William Holden was an “A List” movie star in the mid-20th century. He appeared in 75 films, many of them good, a few even great. At his best his acting was engaging and affecting. His work in the classic Sunset Boulevard is sometimes shuttled aside because Gloria Swanson’s mesmerizing Norma Desmond character is impossible to ignore. Swanson may steal the scenes, but Holden holds the story together. During his career he was nominated for three Best Actor Oscars and won for Stalag 17. His movie legacy is secure. Yet whenever I think of Bill Holden the absolute first thought is how he died. He was drunk and alone when he slipped on a rug and smashed his forehead into a side table. It was a stupid way to go, but it had a certain memorable flair. If he survived (more…)
Posts Tagged ‘technology’
knocking the virtual right out of “virtual reality”
Posted: July 14, 2016 in Observations and CommentaryTags: life, Pokemon, Pokemon GO, society, Sunset Boulevard, technology, virtual reality, William Holden
everything new gets old fast
Posted: April 27, 2013 in Observations and CommentaryTags: age, information, life, new, old, society, sorta humor, T2, technology
Everything new gets old fast. Is this a product of age or the age we live in? Perhaps the constant influx of new and amazing things has dulled our appreciation for their inherent awesomeness. Or maybe our attention spans are just stunted by the slow deterioration of brain cells. Whatever the reason the incessant phenomenon which starts with a bang and quickly ends with a shrug is (more…)
phoning it in
Posted: September 13, 2012 in Humorous Bits, Observations and CommentaryTags: communication, conversation, future, humor, humour, iPhone, life, phones, progress, smart phones, society, technology, telephones
Smart phones. Just the name tells us we’re dealing with something designed to dispel any antiquated notions we may have about telephones and their original purpose. Had we been told 20 years ago that such a lightweight, rectangular chunk of technology could do the things smart phones routinely do many of us would have scoffed, imagining a Jetsons-like future which (more…)
the paralyzing fear of rabid dogs
Posted: April 8, 2012 in ArtsTags: analog, cassettes, compilation tapes, digital, High Fidelity, music, Nick Hornby, tapes, technology
So I have this case brimming with old compilation cassettes, all recorded between 1981 and 1998. The case holds 120 tapes and is nearly full. Creating compilation tapes was an essential part of being a music lover in the pre-digital age. For many of us this was not a casual activity. It required (more…)
hey you, I got off of your cloud
Posted: December 15, 2011 in Observations and CommentaryTags: cloud, cloud computing, humor, iPod, life, music, revolution, technology
All buzz centers on “the cloud.” You no longer need to download songs or movies or books to your gizmo of choice. You no longer need to worry about computer storage for your photos and personal files. Those productivity applications you use, you don’t need to run them from your PC. Everything can be forever accessed, run and stored in and from “the cloud.”
I’m sure this is a gross oversimplification, but my understanding of “the cloud” is all your data – from movies to songs to Word files to photos to (more…)
have you heard?
Posted: August 26, 2011 in Observations and CommentaryTags: have you heard, internet, phrases, random, technology
The interwebs, man they fill our little minds like tithers fill the coffers. They expand our lives in so many ways it would be futile to try to count ‘em. Just think of all the information floating around in the netherworld waiting to be snatched by our dancing fingertips, much like a wallflower sits glued to a rickety wooden chair silently waiting for a dance. Certainly a lot of stuff bouncing about out there reveals new depths of (more…)
adjusting to a brave new world
Posted: June 27, 2011 in Humorous BitsTags: apps, hip, iPhone, modern, Pippa, random, smartphone, technology, vindaloo chicken
This past weekend I finally took the plunge into the world of multi-functional handheld devices. No, I didn’t get a pen that doubles as a laser pointer. Nor did I purchase a plastic egg containing the wildly versatile Silly Putty. (It stretches! It bounces! It copies ink off newspapers!) As much fun as those things are, I ventured in a different direction, plunging headfirst into 2011 with an iPhone4. What an amazing device! Let me tell you, there’s nothing like (more…)
my television mocks me
Posted: June 10, 2011 in Humorous BitsTags: ghosts in the machine, humor, obsolete, random, technology, television
Our television (named Philip after his manufacturer daddy) is possessed which, while weird, is far better than repossessed. Repossessed would be downright tragic – and totally without merit since that sucker was completely paid for before leaving the store. As our accountant friends would say, “Philip is in the black.”
In the black. They don’t know how right they are.
If Philip is on for a certain amount of time – and that length of time is a subject of debate among his primary viewers – he will suddenly turn off. *Poof!* Silence and a black screen followed by a mad scramble to find the correct remote and get him flickering again, a scene not unlike one you’d witness at the Running of the Bulls.
We don’t know why Philip decides to (more…)
Trask Avenue 
lost
Posted: June 28, 2017 in Observations and Commentary, TrasklandTags: adventure, America, car, Deliverance, drive, lost, Oklahoma, technology, Texas, Traskland
Many years ago, I was traveling from Dallas, Texas to Norman, Oklahoma. It was the familiar interstate route, a straight shot north. It was also dull and repetitive, so I decided to hop onto the local roads and find my way across the state border at a new unknown spot, a pioneer in a Plymouth Fury. The Texas blacktop led me through small cow towns where experience told me my New Jersey accent would not be an asset. I double-checked my fuel gauge to ensure I could make it into Oklahoma without (more…)