This movie looks fantastic.  I hope it lives up to comic book movies that have appeared this year, i.e. Iron Man and The Dark Knight.  It already looks to blow the doors off all the X-Men movies.

As you may well know, I’m a huge movie fan and I’m becoming an even bigger movie marketing fan after all The Dark Knight viral shiz happening these days.  Need an excellent example?  IM me to see my wicked-cool Dark Knight IM message.

Short tv spots like the one above are perfect in my opinion.  I just hope that the actual fans of this movie know who James Lipton is and what he does for a living…

I went to my wife’s hometown of Warren, PA over the weekend to partake in some of the fourth of July festivities that happen there every year.  These few days of summer prove to be those of legend in this community, providing two days of parading, fireworks and most importantly, planning ahead.

The first big event is the Warren Fourth of July Parade.  It’s probably the most interesting three hours you’ll spend sitting on a street’s curb.  I’ve never seen so many fire trucks in one place - Warren and it’s surrounding community is REALLY prepared for disaster.  The peoplewatching is better than the parade itself.  This one event shakes out all the “interesting” people from their homes who wouldn’t otherwise be seen in public on a sunny day. 

Interesting people included:
1. Ferret lady - she wouldn’t be seen on the 4th without her pet ferret on her shoulder.
2. Firecracker boy - he felt it necessary to light firecrackers at every parader passing by.
3. Red wagon dog-selling guy - he was selling his prized black lab puppy from his red wagon.  When asked if we’d buy his only best friend he replied, “Nah, I got twenty of ‘em at home!”
4. Attention-seeker dude - he loved to walk up and down the street numerous times, shirt half-off, sometimes carrying a pizza box, sometimes not.
5. Old man candy thief - he enjoyed walking between the parade participants and the lines of kids at the curb, picking off candy as it was thrown from vehicles.

As you can read above, the people attending the parade REALLY WERE more fun than watching the parade.  Here are some photos from that lovely day:

As with the parade, much preparation goes into watching the fireworks.  By 11:00am, vehicles are parked all along Route 6 (a four-lane highway in these parts) including the cloverleaf exit and entry ramps.  Why park your car there so early?  So you can leave easily when the show is over of course.

I’m a GIGANTIC James Bond fan.  I’ve seen all the movies, can quote lines from memory and randomly talk like Sean Connery sometimes.  The next Bond film, Quantum of Solace, premieres in early November.  (That ought to give me enough time to watch The Dark Knight film 50 times)

Watch the Trailer Here

My buddy Wyatt from high school has the sole credit of turning me on to Bond and his crazy world.  During study halls we’d watch Sean Connery in Thunderball and Dr. No.  He’s the guy that knows more about James Bond than anyone, a teacher of Bond-isms to all. 

This ought to be a great movie year.  The Dark Knight, Hancock, Wall-E (yes, Wall-E) Iron Man and now a new Bond film?  Awesome. 

I’m still trying to figure out what Quantum of Solace actually means and how it would pertain to a film.  In Tomorrow Never Dies - the global news agency, Tomorrow, sorta did die.  Goldeneye was the name of a super-secret death ray from space, which was destroyed.  Octopussy - I’ll leave that one alone.  Goldfinger - he dies.  When I figure out what this new title means I’ll let you know.  In any case from the :60 of trailer I’ve seen it ought to be as good as the last one!

I’ve been through some pretty hectic weeks in my day but this one seemed to be right at the top. 

1. George Carlin passed away
2. Craziness at work
3. My brother came home from VA
4. Played golf on a Monday
5. Picked up one of these in Buffalo with my dad.
6. Awoke to this hovering near my house this morning (Awesome).
7. Watched XXX: State of the Union (Not so great, but it happened).
8. Talked to a great friend of mine from RIT that I’ve not seen since 2004.
9. Talked to my buddy at Darien Lake just in time to learn that Orange County Choppers is building them a custom motorcycle.  Then watched American Chopper on Thursday night to watch the bike be built (Double Awesome).

Those are only nine things I can remember from the past couple days.  I interned at Darien Lake when Six Flags owned it so that was the highlight of my week probably.  Also, it’s not everyday you see a Korean War-era helicopter flying around your neighborhood when you awake.  The Millcreek Mall was having some pretty heavy A/C units airlifted to their rooftop as part of their renovation.  What a fantastic way to start out the day for an aircraft buff like myself.  (Did I just call myself buff?  Yeah I did.)

Pretty good blog entry this time right?  Ha! Next time I’ll leave the wine until after the post.  Enjoy your week.

Battlestar Galactica Video

I was looking at some great Dark Knight viral marketing today and I thought I’d share.  If you visit http://www.ibelieveinharveydent.com you’ll see some great political-themed promotion (event yard signs to post on your lawn).

Thanks to my co-worker Andrew, visit http://ibelieveinharveydenttoo.com/, select all the text on the page, copy it, paste it into Word, then find and replace all the text with a space and see what it says.

One other site built for the Dark Knight movie is: http://whysoserious.com/itsallpartoftheplan/.  If I lived in any of the metro areas I’d be out and about with a bunch of weirdo clown fans probably.  In any case, it’s some really really cool stuff - way more out there than any regular movie promotion. 

Have you ever wondered, “Where’s Grimace?”

I don’t know where he is right now but I can tell you where he has been…

At the Cherry Blossom Festival:

At the Lincoln Memorial:

At CBGB’s in NYC:

At the White House:

Where do you think he’ll pop up next?  Stay tuned for another ridiculously-fun time as we spot Grimace across the globe.
Thanks Sarah

The National Basketball Development League is coming to Erie in November, 2008.  Erie will serve as the farm team for the Cleveland Cavaliers, grooming players to be injected directly into the NBA.  Tullio Arena is going to be one really busy place during that time.  The NBDL team will have to compete with the Otters and River Rats for floor space.  This also means more sporting choices for Erie residents, something I’m particularly pleased about.  The league is currently comprised of about 16 teams and and a 50-game season.

 I’ve been a basketball fan for a very long time.  I followed the Knicks when Ewing and Starks played against Hakeem Olaijuwon(sp?) in the Finals.  Now look at the Knicks…oye.  Maybe I could try out for this new team and learn to dunk?  Oh wait, I can’t jump very high.

I’ll be more likely to go see some quality basketball in downtown Erie - I think there’s a different level of competition that happens during the game when you compare it to indoor football or hockey.  Basketball seems a lot faster, fans can sit right on the court (typically) and you can support or taunt players more easily with the close proximity to the game.  More points, more action, more fans and admissions…hopefully?

The team name hasn’t been decided upon yet - I’m sure it’s a fairly long and drawn-out process of choosing a team name.  No doubt the process was involving for the Otters, Seawolves and River Rats!  I’m still trying to figure out how River Rats was the winner despite the team’s transfer.  Maybe we could be the Erie Tropics!

In any case I’ll enjoy seeing some quality basketball downtown!

Go to Europe.  Today I saw the price of 87 unleaded was $3.31 at the Country Fair around the corner.  Imagine paying double for that, because that’s what people in Europe have to pay. 

I know this article is from a while ago but it still paints a pretty decent picture for you.  Perhaps you’d like to move to Venezuela where gasoline is a mere $0.12!  I could fill my tank for $1.44!!  But do you really want to live in Caracas?

I last filled my gas tank for $35.00, my wife recently spent $39.00.  We just learned to cut back a little in other areas - you’ve heard this story before.  We cut out a couple unnecessary things like going out to dinner or renting movies at Blockbuster (Have you used a Redbox?  Fantastic!)

On the opposite side of the economic coin, Europe pays through the nose for fuel because of the massive amounts of taxes levied on fuel.  Many Europeans drive around town via motorbike, compact cars or public transportation. 

Here in Erie, public transit is seldom looked upon as a respectable means of travel.  There’s an odd stigma about riding the EMTA bus in Erie versus riding the Metro in D.C., or the T in Boston.  During the day, I can easily catch the EMTA Bayliner Trolley and hitch a ride to the Bayfront or Marketplace Grill. 

I won’t be relinquishing the use of my car though, that’s for sure.  I love driving too much.  Maybe it’s time for a 75mpg motorcycle??