With July coming to a close, I was reminded through a video posting by fox11online internet producer Scott Hurley that this is National Ice Cream Month. I had unknowingly been celebrating Ronald Reagan's now 25 year-old declaration by eating a half-gallon of Blue Moon ice cream by myself over the past three days. If you've never tasted Blue Moon you have yet to fully understand what it means to be alive. However, no one I've ever met describes the flavor in the same way.
I was just a little kid, probably around 5 or 6 years-old, the first time I tried the colorful ice cream. We had stopped at a Hansen's Dairy in West De Pere, and I was sitting on top of the counter. As a kid, that color definitely pops out at you. I asked what it was and the girl scooping ice cream said people described it lots of different ways, like coconut or pineapple. That sounded a little weird to me, so I had to try a little on one of those sampler spoons. All I remember is that it was good, and from then on, Blue Moon was always a top pick at the Ice Cream Parlor.
The mystery surrounding Blue Moon is pretty intriguing. The Chicago Tribune even did an article on the flavor in 2007 calling it a "cold case" (laugh out loud, good one). One thing is certain, Blue Moon is most popular in the Upper Midwest. That's about the only place you can get a scoop without too much trouble. You'll find posts all over the internet from people who've moved away wondering where they can find it. There are some discrepancies concerning where the flavor originated. The most likely story is that a flavor chemist named Bill "Doc" Sidon came up with Blue Moon sometime in the 1950s. However, the flavor shows up in newspaper articles around the country as far back as the early 1930s. Whether it's the same flavor or an early version of what people enjoy today, we'll probably never know.
So the flavor of Blue Moon remains a mystery. Some people just call it fruity, others say it's got a cotton candy or marshmallow flavor, some even say it tastes like licorice. One of the most popular ways to describe the ice cream is that it tastes like Froot Loops or Fruity Pebbles. If you read the ingredients on a package of Blue Moon ice cream, it will simply say artificial flavors, and that makes sense. Think about when you eat a bowl of Froot Loops and you have that nasty purple-green milk left over. It's a combination of all those fruity flavors in the cereal. Does that taste like Blue Moon ice cream? I'm not sure, but if anyone has a box of Froot Loops and a carton of Blue Moon at home right now try it and let me know.
I've been thinking about conducing my own investigation into Blue Moon. However, I have a feeling the Chicago Mob may be tied in with the secret somehow and I'm a little scared. The story would make a great documentary film, so if you're willing to invest in this idea please contact me.
There's one other thing I discovered about Blue Moon ice cream this week. If you eat a quart in one sitting -- it turns your poop green. So does black licorice so maybe there's something to that theory!
To close, here's my favorite Rat Pack member Dean Martin, drunk as usual, singing about his love affair with Blue Moon ice cream. Dean has a little trouble getting through the lyrics, and for some reason he's subtitled in a foreign language, and realizes it. When he woke up and vomited the next morning I wonder if his puke was blue? And if so, could he remember why?
Due to the overwhelming response from my half-dozen readers, here's a follow up to the Favre movie casting. Thanks to some of you for some great suggestions. If there are any investors out there with Hollywood connections, please contact me. I truly believe in this project. I'm pitching it to ESPN next week and if I have some cash behind it, that would be sweeeeeet!
First I have to start off with a correction. I know I was just being stupid when I said a WALRUS should play Holmgren. Holly Krause had a much more realistic idea, and suggested the Cowardly Lion from the Wizard of Oz. I threw out some other names and got some pretty good responses. Justus Cleveland suggests comedy-great Tim Conway to play Favre's agent, Bus Cook. My buddy Zak Bruss must have been reading my mind when I asked who should play Majik-Man Don Majkowski. Matthew McConaughey was born to play #7. Speaking of #7, how about Aaron Eckhart playing the QB who crushed the Packers repeat dreams at the Super Bowl? Eckhart's got that John Elway chin for sure! Of course the Minister of Defense will have to be in the movie. Maybe he'll even have his own flick someday. I'm thinking Michael Clark Duncan for Reggie White, although I had to photo-shop some hair on him. Finally, I'll wrap this crap up with two choices for the future of the Green Bay Packers. And you can find both of them working at Dunder Mifflin. Ryan might be a little closer looks-wise. But last year when Aaron Rodgers had to answer questions about Brett, he usually looked at the camera with a Jim smirk and a shrug. Then again, maybe I'm moving too fast here. Maybe it ain't over yet. Who knows? Quarterbacks go down, or stink it up, and by mid-season teams are looking for someone who can throw. Maybe Brett will feel the itch yet again. I'll have to keep that in mind for my fantasy team. Either way, the ending Favre left me with kind of sucks. Hopefully something else happens that gives the script some closure. And since it's Brett, I know I can count on plenty of tears. THE ANGRY PROPHET
Being unemployed can have its benefits. Since I was just sitting around at my computer job searching, listening to Pandora, watching viral videos and whatever...I found out very quickly that my once childhood-hero who I now loathe has decided to stay retired this time. Or at least we all hope so. I could go on and on complaining about Favre and how this is a relief, and how maybe now we can all forget about it...but I won't do that. Instead I realized that if this really is the end to Favre's football career, I can finally start writing that screenplay. Favre: From the Bayou to the Bay of Green to the Jets and almost to the Vikings. Ok it's a working title.
What's even more fun is casting the actors I want to play in the movie about the greatest most indecisive QB of all time.
Another blogger joked about Ethan Hawke playing #4 and I think that's a pretty good pick.
Not only is Ethan a great actor but he can still play young-favre as well as crotchety old-man-favre, and even strung out on Vicodine Favre. For Favre's wife Deanna we have to go with someone classy who can really show a lot of emotion. My pick...Jennifer Connelly. However, if Nancy Pelosi were a few years younger and into acting she'd also do well. The most influential person in Brett's life had to be his dad Irv. Irv was a tough one, I wanted to cast someone who could really connect to that hardened blue-collar angry type of character. So Irving Favre will be played by the incorrigible Tom Sizemore. Two of Favre's best-buds in his glory-years with the Packers were Tight-End Mark Chmura and Center Frank Winters. For Chmura Dean Cain was an obvious choice. Both Chmura and Cain have a Superman connection, both love to charm the ladies, young and old. Or is Dean Cain gay I forget? I had to pick just the right guy for Frank Winters. He's obviously going to be the comic-relief in this film. That's why despite his youth, I chose up and coming comic actor Jonah Hill to play Frankie-Bag-o-Donuts. I can totally here Jonah making wisecracks as he bends over and Ethan Hawk puts the back of his hand up against his taint. So what about the guys at the center of last year's Favre Controversy. The head-coach and GM who took all the crap from fans. Well General Manager Ted Thompson wasn't too hard. I called up my good friend and comedian Steve Martin who jumped at the chance to play the deadpan football businessman. Steve thinks it will be the role that gets him his first Oscar nomination. It's about time Steve! For Packers coach Mike McCarthy we may have to pull off a miracle. I really want Elvis Pressley, but I'm not completely certain he's available. The verdict is still out, but if Bubba Ho-Tep is an accurate historical film then I should be able to find the King somewhere. What about other influential coaches from Favre's past. Steve "Mooch" Mariucci was Favre's mentor in Green Bay. Mooch is a dead-ringer for Kurt Russel if you ask me. Of course we can't tell Brett Favre's story without the head-coach who shaped him into the quarterback who took the Packers back to the Super Bowl. I was in talks with Wilferd Brimley, but he had a prior commitment, and is a little too old anyway. Instead I found a very talented WALRUS to play Holmgren. Every great athlete needs a rival. For Brett Favre, one of his biggest on the field was Warren Sapp. Who can forget the confrontations those two had. But Warren also has a goofy side, that's why I chose The Miller High Life Guy for his role. I think this film will also need a sports journalist character to help tell the story and provide exposition by filling in gaps and stuff. The sports anchor I know best is Drew Smith from FOX 11. As luck would have it, Drew's little brother Eric Artell is an accomplished actor. You remember the Pepsi can that fell in love with the hot-dog? (that's Eric) I'm not really sure who changed his last name Drew or Eric, maybe both. Drew's co-host from Inside the Huddle and Favre's favorite target for much of his career will play himself. Come on, Donald Driver was made for acting! Haven't you seen those commercials? "The smile is everythang" --ding~! That's what I have so far. There's still a lot of roles yet to be cast. So leave a comment and tell me who you think could play other people in Favre's life. For instance...Agent Bus Cook is still up for grabs.
This Thursday, President Obama will take on the race issue in America, while trying to save a little face himself. The President found himself in the center of what became the most high-profile racially tense confrontation we've seen in awhile. Now he's hoping to bury the hatchet over a cold one.
We've heard this story plenty of times before. White cops and black dudes who can't "get along." But this time, it also involved an African American Harvard professor who was arrested for disorderly conduct after a woman called about what she thought was a break-in at the professor's home. Sgt. James Crowley arrested Henry Louis Gates last week saying Gates was being belligerent during the investigation of the possible break-in. Gates accused Crowley of racial profiling, called him a "rogue cop," and demanded an apology. Crowley says he arrested Gates because he didn't like being called a racist, and claims Gates made some comments about the officer's mother. All of us would probably agree that being accused of breaking into your own home would be annoying and probably piss you off, no matter who you are. But you also don't yell at a cop even if you are in your own home. And to make Yo-Mama cracks at a cop...probably not a good idea! Of course, the whole thing went "big-time" when Obama put his two-cents in and said the Cambridge Police Department "acted stupidly." However, as the facts started to come out, and charges against Gates were actually dropped, it seems that maybe the officer isn't such a racist. Apparently, Crowley was chosen by a black police commissioner to teach recruits about avoiding racial profiling. A lot of other people in the department back him up, but cops also tend to do that sort of thing for each other.
The President has admitted Professor Gates is a personal friend. Obama also spoke with Crowley on the phone and has since called the sergeant "an outstanding police officer." While he hasn't backed down from his original stance, President Obama still thinks both men overreacted, and proposed the two come to the White house to talk about it over a beer. According to Reuters, the beer orders are already in; Crowley is having a Belgian Blue Moon white ale (perfect). Gates will probably have a Red Stripe (yah mon, also perfect). The President, he's sticking to traditional domestic and diplomatic Budweiser (once again perfect, but also pretty weak Barack). All jokes aside, if the whole "beer-talk" thing works out, maybe we should try it for even bigger problems.
What if beer could bring peace to the Middle East? Maybe the Shiite and Sunni leaders should sit down in Iraq and toss back a few! Does anyone know what kind of beer Kim Jong Il likes? That could get those nuclear talks going again. The Cold War could have been over a lot sooner if Americans and Soviets traded samples of their favorite micro-brews.
Then again, having a beer can start out good, but end up messy. Being from Wisconsin, I find it's pretty hard to have just one beer. But a few too many, and there could be an all-out brawl on the White House lawn. But if that does happen, after the guys are done fighting they'll probably hug-it-out and have a good laugh. (Bro, you're my bro, bro!)
So I say YES, bring on beer diplomacy. Let's have Miller Time at the G8 summit. Let's live the High Life in Darfur. Great taste, less filibuster.
The story of the day? If you haven't heard about it yet you probably haven't been online, listened to the radio, or watched any TV. On the same day Michael Vick learns he could be back on the football field this season to rebuild a career ruined by a dog-fighting ring, a story breaks out of Connecticut about a massive canary fighting ring.
Across the country, news producers everywhere are stacking their rundowns with stories of Michael Vick next to the Connecticut Canary Fighting Tragedy! Meantime, Michael Vick is debating whether to return to football or take a shot at managing a new sport -- one with blood, feathers and birdseed! I guess it depends on what his true love is; football or domesticated animal bloodsports. Can't you just see the trainers riling up their birds by sticking fingers in the cages? I think it's great that there are sweaty men gathered in basements throwing down cash on tiny little birds pecking away at each other.
I never really like canaries. My little brother begged for a pet bird. He wrote reports about how he would take care of it, what he would name it blah blah blah. I wanted a pet rabbit, but I never got one, so yeah I was kind of bitter. Ok, I'm still a little bitter. He named it Binky and all it ever did was sit by the mirror in it's cage and occasionally scuttle over to the other side of his perch to eat or drink. Binky did not like me, and I did not like Binky. If I knew about canary fighting rings back then I might have sold him into slavery.
Thankfully, Binky died when I was out of the country. It was a good alibi, which made it pretty hard for my brother to pin the death on me (even though he still tried).
If you haven't seen any of the reports on the Connecticut Canary Fighting Tragedy! Check it out here. My favorite line is when the reporters says "Two canaries enter and one canary leaves!" And of course the little old lady who was so surprised there was a horrible canary fighting ring in their "quiet neighborhood." Seriously, no one heard the chirping of 100 canaries? I can't even imagine. Binky was bad enough.
Something stabbed me in the foot this morning as I stumbled through the living room barefoot and in my boxers, holding a coffe-filled mug with the logo of my former employer. I lifted my hoof , and saw a reddish brown pine needle sticking half-way out of the arch. I stared at it for a moment thinking about how long it must have been hiding there in our cheap berber carpet. Then I plucked it out of my foot and flicked it in the garbage. It really was like a little Christmas in July. But more like the ghost of Christmas past.
Every year millions of Americans put up Christmas trees. And every year, most of those trees are either tossed to the curb. The ones that aren't picked up by city workers, are saved for a much more glorious but fiery death. Another sort of "Christmas in July." One where families light their old trees ablaze in summer bonfire, wrinkled popcorn strings and unwanted ornaments still hanging in the dry prickly branches. Christmas goes up in smoke and flames and people roast wieners on the hot coals.
Maybe, this little pine needle was some sort of survivor. Maybe it wanted revenge for taking away all his pine needle buddies, after an ornament of Snoopy with a wreath on his nose knocked the little guy from his home on Branch # 23, Twig #7. Maybe he'd been lying in wait for my bare-feet for months. Letting himself grow harder and sharper, until the last bit of piney scent was gone, and all that was left was hardened bitter needle bent on vengance!
But then again, maybe it was sent as a friendly but kind of painful reminder that we really SHOULD keep the spirit of Christmas with us all year round. Maybe it was sent by God to tell me that I need to count my blessings, spend time with my family, give generously and enjoy life -- just like we do every Christmas season.
Or maybe the needle left the tree on his own accord because he's a Jewish pine needle, and was sick of all the other needles and their Christmas bull-crap.
Whatever the case, it got me thinking about Christmas in July. I love the holidays, however you celebrate, and feel sorry for anyone who doesn't feel the same. So enjoy a memory from holidays from my childhood. Leave it to Sesame Street to help bring it home. Make sure you watch the end of this clip.
Judd Apatow is the biggest thing to come along for comedy in film this decade. The question is, will he fade off into the comedic sunset like the Farrely Brothers or the Zuckers? Those comedy giants started off with a bang, but later became old-hat for audiences and pooted out. So is Apatow more than just a toilet-bowl comedy genius? Can he consistently connect to human emotion while making us laugh until we choke on over-priced popcorn? It seems that Apatow's latest project may be the answer. Little Judd first became seriously interested in comedy when his mother got a job at a comedy club when he was a kid. Eventually, his enthusiasm for stand-up led him to learn all that he could about the art-form. Who better to learn from than the stand-ups he admired. That's why, in high school, Apatow started his own talk radio show where he frequently interviewed now legendary comics and comedy writers like Jerry Seinfeld, Jay Leno, Harold Ramis and Paul Reiser. In fact, Apatow recently told CNN that the stand-up comic he most admires is Reiser (Adam Sandler said the same thing). Later in life, Apatow pursued a career in stand-up, but realized he'd never be quite what his idols were on stage with a mic. Thankfully for us, Apatow stayed in showbiz and became a successful Producer/Director in TV and film.
The new comedy/drama Funny People is partially Apatow's take on the lives of the people who grab a mic and try to make us laugh. It's only his third film as Director, but it seems like we've seen much more from Apatow. While 40 Year-Old Virgin and Knocked-Up were his first two babies, he also played a part, as writer producer or both, in movies like Super Bad, Pineapple Express, Walk Hard, Forgetting Sarah MarshallETC. Before that he wrote for TV with Gary Shandling and Ben Stiller, and also created two of his own series Freaks and Geeks and Undeclared. Those shows are now cult favorites, and his crew of young actors like Seth Rogen, Jason Segel and James Franco are now pretty big stars. But it was his life-experience before that which inspired Funny People.
In an interview on the website for the movie, Apatow explains that he worked for a number of the comics he respected so much, writing jokes and traveling from club to club. Apatow also says the real-life comics were much nicer-people than the George Simmons character played by Adam Sandler. You get a look at some of these comics in behind the scenes footage on a clip in the restricted area of the Funny People website. You'll also hear some clips from Apatow's high school radio show.
Apatow credits much of his success in comedy to hanging out with stand-up legends, asking them questions and learning about the craft. I completely respect the road Apatow took to get where he is today. I consider myself somewhat of a "student of comedy." I decided at a pretty young age that becoming a stand-up was not for me. There was this book at the library that persuaded me to stay away from the stage. It was an over-sized book filled with black and white photographs and short essays on comedians like Sam Kinnison, Robert Klein, and Robin Williams. I saw the painstaking process a comedian has to go through to polish an act. I also saw how many comedians had such low self esteem, and emotional issues. It seemed to be a lonely life that could even get monotonous at times.
While something about the lifestyle turned me off, it gave me a deep respect for people who commit themselves to making others laugh. I was also turned off by the idea of going to school 4 extra years to become a Veterenarian. So I majored in Communications and today I'm sitting here unemployed and blogging.
But I digress...
It looks like Apatow's third film will be his best yet. He's hooked up with his old roommate Adam Sandler. Who in my opinion is probably the biggest comedic star for Generation Y-ers. Sandler has proven before he can be himself and still be an impressive dramatic actor. Apatow understands that your best writing comes from what you know. Apatow knows comedy, he knows comedians, and he knows how to make movies about experiences, of which just about everyone can relate. If he can keep digging and find those experiences, Judd Apatow could one-day be mentioned next to directors like Billy Wilder, Howard Hawks and Woody Allen. Wait, I just did mention him with those people. But who cares?
The Angry Prophet
One more thing -- If you haven't seen the clips of Raaaaaaandy yet, make sure you click on the link.
Space travel has always been something that's interested me. Not so much the sci-fi fantasy type stuff as much as the actual exploration. What is really out there? How far can we go? What are we going to find? It's a pretty exciting adventure, and it's even more exciting to think that in our lifetime, a trip to outer space could become reality for everyday people. Ok, maybe not everyday people, maybe people with some extra cash to blow and a few vacation days are more likely to fly to the moon. But right now you can take a tour of the moon's surface thanks to Google. Plus, astronauts Buzz Aldrin and Jack Schmitt can even be your virtual tour guides.
It's all part of the excitement surrounding the 40th Anniversary of man's first walk on the moon. Some call it mankind's greatest achievement, others say it was all a big fake. I love a good conspiracy theory. But Buzz Aldrin is just as committed to that moon-walk as the apostles were committed to Jesus Christ. So I believe him. Plus he can rap like a mo-fo -- check this out if you haven't seen it yet The Rocket Experience.
Google Earth 5.0 takes you off the planet to our good buddy the moon. That's where we all might have to move to when Al Gore's prophecies come true. So it is cool that we can check out the moon from our i-phones and laptops, right? Or is Google sinking it's claws a little deeper into our lives. When Microsoft released it's search engine Bing, I used Google to look it up. I bet a lot of other people did the same thing. Google has become such a huge part of society, I think many would agree it's a little scary. Some feel our privacy is being infringed on in the name of marketing. But nobody really seems to care enough to want to put a stop to it, including me. When it becomes "The Moon: brought to you by Google," then maybe I'll be worried. But Google is not the first one in the game, there are dozens of sites that will sell off property on the moon, and some are actually credible.
I really don't know what the moon will bring us in the future. But there's this giant sphere out their floating around. Besides making ghost stories creepier, it's really not doing much. Why doesn't someone sell advertising space on the moon? I'm thinking use it as one GIANT digital billboard. Now that's a pretty good global market-share. If you are investor please contact me. TheAngry Prophet
Blogging. It rhymes with jogging, but it's much less aerobic. I'm still trying to figure out if it's the ultimate hybrid act of freedom of speech and freedom of the press --Or if it's just the e-soapbox or maybe even online vandalism. That kind of feels like facebook status update and pointless twitters.
It's like taking the Jack Wuz Here etched into playground equipment, and turning it up a notch. You've seen the bathroom stalls where frequent dumpers had a conversation in writing on the walls, right? Is that what we're doing all day long, or are we actually networking and building relationships?
I remember when people started doing more and more things on the Internet. There were predictions that pretty soon we'd never need to interact with humans again because we'd get everything we needed from our computers. But in the end the world wide web became our way to socialize. Popularity contests can now have an actual score as we lust for more friends, followers, and subscribers. Do we just want to be loved? Do we just want our voices heard? Do we really have anything new to say? Am I saying anything new right now? Probably not. That's depressing.
Either way, it seems to be human nature to look for attention, or prove we existed at one point in time. Now we let everyone know we were here, and what we're doing, or what's on our minds. What surprises us most is that sometimes people actually care, or at least seem to care.
We've all got something clever to say, and if you've got the right technology, you can say it whenever that interesting thought pops into your head. I admit. It's pretty cliche of me to write my first blog for this page about blogging and social networking. I'd even agree with you if I said it's unoriginal.
But I just started this thing and I want to see what it looks like when I make a new post. You know I've got to mess with the font and the colors and stuff so it matches my on-line personality and such.
Look on the bright-side, at least I didn't complain a lot and bash celebrities or politicians.
