The first ad I saw for Valentine’s Day opened with Topher Grace and I went “Oh yay!! He’s in a movie!!” Then the rest revealed a cast of people I do not want to see in a movie (Kutcher, Alba, Biel, Roberts, gack).
Every once in awhile he pops up and I ask the above question. He’s cute, talented, charming and has great comedic timing. He did a good “asshole Topher Grace” in the Oceans movies, made a great pining-best-friend in Win a Date with Tad Hamilton, and got rave reviews for In Good Company. He really perfected his sweet/snark combo on That 70’s Show (a show, BTW that should have ended when Topher left! WHY were they still hanging in the Foreman’s basement without Eric??)
So I went on YouTube to do some research for this post and there are lots of “Topher Grace leaves Crown Night Club/Topher Grace at Villa” etc. etc. so perhaps that’s why he’s not more famous – he’s busy Young Hollywooding it up at cheesy celeb “hotspots”. Well that’s disappointing.
I am trying SO HARD not to get on Twitter. I just know it is a slippery slope. My iPhone already makes it far too easy to check my texts and facebook and emails way too much. I know that all that instant gratification of seeing new stuff all the time would just wreck me. I’d just sit hunched over my phone giggling at Tweets all the day long and lose my job.
But Nathan and Neil and now Craig are making it so. damn. hard.
My mom and I saw this ad the other night and we’re still nursing our jaws from when they hit the floor:
In the past I’ve posted about music I loved being used in commercials, but in many cases – those bands may not own the rights to their own songs, therefore having no control over how they’re used. U2 however, is one of the few bands whose savvy manager Paul McGuinness got them the rights to their entire catalog from the start. That means that Pledge or Burger King or Ford can’t just use U2’s music to sell a product unless the band gives their permission.
(the Apple iPod is a whole other thing – they say they didn’t get paid for it but used it for promotion. I believe them because they don’t lie about stuff, and they don’t need the money.)
What grates me about this particular pairing of NASCAR and U2 is the song choice – Bad?! Are you kidding me? This song is epic and glorious and passionate. Their performance of it at Live Aid in 1985 elevated them from just “some band” to “The Band.” Personally it is an emotional and cathartic moment when they do it in concert. They had stopped the past few times we saw them, and every show there’s a moment my mom leans over and says this is a perfect moment to play Bad.
On 7.24.09 in Dublin when she said it – and then they started playing it – we both burst into tears. I don’t pray, but if I did that song would be the sound of my prayers.
I don’t like my prayers molested by fucking NASCAR.
You can read more about the commercial here and this is a great bit explaining the impact of the Live Aid performance
Killers Babies could be it’s own little Saturday morning cartoon where the boys rock out in daycare and BabyBrandon throws a temper tantrum when BabyDave eats all the feathers off his jacket, while BabyRonnie bashes everything with drumsticks made of legos and BabyMark dreams of being in a better daycare with less annoying Babies.
Don’t ask me why two of the Babies have facial hair, just go with it.
I sent it to Jill and said See? We’re not crazy! but she felt our inclusion of feathers on Gingerbread Brandon Flowers is what pushes us into Restraining Order Territory.
Had I made these my GB Bret would have definately had a hair helmet. I also would have baked a GB Murray so they could have a Band Meeting Baked Goods Style. And that Jemaine looks so much like him it is kinda creeping me out.
Sonny Corinthos got arrested and even though he’ll never actually pay for anything he’s done (least of all ruining General Hospital for me) I cheered all the same
Mal is one of the reasons I know I’m not crazy – you know with the travelling across the ocean to see a concert, the gingerbread rock stars, the stalkathons. Why? Because next week she is getting on a plane and flying solo to Sydney Australia to see The Killers end their Day & Age Tour.
She had a gut feeling that she had to go and she went for it. She worked out her financial situation to make it happen and despite having her planned travel partner decline, she’s going on her own. I am so proud and excited for her! (and not only because she’s bringing me back a tour shirt!)
When you love a band so much that you are willing to re-arrange your academic schedule (like another Victim did for the unfortunately-cancelled-Asia leg), or be responsible about your bills but still make your dreams come true – that’s amazing, that’s inspiring. That’s not crazy that is LOVE. Those boys should be honored by all she’s doing just to be able to see them.
I recently got a copy of Rhythm: The UK’s Best-Selling Drum Magazine from the Awesome Jill. This issue from December features cover boy Larry Mullen, Jr. who gives an interview to the magazine. This is always exciting because Larry doesn’t do a ton of press, and any he does is with the rest of the band. But he occassionally speaks exclusively to drummer magazines being a big supporter of his vocation.
The most exciting thing however, wasn’t even the rare Larry interview but one with My Hero Sam O’Sullivan, Larry’s long term drum tech! As I have detailed before, Sam has a tough job attending to Larry and being in charge of U2’s crew, but he must be good because he’s been with them for over 20 years.
This “Gear Chat” is really charming. Sam clearly is devoted to his job and to his boss as he uses “we” a lot as in …we don’t use any gates on the drums and …we wanted big heavy shells (whatever any of that means!) He’s also very protective of Larry challenging any notions that he endorses specific brands, he never has been, you can check any music magazines for the last 25 years. And this is my favorite – his pride in how few drumsticks Larry goes through in a show: Very rarely do they break, only if there is a hairline split in them which is very, very rare. He doesn’t break sticks.
And how cute is this? He refers to U2 as the four boys!??
Here’s a cool view of Larry’s kit. I totally want Sam to run a “Drum Tech Camp” so I can attend and then go get My Imaginary Job with Ronnie Vannucci.
I watched Young Adam tonight which is a movie where Ewan McGregor does all sorts of terrible things, yet looks hot and intense doing them, and has such innate charm and charisma that even when you’re thinking “God – he’s awful” the other part of your brain is swooning “Ohhhh Ewan!!”
For example: his character Joe, a drifter type who works for a married couple and lives with them on their barge – does the following: seduces the wife, seduces her just widowed sister, seduces his landlord’s wife, and seduces a girl who is the crux of the main mystery. There is a lot of seducing going on and – who can blame these women? He is HOT in this movie and he does this crazy/sexy staredown that made me shy just watching it!
This guy is so good, one of the women strips down and has sex with him under a parked truck! In gravel! So while there’s all the crazy sex stuff there’s also a mystery in which Ewan is basically letting an innocent man take the fall for him. Sure he feels guilty and bad but not that bad as he does nothing concrete to save the man from his fate (fate that, BTW should actually be his.)
When he’s not gettin’ it on or gettin’ away with it – he’s smoking and looking moody. He also looks great covered in coal dust (and getting it sponged off by a guy – hello!), in fishermen’s sweaters and hats, and a tank top. And remember in the mid-90’s when every European movie he was in had him flashing his “family jewels” for the camera? Yeah, there’s that too.
See? He makes a suicide sound sexy! What a bastard.
I’m feeling crappy and stayed home today watching 80’s videos on VH1 Classic. I’m 10 years old and home sick from school all over again.
Then this Michael Jackson video retrospective came on so I muted it and got on the computer but something caught my eye. Have you ever SEEN THIS???
It is like a Who’s Who of WTF!! Ricky Schroeder! Sherman Helmsley! Dan Ackroyd! Brigitte Nielsen! Debbie Gibson! Rosanna Arquette! Weird Al! Suzanne Somers! Lou Diamond Phillips! Steve Guttenberg! Is that Blossom?!?
My mouth was literally hanging open at the utter lunacy of this line-up and sheer awesome cheese factor of it all. I’m not a Michael Jackson fan in the least, but this may be my fave thing he ever did!
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