You may remember him from the old Portal of Evil and Fat Chicks in Party Hats days. Perhaps his article on homemade fireworks or his extensive collection of Hostess comic book ads taught you to laugh about love again. After a long absence from the internet, Seanbaby is back with, among other things, The Torture Debate As a Batman Comic. [more inside]
posted by rifflesby on May 28, 2009 - 39 comments

First it was hostess bars, then host bars, then maid/anime cafes, and now this. Where will the madness end? [more inside]
posted by Navelgazer on Mar 25, 2008 - 28 comments

Following this 2005 post, this documentary on Osaka "Host Clubs", "The Great Happiness Space" [Google vid 1:15; misleading preview here] is like nothing I've ever seen. Dark and light and wrenching and weird and funny. And dark. Kafka comes to mind for a lot of viewers, but this would fail as fiction. A midpoint shift forces you to confront a reality that is staggeringly complex. It's a kaleidescope of self-awareness and -delusion; compassion and manipulation; candor and deception. Layered, nuanced, and self-referential. The chief host's blog translated somewhat idiosyncratically by google, gives you another perspective [note: not included in the spirit of "LOL Engrish"]. This insider's account of a hostess club, written by a Duke University sociologist, is a lot more predictable and straightforward.
posted by Phred182 on Jul 28, 2007 - 24 comments

Why straights shouldn't marry. "Phil and Pam both loved to eat Twinkies and Cup Cakes as children. On their first date, Phil ended a day of golf with a bottle of champagne and Cup Cakes to munch on as they watched the sun set over the Hudson." (via Holy Shitake.)
posted by adrober on Sep 25, 2004 - 44 comments

Happy 71st Birthday, Twinkies! Let's all just stop flinging doo-doo and bangin' the baloney for a moment and enjoy a true American original -- Twinkies-- which were invented 71 years ago. I'll bet the very first package still hasn't reached its freshness expiration date.
posted by briank on Apr 6, 2001 - 27 comments

Internet snacks have been here for a while. It's when reality starts to look a little too much like parody when I get scared. At least they have their demographic pegged.
posted by plinth on Mar 14, 2000 - 1 comment