Follow the Leader: Episode 62: Action Figures!

Martinex1: Are you ready for another round of Follow the Leader? Take it away and spin us onto another new Bronze Age topic!   Cheers!

Chew the Fat: Black Panther on the Silver Screen!

Redartz:  Okay, we've waited long enough, everyone else has been talking about it (worldwide, in fact- the film is making a huge impact globally at the box office, and among the 'talking heads' in the media).  Time  for us to discuss one of the biggest Marvel films yet, the Black Panther!  Spoilers may follow, so be forewarned. My wife and I saw the movie last week, and absolutely loved it. Incredibly visually, and loaded with punch story-wise. The film didn't shy away from addressing some serious political, racial and cultural issues, and (in my opinion) took the Marvel Cinematic Universe to a whole new level. Intelligent, provocative and very entertaining. Oh, and this film, along with last year's "Wonder Woman", really showcases the growing drawing power of heroic women.

Great performances from the cast abound, among them: Chadwick Boseman's starring turn as T'Challa. Letitia Wright as the wonderful Shuri. Michael B. Jordan as Erik Killmonger. Angela Bassett, nobly portraying T'Challa's mother Ramonda. And, certainly, Danai Gurira's mind-blowing performance as General Okoye. 

Chadwick Boseman

Michael B. Jordan

Chadwick Boseman and Letitia Wright

Danae Gurira

 I'll hold most of my impressions for now, to give all of you a chance to pontificate. Have you seen the film; and if so, what did you think? 

Sound and the Fury: Whatever Happened to Novelty Hits?

Redartz:  Recently we've featured several musically-oriented posts; hope you don't mind one more. In this case, we're looking at a small niche in popular music, but one inherently fun: novelty tunes!  

Once upon a time, you could listen to the top forty songs in a given week, and most likely be exposed to at least one laugh-inducing melody. From the fabulous 50's onward through the excellent 80's, novelty hits were fairly common; and at times even topped the pop charts. Some performers were notably linked with the genre- Ray Stevens, The Chipmunks (actually producer Ross Bagdasarian), Weird Al Yankovic and Jim Stafford, for instance. Others were among the ranks of  'one hit wonders' who brought us a smile and disappeared: think Kip Adotta ( "Wet Dream"), Reunion ("Life is a Rock But the Radio Rolled Me"), and Jump 'n' the Saddle ( "Curly Shuffle"). 

Hearing these humorous hits always made the Top 40 Countdown a bit more fun, and certainly made the radio more interesting to listen to. Unfortunately, in more recent years popular music seems to have lost it's sense of humor. I can't remember the last time I heard a new novelty hit on current radio or streaming. Granted, I'm not as well-versed in the latest pop music as I once was, but it would surprise me to hear any such songs today. I'm aware of satires and comedic routines on YouTube and such, but a true 'funny song' in the Top Ten? If only....

What about all of you? Did you get a kick or two out of those 'silly symphonies' and 'merry melodies'? Did you have a favorite novelty hit or performer? Perhaps you know of some more recent examples of novelty music; I'd love to hear about them. Let's get a little silly...and to help get in the mood, here's a few of my favorites from the genre. Enjoy!

Reunion, "Life is a Rock (But the Radio Rolled Me)"

 Jump 'n' the Saddle, "Curly Shuffle"

Dickie Goodman, "Energy Crisis '74"

Ray Stevens, "The Streak"

Chew the Fat: Bronze Age Heartthrobs!

Martinex1: Recently it was mentioned in our comments that some folks while growing up liked Bailey (Jan Smithers) on WKRP in Cincinnati or Blaire (Lisa Whelchel) on The Facts of Life. 

Who were your hearthrobs Back in the Bronze Age?  Was it one of the Heathers, or one of Charlie's Angels? 

How about Ginger or Maryann?  Or for that matter, Betty or Veronica?   Or even Betty or Wilma?

 What about Erin Gray from Buck Rogers in the 21st Century?  Or Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman? 

Who had you saying, "Hubba hubba?"   Who did we miss?  Did you have posters or t-shirts with your favorite star?

And this isn't just for the males of the species, my wife liked Parker Stevenson from The Hardy Boys, but also desperately wanted a silk jacket with Shawn Cassidy emblazoned on the back!  How about Erik Estrada or Leif Garrett?

Who were your favorite stars?  Did you watch series just because of the celebrities involved?  Is this what made Battle of the Network Stars a hit?  All this and more discussion today at BitBA! Cheers!

Follow the Leader: Episode 61: The Best Album Covers!

Martinex1: Follow the Leader!  Get us started on a topic all your own!   First one starts... the rest of us follow.


Martinex1: UPDATE:  It is funny this topic came up because just last week CBR.com (Comic Book Resources) ran their weekly "The Line it is Drawn" feature where artists take suggestions on various topics; and this past week, the suggestion was "favorite album covers meshed with comic books."  Well, two of the works posted were suggested by Back in the Bronze Age... and here they are:


Matt Sandbrook created the Ego cover based on Yes's Fragile.  I think this is just awesome.

 And Nick Perks created the FF cover based on The Strangler's Black and White album.  Isn't that a cool fit for the characters?

Check out CBR.com for fun topics on "The Line it is Drawn" each Friday.  And check out Matt Sandbrook's and Nick Perks' websites as well.  Cheers!

Chew the Fat: Your 'Magic Year" for discovering Pop Culture...

Redartz at 14 (don't laugh too hard)

Redartz:  Greetings, folks. Today's discussion is a result of several recent things I've read, all leading to this central question. Last week Marti had a post asking when you started feeling the onset of 'adulthood', and referring to a general age of 17. Also, I recently read an article from the New York Times postulating about the age in which musical tastes are formed (their assessment: 13 for girls, 14 for boys). Here is a link to that intriguing article:

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/10/opinion/sunday/1 

After reading these articles, I got to thinking about my own experience in 'discovering' popular culture, especially music and comics. And that NY Times article had it pretty close, for me it was between age 13 and 14. It was 1974, and in February of that year I started collecting comics, and got quickly addicted to what would become a lifelong interest. And here's the comic that got me started, as seen on the stands in February of '74:

As for music, it really entered my consciousness about that same time. I started listening regularly to Casey Kasem on American Top 40, often while leafing through a few comics (hence the books and the tunes became intimately associated in my memories). And those first few months of serious listening really drove some favorite songs into my permanent memory banks: among them Gordon Lightfoot's "Sundown", Carole King's "Jazzman", and MFSB's   "T.S.O.P. (The Sound of Philadelphia)". All of which charted in the months right before or during my 14th. birthday. 

This is not to say that my tastes (musical or comics) are locked into that specific time period. My favorite musical era remains, actually, the first half of the 1980's. And in comics, the latter half of the 70's. But the point here is, my 'pop culture awakening' occurred right about the time I was turning 14. Kudos to the NY Times writer for nailing it...

And so, today's question: when did your 'awakening' occur? Our group here covers a wide range of ages, some of us hit our teens in the early 70's, others the late 70's, others the 80's.  But our 'ages of discovery' may be similar. Did the Times call it correctly in your case, or did you start earlier (or later)? What, or who, led you into your interests in comics and music? We'll have our own informal test as to the accuracy of that Times article...

Riding the Retro Metro: Destination Wednesday February 17, 1982!

Redartz:  Hello,fellow temporal travelers!  Time again for another excursion back , back, back aboard the Retro  Metro. Today we revisit the illustrious 80's, specifically Feb. 17, 1982. As always, there is tumult in the world, especially in Poland, where turmoil reigns under the imposition of martial law. Sadly, we read of the death of Jazz genius Thelonius Monk. On the positive note, gas prices seem to be coming down...

While fuel may be dropping, the J. Geils Band is rising to the top of the US Billboard Pop Chart with this week's number one, "Centerfold"

And rounding out the top five:

2.  Daryl Hall and John Oates, "I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)"
3.  Quarterflash, "Harden My Heart" 
4.  Journey, "Open Arms"
5.  The Cars, "Shake it Up"

Enjoying a lot of the current music these days, Hall and Oates are great, as are the Cars. But as is usually the case, many of the most interesting songs lie further down the chart. Among them,the  Rolling Stones, "Waiting on a Friend"- a nice song off their latest album "Tattoo You".  The Police, "Spirits in the  Material World", Go-Go's, "We Got the Beat": love both these songs and both of these groups. So much so, in fact, that a bunch of us from art school just got back from a trip to Cleveland Ohio to see them both in concert . A great time was had, except for the ice storm on the road home, but that's another story. Oh, and another fun tune: Buckner and Garcia, "Pac Man Fever". A tribute to the immense popularity of video games and arcades these days. I admittedly have spent more than a few quarters on that little yellow guy and his ever-pursuing ghosts...

Tops in the UK:  The Jam, "Town Called Malice"

Man, those Go-Go's are dynamite (and although Belinda Carlisle gets a lot of the attention, I rather admire Jane Weidlin). But enough musical musings, what about the action on the small screen today? Let's see...

US Television Schedule:  

 


ABC: The Greatest American Hero, The Fall Guy, Dynasty

I still catch "G A H" from time to time, and occasionally catch Lee Majors as the Fall Guy. Playing a stunt man/bounty hunter, Majors gives us another action-packed show (perhaps he's  helped out by the cybernetics from his previous role as the Six Million Dollar Man).

CBS:  Herbie the Love Bug, WKRP in Cincinnati, Baker's Dozen, Shannon

Another show I'm still enjoying is WKRP. Great cast, and how can you not like a comedy  about a rock radio station? On the other hand, I'm surprised to find a show featuring "Herbie the Love Bug" on prime time. 

 



















NBC:  Real People, The Facts of Life, Love Sidney, Quincy M.E. 

Real People is one of those shows I'll watch if the mood hits, and Quincy is cool- Jack Klugman is always enjoyable. But "Facts of Life" has sort of hooked me. Another show with a pretty good cast, led by the engaging Charlotte Rae as Mrs. Garrett. 

BBC1:  Rolf Harris Cartoon Time, The Wednesday Film: The Last Hunt, Sportsnight, Parkinson

BBC2:  The Water Margin, The Making of Mankind, The Master Game, Chronicle, M*A*S*H, Nancy Astor, Out of Court

Rolf Harris Cartoon Time? Is that the Rolf Harris of "Tie Me Kangaroo Down, Sport" fame? I'd watch that every time...

Oh, hey; it's Wednesday, which means new comic day! While we're here, let's check out the neighborhood spinner rack (or the fine display at the local comic shop, as is becoming more frequently the case:
 

 That Silver Surfer book is a definite must. John Byrne and Tom Palmer on the Surfer? Take my money now. And while you're at it, pass me that Teen Titans issue, Wolfman and Perez are still rocking it. I'm getting that Spectacular Spider-man issue just for the cover, but the book is really solid these days anyway.  And speaking of solid, how about Byrne's fantastic Fantastic Fours? The book hasn't been this good in years. And this week we have a double treat, "Fantastic Four Roast" by Fred Hembeck- a truly comical comic. Can't wait to read that one. Oh, and check out that Hulk issue; whats's with the raccoon?  Kind of an oddly obscure character, bet he'll fade into obscurity...

Although we aren't fading into obscurity, we do have to fade back to the present. Hope we've triggered a few memories for you, and that you'll share your tales of  '82. Until next time, be well and save me a token for the arcade...