. Norman McLaren writes, "He was not only his own producer, ideas man, script writer, but he was his own set-builder, scene painter, choreographer, deviser of mechanical contrivances, special effects man, costume designer, model maker, actor, multiple actor, editor and distributor." Also, his own cinematographer, and the inventor of cameras to suit his special conceptions. Not even auteur directors such as Charles Chaplin, Orson Welles, John Cassavetes, and Stanley Kubrick would personally author so many aspects of their films."

Inside: 57 films by Georges Méliès, the Grandfather of Visual Effects.
posted to MetaFilter by Paragon at 9:47 AM on February 3, 2010 (30 comments)

Interview with Berkeley Breathed on the occasion of a new five-volume compilation (review) of every Bloom County strip.
posted to MetaFilter by kirkaracha at 10:02 AM on February 2, 2010 (146 comments)

The announcement of the iPad earlier this week has prompted a lot of discussion about ebook prices among publishers and their sales partners. That discussion took a major turn yesterday when Amazon pulled the buy buttons for Macmillan's books off their site. Many of Macmillan's titles are still available through Amazon, but only through third parties. Right now, one of the largest publishers in America is no longer available from Amazon because they can not agree on ebook prices.
posted to MetaFilter by Toekneesan at 9:18 AM on January 30, 2010 (304 comments)

Confessions of a Book Pirate
posted to MetaFilter by brundlefly at 12:44 PM on January 26, 2010 (111 comments)

Are we growing to be a porchless society? I am trying to settle a disagreement with my friend - she thinks that porches are still an important part of design, and I say that front porches have largely disappeared from modern architecture and are a social relic of the past. Who's right?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by ajarbaday at 11:50 AM on January 21, 2010 (54 comments)

After David Letterman signs off and the Worldwide Pants production logo fades, viewing audiences are oftentimes treated to a cold open of an empty talk show set... one that quickly becomes the impromptu dance floor for a shameless Scot making an absolute giddy fool of himself while lip-syncing pop songs alongside a menagerie of puppets (and a couple of scantily-costumed stagehands). Now on YouTube for your viewing pleasure, the complete collection of Craig Ferguson's Late Late Show musical numbers: "Say Hey (I Love You)" by Michael Franti and Spearhead - "White Lines" by Duran Duran - "Wonderful Night" by Fatboy Slim - "Istanbul" by They Might Be Giants - "Oops!...I Did It Again" by Britney Spears - "MMMBop" by Hanson - "In the Navy" by Village People - "Fireball" by Don Spencer - "I'm Yours" by Jason Mraz - "The Lonely Goatherd" from The Sound of Music - "She Taught Me How To Yodel" by Frank Ifield - "Fire" by The Prodigy - "Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head"
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 4:51 PM on January 18, 2010 (128 comments)

Andreas Bick's blog post about "dispersion of sound waves in ice sheets" made the rounds a few days ago. Now he has taken the opportunity "to draw the attention to some other very interesting webpages concerning the sound of ice".
posted to MetaFilter by soundofsuburbia at 4:21 AM on January 17, 2010 (19 comments)

Multitrack a cappella (mostly) videos feature the same person layering multiple harmonies to sing a song. The results can be incredible: "Thriller" in 64 voices, "You Rock My World" in 38 voices, "Baby on Board" from the barbershop quartet episode of The Simpsons, "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot", falsetto-tastic "Amazing Grace", "Poker Face", ...
posted to MetaFilter by spiderskull at 4:23 PM on January 12, 2010 (42 comments)

Voice Throwin' Blues: On June 14, 1929 in Richmond, Indiana, Walter "Buddy Boy" Hawkins recorded the first, best and possibly only ventriloquist blues song.
posted to MetaFilter by neroli at 5:24 PM on January 12, 2010 (7 comments)

"In 1998, aged just 14, aspiring young cartoonist Amir Avni decided to get in touch with the creator of Ren & Stimpy, John Kricfalusi ...To call Kricfalusi's response 'generous' would be an understatement."
posted to MetaFilter by aldurtregi at 1:35 PM on January 11, 2010 (35 comments)

Not content to sit by and watch other single-topic blogs ink book deals, Look At This F**king Idea For A Blog-To-Book Deal goes wide where others have gone narrow. (Actual site and URL not censored. Adjust your NetNanny expectations accordingly)
posted to MetaFilter by mkultra at 12:02 PM on January 7, 2010 (42 comments)

There was no way to simply say, "I read a really bad description in this book last night." I had to scan it and share it for you to understand just how bad it truly, truly was. It is the sort of bad that causes pain and must be shared with other people so you can feel better. Part 1, Part 2. This really is prose so purple that it verges into the infra-red. Some NSFW descriptive naughtiness.
posted to MetaFilter by fearfulsymmetry at 10:45 AM on April 1, 2009 (145 comments)

Let me introduce you to Pappy's Golden Age Comics Blog. To start,, I recommend some Ghost Patrol stories from Flash Comics. Or, perhaps some Spacehawk or Powerhouse Pepper by Basil Wolverton is more to your liking. No? How about some Stuntman by Jack Kirby? Maybe Golden Age Flash stories? Maybe some John Stanley? or Fletcher Hanks? Well, look around, I'm sure you will find something you'll like.
posted to MetaFilter by wittgenstein at 10:08 AM on January 6, 2010 (5 comments)

The Vintage Ad Browser "aims to collect vintage ads from a variety of sources, including comic books, CD-Roms, websites, APIs, your submissions, book, magazine & comic book scans, and more."
posted to MetaFilter by tractorfeed at 11:30 AM on January 4, 2010 (15 comments)

How to Destroy the Book. "The anti-copyright activists have no respect for our copyright and our books. They say that when you buy an ebook or an audiobook that’s delivered digitally, you are demoted from an owner to a licensor." (Previously).
posted to MetaFilter by Lobster Garden at 11:25 AM on December 29, 2009 (203 comments)

I love Walt Kelly's art work . I also love the comic strip created by Walt Kelly called Pogo. Man I wish Pogo was still around. Walt Kelly was a great artist and created a wonderful comic strip. Check this blog out that was created by a Kelly fan.
posted to MetaFilter by ilovecomix at 1:08 AM on December 21, 2009 (29 comments)

Norman McLaren's 1952 short film [Youtube version] Neighbours uses live actors in a stop-motion film, to great effect.
McLaren created the soundtrack by scratching the edge of the film, which was then read by the projector.
posted to MetaFilter by dunkadunc at 3:06 PM on December 10, 2009 (19 comments)

Did someone say "minor-key Jingle Bells"?
posted to MeFi Music by doubtfulpalace at 9:28 AM on December 3, 2008 (10 comments)

It's not really that satanic. And you can still dance to it Peanuts-style.
posted to MeFi Music by doubtfulpalace at 11:09 PM on December 1, 2008 (16 comments)

How do I make my salads less lame?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by jason's_planet at 10:34 AM on November 17, 2009 (66 comments)

John Needham's 1988 documentary on the life and work of animation legend Tex Avery [part 1 2 3 4 5]. Some representative work, much of which is covered in the documentary: Porky's Duck Hunt (1937, first appearance of Daffy Duck) || A Wild Hare (1940, first appearance of Bugs Bunny) || Dumb-Hounded (1943, first appearance of Droopy) || Red Hot Riding Hood (1943) || Bad Luck Blackie (1949) || The House / Car / TV / Farm of Tomorrow (1949, 1951, 1953, 1954) || Symphony in Slang (1951) || I'm Cold (1954, Tex's first Chilly Willy)
posted to MetaFilter by milquetoast at 9:24 AM on October 14, 2009 (11 comments)

An ever-growing treasure trove of magazine cover and advertising art from the Golden Age of American illustration. Check out wonderful covers from Theatre Magazine, Adventure Magazine, the Argosy, Photoplay, and Black Mask. Here's a scary cover from Laughter magazine, a strange and beautiful Life cover from 1887, and a copy of The Liberator that I dearly wish I could flip through. See also collections of great old ads for soap, cigarettes and books, among others. The intro page is here.
posted to MetaFilter by CunningLinguist at 1:30 PM on September 9, 2009 (9 comments)

We have an HD TV, but no cable subscription. antenna advice, please!
posted to Ask MetaFilter by radiosilents at 2:11 PM on September 4, 2009 (15 comments)

Slang in the Great Depression. Less'n you're a dumbcluck, you're gonna open up that bazoo and speak the language taught John Swartzwelder everything he knows.
posted to MetaFilter by ford and the prefects at 5:07 PM on August 31, 2009 (20 comments)

...The narrative of the blues got hijacked by rock ’n’ roll, which rode a wave of youth consumers to global domination. Back behind the split, there was something else: a deeper, riper source. Many people who have written about this body of music have noticed it. Robert Palmer called it Deep Blues. We’re talking about strains within strains, sure, but listen to something like Ishman Bracey’s ''Woman Woman Blues,'' his tattered yet somehow impeccable falsetto when he sings, ''She got coal-black curly hair.'' Songs like that were not made for dancing. Not even for singing along. They were made for listening. For grown-ups. They were chamber compositions. Listen to Blind Willie Johnson’s "Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground.'' It has no words. It’s hummed by a blind preacher incapable of playing an impure note on the guitar. We have to go against our training here and suspend anthropological thinking; it doesn’t serve at these strata. The noble ambition not to be the kind of people who unwittingly fetishize and exoticize black or poor-white folk poverty has allowed us to remain the kind of people who don’t stop to wonder whether the serious treatment of certain folk forms as essentially high- or higher-art forms might have originated with the folk themselves.

From Unknown Bards: The blues becomes apparent to itself by one John Jeremiah Sullivan. I came across it while browsing Heavy Rotation: Twenty Writers On The Albums That Changed Their Lives. For Sullivan, that album was American Primitive, Vol. II: Pre-War Revenants (1897 - 1939), which is my favorite CD of the year. Which came out in 2005 while I just got around to buying it this year. Foolish me. It is a piece of art in itself in every respect--all CDs should have such production values.
posted to MetaFilter by y2karl at 11:08 AM on August 6, 2009 (50 comments)

Forgotten Bookmarks. "I work at a used and rare bookstore, and I buy books from people every day. These are the personal, funny, heartbreaking and weird things I find in those books. "
posted to MetaFilter by milquetoast at 9:33 PM on July 25, 2009 (47 comments)

Marcus Aurelius: Was He Quite Ordinary? [Via]
posted to MetaFilter by homunculus at 12:08 PM on July 24, 2009 (32 comments)

"She was a rock star," recalls Ira Tucker Jr., who grew up watching Tharpe with his father's gospel group in the 1940s and '50s. "You know, like Beyonce today and people like that. That's what Rosetta was to us." Sister Rosetta Tharpe wasn't the first one to bring black popular music into the church. (Here's the great Arizona Dranes playing barroom honky-tonk piano on the gospel side I Shall Wear a Crown in 1927.) But her fierce stage presence and her original blend of gospel, boogie-woogie, swing and smoking hot blues guitar was a crucial forgotten influence on what we now recognize as rock and roll. (Many more recordings inside. Enjoy!)
posted to MetaFilter by nebulawindphone at 10:51 AM on July 21, 2009 (18 comments)

The Five Families were established by Charlie "Lucky" Luciano in the wake of the Castellammarese War (1929 - September 10, 1931), a gang war in New York between partisans of Joe "The Boss" Masseria and those of Salvatore Maranzano. The arrangement, under the administration of The Commission, was created to divide the city among the gangs with mutual interests, and prevent the continuous grab for more territory. Of course, the arrangement has been anything but peaceful, and the Five Families have all gone through periods of prosperity and decline. So who are they, and how are they doing now?
posted to MetaFilter by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 1:51 PM on May 14, 2009 (67 comments)

Please provide me with the earliest known image of a person wearing a hat. Just about anything goes: vague dates, person holding a hat, animal wearing a hat.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by bdc34 at 12:31 PM on May 7, 2009 (26 comments)

Just what is the deal with Jughead's weird crown cap? I'm learning to share investigates a forgotten history of haberdashery.
posted to MetaFilter by Astro Zombie at 6:15 AM on April 28, 2009 (101 comments)

I left this here for you to read: You can't buy this magazine in bookstores, and you can't subscribe to it. If you do find an issue, it's purely by chance: each month, 50 issues are printed and left in public places across the US and Canada. Each free, collaboratively produced, handmade issue contains short articles, small greyscale images, and sometimes tiny flat objects attached to the pages.
posted to MetaFilter by hurdy gurdy girl at 11:11 AM on April 27, 2009 (36 comments)

Hungry? Arteries not quite plugged enough? Behold, the Big MacChicken.
posted to MetaFilter by mr_crash_davis at 5:04 PM on February 29, 2008 (55 comments)

The McGangBang is even more obscene than you might expect. (SFW)
posted to MetaFilter by erikvan at 9:07 AM on March 6, 2009 (117 comments)

Maybe you remember them from their 'hit' single "Push Th' Little Daisies", or from their appearance on MTV's Beavis and Butt-head. Maybe you know them from their appearance in the film "It's Pat" or from their contributions to the "Road Trip" soundtrack or even from their appearance at Chef Aid on South Park. My hope, however, is that you don't know Ween, allowing me the opportunity to let you taste the waste.
posted to MetaFilter by Bageena at 9:23 AM on December 30, 2008 (73 comments)

“We consider the 'primitive' music of blues singers such as Leadbelly to be more authentic than that of the Monkees. But all pop musicians are fakes . . . Hugh Barker and Yuval Taylor . . . have turned out their personal record collections to produce a persuasive defence of inauthenticity as the defining characteristic of great popular music[.]” (via)
posted to MetaFilter by jason's_planet at 7:58 AM on April 20, 2007 (142 comments)

Early Female Authors of Hard-Boiled Fiction. Chester Himes and Early African-American Detective Novelists. The Detective's Code. The Femme Fatale. Just a few of the many fascinating offerings at detnovel.com.
posted to MetaFilter by mediareport at 9:56 PM on December 8, 2008 (4 comments)

Clarkesworld Magazine has been serving up new science fiction and fantasy short fiction monthly free of charge since October of 2006. The current issue has a story by Robert Reed. Among the authors who have been published in Clarkesworld Magazine are Mike Resnick, Elizabeth Bear, Jeff VanderMeer and Sarah Monette. Clarkesworld has a podcast of readings of selected stories from the magazine. The magazine also publishes non-fiction, separated into two categories, commentary and interviews. Among those interviewed are Gene Wolfe, Kage Baker and Steven Erikson. There is also a covers gallery and a discussion forum.
posted to MetaFilter by Kattullus at 8:49 PM on December 5, 2008 (13 comments)

The Zippy the Pinhead Archive: Are We Having Searchable Fun Yet? lets you search through many years of Zippy daily comic strips by keyword or date, from January 1, 1994 to the near-present. Sundays included. The Roadside Tour lets you search to see if Zippy's been in your part of the world! [Click the "Where's Zippy?" javascript button for detailed location indeces]
posted to MetaFilter by not_on_display at 10:30 AM on November 24, 2008 (29 comments)

How did you learn how to buy a house? First-time homeowner needs some guidance.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by sah at 12:00 PM on November 1, 2008 (25 comments)

In 1953 a student named Stanley Miller did an experiment showing that the simple chemicals present on the early Earth could give rise to the basic building blocks of life. Miller filled a flask with water, methane, hydrogen and ammonia—the main ingredients in the primordial soup. Then he zapped the brew with electricity to simulate lightning, and, voila, he created amino acids, crucial for life. Now, scientists have reanalyzed this classic experiment, and found that the results were even more remarkable than Miller had realized.
posted to MetaFilter by Mr_Zero at 7:28 PM on October 17, 2008 (49 comments)