let's get it on!

hey, what would a 'planetcool' party be without a little 80's action. ahhh, 'star hits' magazine. look, next to john it says, "...hey star hits, let's get it on..." ahhh, i get it... because of their thumpy 'bang a gong' song. teenage confession: when i was a young teen, i remember looking forward to the first single from john taylor's latest project, and when i heard it was called 'get it on; bang a gong,' i remember feeling oddly embarrassed in my own head because i thought the title 'sounded dumb.' ( teenage frets. ) it also says you can win a phone call from wham! i didn't enter. i'll bet nobody actually won it. like, who'd know? and what is all that frosted blue junk in andy's hair? give up, andy. it's not gonna help. you're not fine. ( ouch! )

jean-lucien rules

here's a sweet eye-treat to dazzle up the 'welcome back planetcool' party. i just realized how many stunning works of art that have piled up since the last time i was on here. jean-lucien just sent me this image today. man, what talent. what an eye for beauty and just plain visual grooviness. it's like my brain is eating some kind of strange ice cream that only jean-lucien has the recipe for. look at the intricacy of those scissor skills! wooo, i wish i could do that. okay, i'm kinda really digging being back in that intergalactic driver's seat. i kinda wanna 'floor it,' and 'do donuts.' mmm, gonna get pulled over.

groovy 'jelica huston

okay, it's been a lonnng damn time since i've been over here. ( yeah, too damn long, i hear ya... ) so all my thousands of followers, be patient with me whilst i get my snarky-ass blog-legs back. so, i promised a dear friend that i'd try to do at least one entry a night. so to welcome you back, i chose this very groovy shot of a young anjelica huston. hey, wild jack nicholson 'hit that.' and he's got good taste. she's the slinkiest! and let's hear it for her 'love to hate her' performance in 'crimes and misdemeanors.' well, i guess you more pity her than hate her. man, being back here makes me realize how much it sucks on Fb that you can't use those ga-roovy italics...!!!

l'air frame

hey, my energy level isn't the highest, but... gonna try to add just one or two if i can. jean-luc sent me this groovy freeze frame earlier today. its a still-frame from an old l'air du temps commercial from the 80's. so cool, the way he caught the image while it was morphing from the girl to perfume bottle... or vice versa. it almost looks like some kind of ghostly dress. and i love the shade of orange he was able to coax out of it. just goes to show that even a clunky old drop-out-ridden vhs tape over 20 years old can yeild visual gems in the hands of the Master, jean-luc.

cult confessions

who doesn't love adrienne barbeau? hey, i know i do... she was sensational in ... in, um... that flick where she showed her cleavage. no really, i probably shouldn't pick on her... i know virtually nothing about her like, personally. but from the looks of this shot, she's got a book out there somewhere. 'there are worse things i could do.' i like the tittle... i-i mean 'title.' i gotta say she gets high marks from me, just based on the cover photograph. that violet lace corslet is divine, and woof...! can she fill it out, or what...? all kidding aside, i'll bet she's had a fascinating ride in show business. 'there are worse things...' is probably a very good read. maybe. dig it.

mmm... pulpy

when listing all my favorite things, 'groovy book covers' is very high up on my list. i think i may have searched for book covers almost more than anything else. there's just something about a cool groovy paperback. (sadly, don't get me started on paperbacks now days... the cost of paper must be skyrocketing, because recently they've become insultingly, sickeningly flimsy... both the covers and the pages... ) but, back to the older groovy ones. hey, it's no secret i've been known to buy books just to obtain the cover art, and never read the content inside. (mmm, how i miss 'Atlas Book Exchange.') so... let's take a look at the book in front of us, shall we? 'His Lesbian Love' by the never-heard-of-him Wayne Wallace. i love the small print that lets you know what you're 'in for.' let's see, it says: '...he was innocent, inexperienced, and ready for his first affair... even if she was a gay call girl...!' mmm, hey how gay can she be? i guess if the price is right, i dunno. i've seen better cover art, but then again, i've also seen a LOT worse. its cheeky, campy, charming. i dig it.

fashion strikes again

mmm, i'm all for 'fashion,' you know... but i'm the first one to admit the whole game can be, and often is, pretty ridiculous. the sleekest and most beautiful model can look instantly dopey when some 'conceptual' designer or photographer comes up with some 'now' idea... like, evening gowns on trampolines with crimped hair... or like, posing 'glam dead' in a coffin with white goth makeup and weird arm angles. so, all things considered, this photo of the 'practically perfect' marisa berenson isn't that bad at all. they've got her on a beach? hey, i can 'rock' with that. her tan is stunning, and contrasts beautifully with the turquoise... erm, dress...?? no, it's the headdress that leaves me saying, '...huh??' i think i see actual oyster shells... probably some other kinds of shells too. yeah, i see other shells... some strands of (hopefully) fake seaweed junk. please tell me i don't see little crabs. still, despite all that, miss berenson's cool ways make it work. ...as long as you don't think about it too long.

emerald sudz

mmm, sweet! sweet minty pale gorgeous sexy deliciousness! i wish i had made a note of this chick's name. because hey, she deserves the credit. she's the one who 'bared all' for the cameras. man, what can i say? apart from being very cute and lovely in the face, she's got an all-around dreamy bod. wow... i wish i could issue a personal 'thank you' to all the good young ladies that stripped for 'my eyes only.' look at those deelish curves! look at that sweet 'flip' hair! hey, i have it 'on the record' that i don't officially 'go that way,' but... hey, YOU know what i mean. wow, it stuns me to know there are people out there would would dare to call this lovely creature 'fat.' hey, if this chick is fat, then FAT is where it's AT! so hey, mysterious Playboy chick, thank you... thank you for 'takin' it off,' thank you for being so beautiful. seriously, we salute you.

bowie and liz

i remember when i was a kid... some rhyme about 'jack spratt could eat no fat, his wife could eat no lean?' hey, i couldn't help but think about that rhyme when i was checking out this mid-70's shot of a skinny-skinny, translucent cokey david bowie and soft-and-sultry 'gettin' heavy' suntanned miss elizabeth taylor. man, you look at a shot like this, and just from the visual information alone, you can totally envision liz 'taking' mr. bowie in a wrestling match. once again, this pic appeals to me on a very 'studio 54' level. man, could he look more skeletonized? she looks great, actually... like, i don't think she was too big at ALL at this point. hey, i wonder what those two had to talk about? who to make a 'buy' from? like, 'fame,' in general? i can't imagine it went much deeper than that.

chameleons

i'm going on the record to say that i actually think the 'classic boy george' look, is a groovy one. i can remember those years... in the early 80's, when 'that look' first came over my MTV video music airwaves. i remember i DID virtually stop in my tracks... i DID catch myself thinking something like, '...now that i've never seen before.' and i don't just mean george himself, i mean that whole... rag-tag... patchwork... hair-and-braids... you know the look i'm talking about. i have a clear memory of seeing the sleek, sexually-ambiguous 'boy.' i'd heard him on the radio, and, as cliche as it sounds, when i finally saw him, i was like, '...hey, i thought that was a guy, but it seems like it might be a chick...' i'm sure i wasn't the only one. so anyway, the point is, jean-lucien was good enough to send me this screen shot. its a shot of the 'george-alikes' featured in the video for what i think may be their strongest hit, 'the church of the poison mind.' seriously, i cannot THINK of that song without wanting to hear it... ohhh, that soaring harmonica. in fact, hey... i'm gonna 'youtube' click it up right now.

bohemian twig

i know, i know... twiggy gets more than enough praise and press without ME having to chime in... especially how i feel about like, the promotion of an impossible female body image or whatever. but i can't help it... i dig her. i think she's lovely and talented and has a good head on her shoulders. and hey, let's face it, the camera loves her. but, i'm not really showcasing this pic because its twiggy... more like, despite the fact that its her. i just love this photograph. end of story. i love the pose, i love the dress... i love everything about it. i can't imagine how many snaps there were on the contact sheet... and yes, i realize there was some massive annoying, non-glamorous wind machine blowing at her for hours during the shoot, drying out her eyes... but hey, when you look at a shot like this one... it all seems worth it, doesn't it? hey, call me crazy, but if it were affordable and socially acceptable, i would dress exactly like this like, all the time. i love all the ribbons and patterns... hey, there is literally nothing i do not like about this photograph.

the peak of style

hey, if you're scrolling down as-per-normal, you won't realize this is actually the second time tonight i'm showcasing the genius work of illustrator bob peak. the more i look at his work, the more i'm stunned by it. it is so rare that i look at an artist's work, and want to change absolutely nothing. (just for the record, i feel the same way when i look at anything by jean-luc.) but hey, back to peak... dig how 'just right' this ad for menswear is... the lines are fine when they need to be fine, and bold where they need to be bold. the harmony of the colors is ...well, harmonious. this ad is perfect. like, check out the detail on the edge of the armchair. how groovy is that? i love everything about how he rendered the girl on the right. look at how sweetly the cuff of her sleeve edges against his neck-and-collar area. man, like, i'm even blown away by where he chose to add the folds in the fabric. just marvelous.

oh, liza...!

mmm, you know i love any-and-all-things like, studio 54-fied. i don't remember where i got this image from. maybe jean-lucien sent it to me, i don't know. but i love it. it looks like, so 'celebrity desperate,' if you know what i mean. first of all, i had no idea that desi jr. and liza were married... let alone that it was considered a 'nuptial nightmare.' i can't read the smallest print, so i have no idea if there's anything humorous there. i think the caption about 'speak now or forever hold you peace' is funny enough. they look like they're really on their way in-or-out of a place. i also think its funny that they both look like the camera caught them in the middle of saying something.

slacks, man! 'now' slacks!

okay, i don't feel like, 100%, but i don't like to let too much time go between postings. so dig this one, lovers! artist bob peak is quickly becoming one of my all-time faves. you've seen his work, even if you don't realize it. he was prolific in the world of movie posters and magazine covers... mostly in the 70's and 80's. and one look is all it should take for you to recognize and appreciate his grooviness. pardon me if my commentary isn't as flowery and clever as it should be... i'd be able to more effectively praise mr. peak on a better night, but... (shrug.) so, hey! dig these mod and groovy pants! dig those fine, swoopy lines... that use of sunburst-color! such a flawless economy of both. thanks to this wild machine, once again, i am afforded a large assortment of his work. hey, that's my job here at 'planetcool,' ...shining a spotlight on those who are often unsung. so hey, dig it... the work of a man at the 'peak' of his game.

memory lane

yes, lovers... i must be in a posting mood tonight... i'm really trying to get back into the habit of posting. my biggest obstacle? i get hung up wondering what my audience will think of my posts. i really shouldn't worry about it. i should just do my thing, the thing i set out to do... and that is, to celebrate and spotlight 'all things groovy.' just like this very groovy shot from francis ford coppola's somewhat overlooked movie 'the cotton club.' here's a great shot, snagged by jean-lucien some time ago. it shows diane lane, (when she was still pretty) playing a flapperish girl who's name i can't remember. she's at a swanky party given by a sexy bob hoskins.... some gangster junk goes down, someone gets 'whacked,' (well, stabbed) and after the blood hits the ceiling, it drips down on her ivory flapper-tastic cheek. ever since the first time i saw that shot on vhs, i knew i wanted a permanent shot of it. and, thanks to technology, and the skilled hands of jean-luc, i finally have it. the movie overall? ehhh, it's not so bad. the musical parts are excellent, as are the costumes.... but the plot? kind of, who cares? and it loses a buttload of 'appeal' points, simply because nicholas cage is in it. (click to enlarge)

make-up kits!

hey ladies and glam men.... who doesn't dig a glorious make-up kit? for about three years in my early teens, we always could count on getting some kind of make-up kit for christmas and-or our birthday. i didn't care what 'brand' they came from... because they were usually seasonal 'one ofs,' you know? and the shades were in oddly shallow tins... i cannot count how many times i fell in love with a particular eye shadow or lip gloss, and had to deal with the grim reality that i couldn't just go back to the drugstore for a 'refill.' no, they were often free gifts accompanying a perfume purchase... or just bought off the seasonal racks. i loved the ones that came with groovy lipbrushes and applicators. man, i wish someone would realize how much i'd appreciate getting one of these as a gift, even today. dig it.

tapes, man! tapes!

yeah, i don't have to say too much, do i? yeah, there's nothing like a stash of naked, cheap, nicked and scratched, magic-markered code-titled cassette tapes, tapes, tapes! we taped off the radio, taped off the tv... we taped ourselves talking, taped fake 'shows,' ... we taped everything. and, when i say WE, i mean like, WE as the '80's generation,' for lack of a better term. man, even if i had like, a thousand dollars, i couldn't buy all the hundreds and hundreds of hours of audio gloriousness to be had on ALLLLL the tapes jean-lucien and i made in our youth. hey, lucynell, i know you know where i'm coming from. man, if you said the word 'Certron,' i would instantly know exactly what you meant. Certron, TDK, Memorex, Denon, Sony... etc. man, i really hope they never stop making blank tapes. did you know that, in the early 80's, in Great Britain, when like, boom boxes were really taking off... the practice of 'taping off the radio' became so widespread, record companies started to lose money, and there was even an attempt to criminalize it... but you can't stop a teen with a tape deck. ahhh, those days...

kinky shoes!

man, i think the word 'kinky' is weird. i mean, if something comes naturally... excites you naturally, then its really not 'kinky' for you. like, hey.... to some people, a threesome is kinky... i personally don't find it to be so. i realize some of my own little... triggers, would be thought of as kinky... perhaps even dirty, to some people. hey, you all know what i'm trying to say. all that said, i find the concept of 'kinky shoes' kind of amusing. i mean, apart from the fact that you can 'have-them-on-during-the-act,' then really, how prominently do shoes fit into 'the act?' i mean, i guess you could... DO stuff with-or-to the shoes, but i would bet that's pretty rare. me? i just like to 'dig on' them, ... on an aesthetic level. so hey, be kinky if you dare, and dig on these cool kinky shoes with me!

cheers, lovers

man, the longer i go in between posts, the more pressure i seem to put on myself for them to be like, groundbreaking or like, hilarious. so bear with me for the next few nights where i may have to write about something, anything, just to get my wings back into shape. so i can't think of a better way to jump back into this than by like, praising The Master, ken russell. i was talking to lucynell about ken earlier, and how he seized my brain at such an early age. well, here's a screen capture i took some time ago, from the incredible opera 'tommy.' it's a great, drifting, dreamy, hand-held camera shot... ken must've been riding next to the limo in the parallel lane. and hey, i know ann-margret was nominated for an Oscar for her role as Tommy's mother, but i want to go on the record saying that roger daltrey's acting job in the movie is largely overlooked. he is completely convincing, and compelling.

on my day off, on my DAY OFF...!

oh, come and rock me on my day off...

fashion chicks

hey, who else remembers all those groovy old pattern illustrations from the 1970's and early 80's? hey, i do. my mom used to have two of these huge hardcover books full of barbie-sized illustrations that graced the fronts of the pattern pouches you bought at like, the fabric store or whatever. i'd love to have known some of those illustrators names, 'cause some of them were totally groovy. here's a few chicks to show you the kinds of drawings i'm talking about. i love the disco-ish faces and the wispy, fine lines. man, i wish is still had those books. they were the coolest. i can't believe they ever left the house without us knowing about it... because i know i would never have knowingly sold them or given them away.

davy in paris

putting it plainly, the monkees were closely associated with 'now' director robert 'easy rider' rafelson. here we see davy, dressed in groovy military drag, toying around with a french telescope. i love this shot. they used film for this second season episode, instead of videotape; hence, the grainy richness. but if you ask me, a huge chunk of credit goes to jean-lucien, for capturing this hot shot. the wild song 'star collector' plays as davy makes mischief on the parisian streets. this was the image on my desktop for quite a while. so dig it.

happy birthday gene hackman

yes, i just noticed that i'm jussst in time to wish my man, gene hackman, a very happy 80th birthday. having been a 'superman' fan when i was very young, i can't remember a time when i didn't know about gene hackman. he's one of those rare actors who can make countless movies, some good... some bad... and still be widely regarded as one of the screen's most valuable men. why, only today... earlier, when there wasn't a damn thing on, i was soooo glad some channel was rolling 'unforgiven,' so i was able to get a little 'hackman-action.' i love him in 'french connection,' and i love him in coppola's 'the conversation.' but, i chose this photo from the smaller, quieter film 'scarecrow,' filmed in 1974 by director jerry schatzberg. it co-stars al pacino. hackman and pacino portray a pair of outsiders... mistfits. much like the dynamics seen in 'midnight cowboy.' i think 'scarecrow' is every bit as good as schelsinger's oscar winning film. please, if you get the chance, SEE 'scarecrow.' and happy 80th, gene hackman. i could go on and on, but hey... you know how much dig you.

marsha who?

...that's marsha hunt, ladies and gentlemen. i admit, i don't know very much about her. she was 'up-and-coming' in the late 30's and 4o's... she was always well-received, and worked all the time, but she never quite broke into the 'big time.' probably due, in part, to her (perceived) role in the communist witch hunts of that time. she was apparently associated with too many people who were apparently associated with the 'wrong people.' well, its hollywood's loss. i've seen marsha hunt in a couple of lesser-known movies, and she's really bright and quick and very beautiful. i love this shot because her face and hands seem to almost be floating. what fine features she has... and man, what a flawless make-up job. hey, marsha... you had it ALL.

fashion clips

i lovvve any cosmetic ads from around this era. this is actually a detail of a much larger photo montage i found somewhere, i don't remember. but i love it. i love the aviator-style sunglasses worn here by 70's model, miss ingrid boulting. (she appeared opposite robert de niro in the 'ehhh' movie, 'the last tycoon.') i also love her overpowering aqua-marine creme eye shadow. you know, its a shame... i actually think i could 'rock' frames like that. like, i think i could actually pull off that look. yet, i realize they are very out-of-style. oh well.... dig on the shimmery 70's facial action. (... facial action...?? that sounds dirty.)

sleeky marisa

okay, so 'sleeky' isn't really a word. and i'll freely admit, i don't have a lot of dazzling facts or tidbits to report about the gorgeous and glamorous miss marisa berenson. her wikipedia and imdb pages are enough to inspire a yawn or two. oh, hey... that's mean... i guess i shouldn't say that. after all, what would the movies 'cabaret' and 's.o.b.' be without the slim and sexy presence of miss berenson? of course, she was a fashion model before she was an actress. and she STILL looks great now. if i remember correctly, the saucy broads of 'absolutely fabulous' often mention marisa in an idealized way. she posed for so many mod and glam shoots in the 70's. here's just one example of her lush and glittery photographic legacy. enjoy! (and click to enlarge)

the apartment

hey, this one is a thinly-veiled shout-out to lucynell. all the credit goes to jean-lucien, really. he's the one who captured and tricked this great shot. for those of you who don't recognize it right away, its a shot of sandy's apartment from the sydney pollack masterpiece 'tootsie.' i particularly love the fact that jean-luc thought it was valuable to snag a shot of the place with like, NO actors present in the frame. but hey, there's no mistaking that mirror. actually, this shot, (spare though it is) is quite beautiful. personally, i always dug the decor and color schemes that sandy's got 'goin' on' at her place. like, she's got some neon, and a cello, and a sofa bed, and... everything. (hey, hey, she'll have pain AND wait-by-the-phone.)

purple mood

yeah! man, i'm really not feeling all that creative and like, talented in the writing department, but hey.... this thing isn't gonna write itself. i promised myself i'd do at least one entry. and hey, i have to thank jean-lucien once again for this colorful and spirited screen capture from Prince's first film, 'Purple Rain.' i remember going to see this in the theater, several times, the year it was released. i admit, i sorta had a teen lesbo crush on wendy melvoin. i was lucky that my local theater had a decent sound system. ('the martin twin,' anyone....?? or maybe it was 'the capri triple.') anyway, i know i must've seen this like, at least five times. i still love the music, but good luck finding any of it on YouTube... the Purple One guards his goods with an iron hand in a lace 'wrist array' glove.

pencils? what pencils?

i've neglected the 'planetcool' disgracefully. but hey, scheduling and emotional factors sometimes get in the way. but hey, i can't think of a better way to 'jump back in' than with a sumptuous, glorious, creamy-sweet country girl cleavage! i'm sure you'll all recognize this as a still from the colin higgins comedy classic '9 to 5.' yeah, dolly parton stars as the buxon secretary doralee rhodes.... who's job consists of '...knockin' over pencils, and pickin' up papers...' franklin hart neatly arranged those pens to fall so he could get this prime look at her goods. and... hey, who can blame him?

hot dotty

i admit, this is a shameless 'shout-out' to lucynell. hey, she and jean-lucien and i are 'all about' the 1982 film 'tootsie.' here's a great shot i've never seen before.... it features the lovely dorothy michaels at her audition for 'southwest general.' hey, we all know the scene, "...just think of them as something friendly..." "...what?" "...like a firing squad." hey, you know she lowers her glasses to check that 'strut' as nurse charles walks away. i can't remember where i found this pic, but i don't think i've ever seen it before. i think dorothy looks wonderful. like, if you ask me, she even outshines julie. hey, she's '...a little nervous,' but it doesn't stop her from giving a great reading and snagging the part. hey, we'll have to deal with her mind... and not her lips!

sultry margaret nolan

hey, a little british cheesecake never hurt anybody. allow me to introduce the very sexy miss margaret nolan. you may think you don't know her, but you do. she's the cute busty blonde from the casino sequence in 'hard day's night,' the one who leans over the gambling table when paul's 'very clean' grandfather plays at the Cirque club. i did a little research on her, and (surprise, surprise) she was often featured in the UK's cheeky 'carry on...' movies. also, she was the model painted in gold for most of the posters and publicity promoting the 007 classic 'goldfinger.' she wasn't the chick in the movie, but it was her on much of the promotional material. i think this shot was featured in 'playboy.' mmm, sweet creamy curves! she also had a small part in another Bond movie i don't remember right now. (i think she massaged sean connery.) i found lots of juicy shots of her, but this one was the most professional. dig her. (click to enlarge)

geraldine smokes

now, i'm not the biggest charlie chaplin fan in the world. sure, i appreciate his impact on 'film' and 'comedy' and all that, but i can't remember ever getting a genuine laugh from his antics. that being said, i have to say i adore his daughter geraldine. she shreds the scenery in robert altman's 'a wedding,' and she's glorious and lovely in david lean's 'dr. zhivago.' i think she's quite beautiful, despite the fact that she looks very much like her father. here she is in 'semi-man-drag,' dragging on a cigar at some high class gathering. she's the coolest.

tilt!

okay, jean-lucien also sent me this poster reproduction a few nights ago. groovy-looking, right? i have very vague memories of this flick being on HBO, back when HBO was the only game in town... before you were born, remember kids? so i got curious, and looked up the title on the good ol' IMDb. apparently, (and jean-luc, you'll be particularly amused by this...) apparently it was written by donald cammel... yes, the same donald cammel that penned the psychedelic masterpiece, 'performance.' it was directed by some guy named rudy durand, who never directed anything else. the tagline is quoted as "...everyone can have the chance once in a lifetime to hit the ball." that doesn't even make grammatical sense. and, the plot synopsis also reveals 'tilt' is actually brooke shields' name. (well, her nickname... but it think its hilarious that at ANY time during the movie, someone must actually call her 'tilt.') i just skimmed the 'plot,' but it seems at the end, she has a 'pinball wizard'-esque showdown with the rival 'baller' harold 'the whale' remmens, played by... (wait for it) charles durning....! (click to enlarge)

the first horserace of 2010

yeah, its a hot duran horserace on a very cold, snowy new england day. i know its a smallish pic, but i think we can still see the blokes well enough to make our picks. oh, first of all, i'd like to point out what jean-lucien observed when he sent me this little gem. that is, john-johnny taylor seems to be 'feeling NO pain,' if you know what i mean. it seems he's enjoying the effects of some unofficial analgesic. ...if you know what i mean. but, as far as the horse race, i don't think john gets the honors. i think i'm going to have to give the new wave 'hot crown' to nick. actually, now that i take a second look, i think that's a crown that nick is gonna have to share with simon. they both look alert and cool. and very cute. i loved those horizontal striped shirts, and wish they were easier to find now.

beatle cartoon!

hey, i'm sure you all remember the clunky-yet-charming Beatle cartoons from 'the past.' (when were those things done, anyway?) jean-lucien was good enough to slide me some screen caps from those funky animated shows. i always thought the art was quite good, considering how primitive it was. i mean, the drawings really DID look like 'the lads.' i have no idea who did the voices, but as i remember, they were pretty convincing. i really should dig into YouTube and take a trip down memory lane, as it were. like, maybe they don't suck. its been so long since i've seen one, but didn't they like, solve ghost crimes and stuff ala-scooby doo? like i said, i don't really remember. but i dig this shot. hey, at least they took care to make paul left-handed.

smoke pretty

if you had come to me when i was fifteen years old and asked me if i would ever end up smoking cigarettes, i would've told you, emphatically, "...no!" wow, how my mind has changed. i could take the easy excuse and claim that i only started smoking because i worked in the restaurant industry, but that might not be entirely accurate. but i DO know that's when i started smoking. i was working at the legendary Rock-Ola cafe, when i made friends with a very cool girl with a stud through her tongue. it's insane that i can't remember her name. she offered me a cig after a grueling shift. and from that moment, i started buying them. i chose Camels because my favorite movie at the time was 'lawrence of arabia.' i know i became close to this girl, because i went to visit her in the hospital for some reason... but i have NO memory of her name. but, all that aside, i'm glad i'm old enough to remember when cigs could be advertised on tv. so dig this magazine ad for a brand i'm sure you can't get anymore. i think i can safely say i've never smoked an 'eve.' but i DO remember seeing them for sale. hey, light'em if you got'em, ladies.

dorsey worship

i just found this one like, last night. and you know i couldn't resist passing it on. man, i can't believe i don't own a copy of 'tootsie' right now. i don't remember where i found this shot, but its obviously a publicity thing for when the movie came out in 1982. he seems to love her. hey, he's so complicated like, 'method actor'-wise, that maybe he did. in the movie, michael dorsey's character says that he wished she 'looked prettier.' well, i've always thought dorothy was pretty. and apparently i'm not the only one. evidently john van horne and julie's dad 'les' thought she was pretty hot, too. man, i love this movie. and i LOVE that lucynell and jean-lucien love it, too. man, i love you guys. and ps: "...can i borrow...that little yellow outfit...?" hey, you know she's talking about "...da Hawlston...??" (click to enlarge)

doesn't mean you're queer...

hey, it doesn't mean i'm queer because i love looking at the long-legged sexy ladies! and hey, illustrations of them doing 'lesbo-junk' is perfectly normal stuff to have on my hard drive. especially when that chick-on-chick erotic stuff was created by the legendary patrick nagel. i don't think i even need to say that he's best known for painting duran duran's iconic cover 'rio.' but, anyone who had 'playboy' in their house growing up knows he regularly illustrated the 'after dark' feature. after all this time, i still haven't begun to outgrow the coolness, the streamlined sexiness of patrick nagel's work. this seems like a pretty rare one. so dig it, and kiss a girl-for-the-cause. (optional.) (click to enlarge)

come and knock on our door...

hey, you know 'em, you love 'em, its the cast of 'three's company.' and i've invited them to spread some christmas cheer. i probably don't need to tell anyone that this shot was taken relatively early in the series. because the ropers and suzanne somers are still hangin' on. and janet still has her curly do. (actually, in retrospect, i think that was her cutest look.) man, i love jack tripper. i mean john ritter. its tough for me to NOT think of them as the same guy. suzanne looks really cute in this picture, and i actually love what janet's wearing. i dig that they're holding those wrapped boxes... i wonder if there was anything IN them, or if they were just 'empty-for-props.' fun fact: normal fell can be seen in the late '6o's masterpiece 'the graduate,' as ben's suspicious landlord, in the second half of the flick. (also, a very young richard dreyfuss ALSO shows up in 'the graduate.' he has one line: "...you want me to get the cops? i'll get the cops!") so hey, peace on earth, good will towards men... and fake 'tinkerbells,' jack. ahhh, can't wait for someone to run a marathon.... ya hear me, tv land? (ps. an alphonse mucha reproduction can be seen on their wall, over jack's shoulder.) (click to enlarge)

annual alphonse mucha

it has become a christmas tradition that my mother sends me the latest and lushest calendar featuring artwork of the Master, Alphonse Mucha. this year was no exception. my marvelous mom came through with a real sweet one. the cover of it was lovely... and even though it's not yet January, i couldn't resist putting it up. i tacked it up right beside my little zen-computer pad on the floor. and this image, (one of my all-time Mucha faves) is the picture for January. i have actually been lucky enough to have seen some of his originals in person, like, at a museum in Raleigh several years ago. it was like a religious experience for me... to know that i was looking at the materials he actually touched. i even got close enough to see some pencil or charcoal erasures. jean-lucien said he looked at this painting when he was teaching himself how to successfully render 'ribbons' and 'streamer' shapes in his cutting. i love the colors, i love the composition, there's nothing i don't like about it. he really was the best at what he did. he created a certain style that has since been ripped off like, nine thousand ways. (google 'alphonse mucha' and see how many tattoos you see.) beautiful stuff.

jareth, i think...

okay, its been way too long since i posted anything over here. and, i don't really know if i have the right 'mood on' to do it, but i wanna try... like, the longer i go, the tougher its gonna be. so umm, dig this! it looks like a hand-made rag doll guy based on david bowie's 'jareth' character from the cult hit 'labyrinth.' annnd, i'm really glad the 'dollcrafter' propped it up next to a pack of 'labyrinth' trading cards, otherwise, it might've taken me a LOT longer to figure out who it's supposed to be. its actually pretty cute, like... in its simplicity.

listen to me kids!

this is what i might classify as a 'shameless post.' i am posting this entry for only one reason: to persuade more people to explore the genius music of michael nesmith; inside and outside of 'the monkees.' he was one of two genuine songwriters and musicians that were hired for the 60's tv show. he fought tirelessly for the right to play their own instruments on the records that were produced during (and indeed after) the show's popular run. i would post a musical example, but the way youtube is these days, its bound to be taken off within days. i love this shot of mike. it shows the underlying ferocity and dedication with which he approached his craft. i put him right up there with joni mitchell, r.e.m., etc. his boundless imagination, sterling voice, and superior musical ear combined to make some of the Best Stuff I've Ever Heard. the double album 'the first national band complete' is truly a 'desert island' selection. his work is varied in style, but consistent in quality. nesmith shoots often, and almost never misses. a National Treasure.

happy birthday walt disney

okay, first of all, in my defense, i want to say that i'm only paying tribute to walt disney because i kind of HAVE to... as an American girl who grew up in the 1970's and '8o's, my childhood was greatly influenced by the work of this odd man. in fact, the first movie jean-luc and i saw in the theater was the one depicted here; 'snow white and the seven dwarves.' (dwarfs?) i remember there was a big poster or standee in the lobby. i also remember it was before either one of us had glasses... so there's almost no doubt what we saw illuminated huge on that screen was considerably distorted. i remember being scared in a good way. but, in retrospect, i don't think it was anything on the screen that freaked me out... i think i was afraid and awed when i realized the Power of the Screen in general. it was the glimmering scarlet and black 'first kiss' of a lifelong love affair. i also remember that my mother and younger sister were not with us. it was just jean-lucien, my late step-father, and myself. HE made sure we saw 'snow white.' and for that, i thank him. (well, i realize it might not have been his idea, but he physically made sure we were there.) so um, thanks, walt disney... for all your insanity. some of it was, and still IS, truly lovely. had he lived, he would've been 108 on the 5th.

revelations

jean-lucien (artistic genius) has made it clear to me that he would be happy for me to post more of his glorious work. he created this one a little while ago... and, what can i say? like all of his stuff, it is glorious. breathtaking in the use of color, spellbinding in its composition. truly, he is my favorite visual artist. this swooping visual sermon consists of a spinning half-naked nun, (from ken russell's masterpiece, 'the devils') and the underrated anthony perkins from ken russell's underrated underground hit 'crimes of passion.' it has a 'stormy sky' sense to it that i positively love. and i am so glad that the scanning technology is keen enough to reveal, in places, his delicate and careful scissor cuts. remember, all the assembly is done by hand. computers only come into play in the scanning and posting process. wow, i could gaze at his work for hours. sometimes i can't believe how lovely and lush it is. so please, dig on it hard, and know that its all for The Cause. (click to enlarge)

guess who owned this book?

well, i guess technically, jean-lucien and i still DO. i even have a clearish memory of the day we talked our mother into letting us buy it from a record store that was at the top floor of the four seasons mall in greensboro, nc. i don't remember exactly the name of the shop... i think it was 'the record bar.' i DO know, that by the time i moved from there, there was an optical thing in its place. i know, because i got some contact lenses there. but, back to the duran book... i remember after we saw that book on the rack, we literally came right out and asked our mother to buy it for us. (something we almost NEVER dared to do.) i don't remember if she relented that day, but i DO know that we ended up with the very excellent book, (which was almost completely in japanese... but hey, we didn't care... we just wanted it to worship the pictures.) i remember we also got a similar book, with same glossy-type cover, but it was more like, red and orange-schemed. i'd love to have that book in my hands right now. man, i was so in love with those guys. (well, three of them.)

chug it!

hey, what's better than those candid black and white shots that reveal the hedonistic goings-on at studio 54? and this is a great shot to illustrate what i mean. its seems like, whoever happens to be pictured, celebrity-wise, seems to illicit the response, "...well, of course they were there." like, if you tried to make up a group of celebs who'd be hobnobbing at studio 54, no matter how mismatched the group seemed to be, you'd still believe they were actually there together. like, if someone told you they had a photo of tatum o' neal, gore vidal, divine, and a naked dude, you'd be like, '...sure, okay.' or like, perchance the grouping of bianca jagger, olivia de haviland, joey dellesandro, lou reed, and a tiger cub, you'd be like, "...i'm not even blinking." in THIS photo, it looks like we have bianca jagger, andy warhol, jerry hall... and are those last two people like, calvin klein, and lulu...? yeah, i'll bet THAT was a wild night that absolutely nobody remembers. i can't lie, though... part of me would love to have been there. coke it!

red and ragged

alright, this one's gonna be short and sweet. here we have the 'important' three duran's in their early days headlining in Birmingham's 'Rum Runner.' okay, first, let's get the horserace out of the way. and, from where I sit, its an easy one. john. mr. nigel john taylor wins this one pretty handily. simon looks very 'don't talk to me, i'm 'in between looks.' and nick seems to be saying, 'don't look at me, this is the worst look i'll probably ever have.' john looks a little vacant and pale, but doesn't seem to be ashamed of his look. in the interest in full disclosure, i admit i cut roger and andy completely out of the picture. because, let's face it, they were never really in the running to begin with. in closing, i would like to point out that they're all sitting at a big giant mirror. umm, all the better to 'chop chop' that white powder on, no doubt.

take a step that is green...

wow, this one hardly needs any comment, does it? i think most of the 'planetcoolers' are also 'three's company' fans. and when i say 'fan,' i mean, even as much as i love the show, i'm the first one to call 'cheesy' on the show when it gets, well... cheesy. which, let's face it, was (is?) pretty darned often. awww, sweet john ritter. how we miss him. what a knockout smile. i think this shot is pretty funny because, among other things, it stresses the 'chef ' aspect of jack's character. i also think its pretty 'sex'-ploitative, what with the girls leaning over with their mouths wide open like they're gonna give some hot california 'f'llatio.' i wonder how late this tv guide-style photo shoot lasted? probably quite a while.... which means most of that 'food' and 'vegetables' were probably fake. and we all know that green backdrop is just a sheet. i like the way 'chrissie' looks bored, with her hand on her hip and her eyes wandering. and there's like, salad oil and peppermills hanging on. man, i love that show. can you get the whole series on dvd yet? does anyone know? the best. (oh, and i think its also worth mentioning that suzanne's tummy-curve is visible in her black jeans. knowing these days, a sex symbol as famous as suzanne was then, would have her little tummy shape airbrushed out without fail. sigh... ) anyway, dig it!

total bull

okay, the original image i'm using for this one is kinda small, so i hope it's readable. jean-luc pointed out what we both think is a pretty lame tagline: "...they were the world's greatest con men... almost." i have no clear memory of this movie (which apparently came out in 1990...!) so i punched it up on the ol' IMDB. according to the synopsis, the two stars play 'dual roles.' (groan!) wait, it gets better. ah, what the hell... here's the whole plot outline. "Roger Moore and Michael Caine play dual roles in this off-beat and highly silly caper-- a pair of smalltime con men and a partnership of nuclear physicists. As con-men, they use their uncanny resemblance to the high-living scientists to con their way to the scientists' safety deposit boxes, but in doing so, become entangled in a shady world of spies and international intrigue." Ugh! Apart from the two leads, the only other name i recognize -at all- in the cast is Sally Kirkland. just to make sure, i even expanded the IMBD credits, and scrolled alllll the way down, and... credited dead last, is... john cleese, who plays, 'man on the beach who looks like john cleese.' no, i am NOT making that up. and, two names above Cleese is patsy kensit, as 'sick lady on train.' all in all, it sounds like a winner. again, anyone out there who has ever seen this 'gem,' i welcome a review.

umm, i don't dare

okay i know its been a real long time since i posted anything over here. so hey, bear with me whilst i try to jump back on this dark horse that rides through the night sky, dazzling all witnesses with its coolness. i guess this is as good a place to jump back on as any. hey, i love movie posters, and this is a real sweet one. now, i know cher has been a huge star for a long, long time... but i can't find anyone who's ever seen this movie. and the poster is a scream. first of all, maybe its the way this poster was once folded, but i don't seem to remember cher's boobs ever being that big. and, speaking of 'flat,' what about that award-winning expression on her face. she doesn't look very alluring, or afraid, or even all that tough. and hey, how about that high quality pencil-type drawing of a truck pulling away in the background? i'm surprised there aren't even like, 'chug-chug' puff-puff exhaust clouds coming out of the tailpipe. if anyone has ever seen this little bit of cinema gold, i would LOVE to hear the review.