25 Things You Might Not Know About Thomas Jefferson

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Jake Rossen and Mental Floss present 25 Things You Might Not Know About Thomas Jefferson.  Here are three of my favorites…

2. HIS GREATEST WORK WAS A STUDY IN CONTRADICTION.
As a member of the Second Continental Congress and the “Committee of Five” (a group consisting of John Adams, Roger Sherman, Benjamin Franklin, Robert Livingston, and Thomas Jefferson brought together for this purpose), Jefferson was tasked with writing the Declaration of Independence, an argument against the 13 colonies being held under British rule. While the Declaration insisted that all men are created equal and that their right to liberty is inherent at birth, Jefferson’s plantation origins meant that he embraced the institution of slavery. In any given year, Jefferson supervised up to 200 slaves, with roughly half under the age of 16. He perpetuated acts of cruelty, sometimes selling slaves and having them relocated away from their families as punishment. Yet in a book titled Notes on the State of Virginia (which he began writing during his stint as governor and published in 1785), Jefferson wrote that he believed the practice was unjust and “tremble[d]” at the idea of God exacting vengeance on those who perpetuated it. Though Jefferson acknowledged slavery as morally repugnant—and also criticized the slave trade in a passage that was cut from the Declaration of Independence “in complaisance to South Carolina and Georgia”—he offered no hesitation in benefiting personally from it, a hypocrisy that would haunt his legacy through the present day.

11. HIS WIFE HAD A CURIOUS CONNECTION TO HIS MISTRESS.
Jefferson was married for just 10 years before his wife, Martha Wayles, died in 1782 at age 33 of unknown causes. Curiously, Jefferson’s involvement with his slave, Sally Hemings, was part of Martha’s convoluted family tree. Martha’s father, John Wayles, had an affair with Sally’s mother, Elizabeth Hemings—meaning most historians think Sally and Martha were half-sisters.

18. HE PROBABLY HAD A FEAR OF PUBLIC SPEAKING.
Without today’s methods of addressing the public—radio, television, and Twitter—Jefferson was largely free to succumb to his reported phobia of speaking in public. While working as a lawyer, he found himself unable to deliver orated arguments as eloquently as he could write them. When he did speak, it was apparently with a meek disposition. One listener to his inaugural address in 1801 described Jefferson’s speech as being in “so low a tone that few heard it.”

 

RIP – Scott Wilson

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Scott Wilson, the actor best known for his role as Hershel on The Walking Dead, passed away yesterday reportedly from complications with leukemia.  Wilson began his career with the one-two punch of the big screen classics In the Heat of the Night and In Cold Blood.

While most tributes focus on Wilson’s role as Hershel from The Walking Dead, Wilson’s resume features movie and television credits spanning 50 years.  Anything Wilson appeared in became at least a little bit better because of him.  Some of my favorite Wilson appearances include his roles in…

  •  The Tracker: An HBO movie directed by John Guillermin and written by Kevin Jarre;  starring Kris Kristofferson and Scott Wilson.
  • Judge Dredd: starring Sylvester Stallone and with an uncredited appearance of Scott Wilson as Pa Angel.
  • The Way of the Gun written and directed by Christopher McQuarrie.
  • In Cold Blood written, produced and directed by Richard Brooks, based on Truman Capote’s book. Starring Robert Blake and Scott Wilson.

 

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Scott Wilson’s family, friends and fans.

Rocky by Moritat

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The Rocky drawing above was created by the guy in the photo below.  He goes by Moritat but his given name is Justin Norman.  I met Moritat at The Infinity Toy and Comic Con in Kissimmee earlier this year.  I was hanging out with John Beatty (who was also set up at the show) and Moritat was at the next table.  I saw the fantastic art Moritat was creating and enjoyed talking with him, so it was only natural I asked for a sketch.  If we hadn’t had to leave the show early, I’d have gotten another.

The 3 Best Comic Book Horror Movies

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Brad Gullickson and Film School Rejects present The 10 Best Comic Book Horror Movies.  (Sadly the original post is no longer available.) Using just Gullickson’s list, here are his comments (and mine) for my top three:

30 Days of Night (2007)
Most vampire movies leave me cold, so color me surprised to find one of my favorites set in the freezing wasteland of Alaska’s eternal night. In addition to a brilliant premise — a tribe of vamps arriving in Barrow, AK just as the town settles into month-long seasonal darkness — the film delivers with some truly brutal and terrifically designed creatures and kills, engaging characters, and memorable cinematography. It’s a tight, visceral horror film that breathes life into the undead the same way 28 Days Later did with “zombies,” and it ends with a legitimately touching emotional beat. Now where’s my goddamn sequel?! (he said, knowing full well a lesser follow-up came and went in 2010). – Rob Hunter

Craig: I was a big fan of Steve Niles work, so his (and Ben Templesmith’s) 30 Days of Night comic series set the bar pretty high.  I loved the concept of an isolated city in Alaska about to go through its annual 30 days of night.  Of course vampires would want to go there.  And they do, with the intent to wipe out the town during a month of excessive feasting.  Just writing about this movie makes me want to view it again.

The Crow (1994)
From page to screen, the legacy of The Crow is synonymous with tragedy. The original graphic novel was created as a form of catharsis for writer James O’Barr after his girlfriend was taken too soon because of a drunk driver. Of course, most of you will know the story of Brandon Lee’s freak death while filming a shootout scene cpurtesy of a real bullet among the blanks. As a result, there’s an air of melancholy to The Crow that few other movies have captured. At the same time, it’s also a highly stylish and entertaining actioner with a rocking soundtrack befitting of the dark gods. The sequels all suck, but the first movie is a bona fide masterpiece of supernatural vigilante storytelling. – Kieran Fisher

Craig:  Like 30 Days of Night, I was familiar with James O’Barr’s The Crow from it’s first published appearance in Caliber comics.  The movie did a great job of adapting the comics and staying true to O’Barr’s vision.  Brandon Lee (Bruce Lee’s son, who died during filming) was a bonus.

Blade II (2002)

I love Wesley Snipes, and I adore the joyful bravado that he injects into his Daywalker. He may pretend he’s brooding, but that’s a cat who (internally) whistles while he works. Slaying vampires has never been more satisfying. But – look. This is not just a Blade film. Guillermo del Toro came off Mimic and The Devil’s Backbone and threw his entire geeky consciousness into Blade II. Each frame is packed with references to Hellboy, Watchmen, The Searchers, Vampire Hunter D, Predator, Nosferatu, etc. For as suave and cool as the vampires were in the original film, del Toro comes at his Reapers with a Richard Matheson “I Am Legend” mentality. These are not pretty creatures that sip blood to the tunes of the children of the night. These are savage animals that threaten to devour the world, and force night and day walkers to unite in a Dirty Dozen team-up. The climax amounts to a vicious series of showdowns between hero and monster: the traitor, the goon, the count, and finally, the beast. After all is said and done, you may even find yourself getting misty over the tragedy of it all. – Brad Gullickson

Craig: I never read comics featuring Blade.  I didn’t care for the original Blade movie at all.  I thought Wesley Snipes was perfect as Blade and as a fan of Guillermo del Toro, willing to give Blade II a chance.  I am so glad I did, because I loved it.  How could you not love Blade going up against the King of all Vampires?  Blade II is going to get another viewing from me soon.

The 4 Best Monster Designs in Horror Movies

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Rob Hunter and Film School Rejects presented The 10 Best Monster Designs in Horror Movies. Sadly that post is no longer available.  Still, here are my top three picks from Hunter’s choices and my selection for the #1 spot and it’s a monster that didn’t make his list!

3.  Alien: The design is scary even before you learn about the teeth that extract. But perhaps what makes Alien scariest is that the design doesn’t look like it would work with a person in a suit.  What is that thing?

2.  The Creature from the Black Lagoon:  If you were to find the missing link between fish and man, it would look like The Creature from the Black Lagoon.  A perfect design.

1. The Predator:  Want to know why Predator got my top spot from Hunter’s list?  Watch the scene when the Predator removes his mask and for the first time we get a look at it’s face as it roars.

My choice for best monster design — The Curse of the Werewolf werewolf.  THAT is what a wolfman should look like!

10 Truly Scandalous Horror Movies that Scared Censors…

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Sharon Knolle’s post 10 Truly Scandalous Horror Movies that Scared Censors into the Hollywood Production Code is worth a read by all movie (especially horror movie) buffs.

I’ve seen 9 of the 10 movies Knolle selected and commend her on selecting them.  If you haven’t seen them, I’d recommend:

  • Frankenstein (1931)
  • Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931)
  • Dr. X
  • Island of Lost Souls

 

 

 

Sly Stallone Posts First Two “Rambo 5” Photos!

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Sly: Tonight we start filming…!

These are the first two photos released for Rambo 5 and since they come from Sly himself via his official instagram site, you know they’re legit.

Sly: .. Comes a Horseman Wild and Free. @rambomovie #rambo5

I cannot tell you how thrilled I am to see these photos.  I’ve always thought that it would be cool to see Sly in a western.  Up till now the closest we ever came was Copland.  And that was great.

This is going to be a fun ride.

Rare Batman: Year One Ad!

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Wow.  This brought back some great memories.  Frank Miller (writer) and David Mazzucchelli (artist) were killing it with their new limited series Batman: Year One.  There was no internet.  The Comic Buyer’s Guide (a weekly newspaper for comic fans) was the nearest thing to advance word on comics besides some monthly fan magazines.

So when DC started posting teaser ads for Batman: Year One and promoting the series like it was a special event (which it was), you knew you were in for a treat.

Thanks to I Can’t Stop Thinking About Comics for posting this rare ad.  If you’d like to see a larger version ICSTAC has one at their site.

THE Horror Movie Crossover Fans Want!

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Martin Samoylov at ComingSoon.net posted 5 Horror Crossover Movies We Want to See.  Samoylov’s list was an interesting one.  I particularly liked the idea of A Quiet Place / Cloverfield crossover, but my favorite was Samoylov’s as well… that the big three… Universal’s classic Wolfman, Dracula and Frankenstein appear in a crossover movie.  I 100% agree with Samoylov when he says…

Admittedly, Dark Universe didn’t get off on a great start with last year’s The Mummy, but that doesn’t mean Universal can’t explore its other classic monster properties. Frankenstein, Dracula, and the Wolfman are some of the most iconic movie characters of all time. And currently Universal owns rights to all three. None of the three icons have faced off with one another in decades. If Universal gets these characters right, they could have some exciting stories to tell with them.

Amen, brother.  And since its now my two cents, I’d throw The Creature from the Black Lagoon into the mix.  Well, Universal, what are you waiting for?

Jack Carter Goes to Sin City by Karl Slominski

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The Jack Carter & Marv (from Sin City) piece above was created as a commission for me at HeroesCon 2018 by Karl Slominski.  I met Karl for the first time at the 2017 Heroes convention when I requested Karl’s take on Jack Carter and John Wick (which will be posted in the near future).

When I picked up the sketch, my buddies LittleJohn and Mike Cross were with me.  They both liked my sketch so much they commissioned sketches of their own.  LittleJohn got John Wick and John McClane, while Mike asked for Snake Plissken (Kurt Russell) and Maggie (Adrienne Barbeau).

This encouraged me to go back for another “Jack Carter and…” sketch, this time getting Carter and Raylan Givens from Justified.  I’ll post that in the near future as well. (Yes, I am way behind in posting my sketches.  I do plan to, ah, justify that in the coming weeks.)

If you’d like to see more of Karl Slominski’s art check out…

“Predator” Gets the Cinephilia & Beyond Treatment

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Did you know that Sly Stallone’s Rocky IV provided the spark of inspiration for Predator?  It did.  You’ll learn that and more if you check out Predator: John McTiernan’s First Studio Gig that Became an Epic Action Classic at Cinephilia and Beyond.

Click on the link and you’ll find…

  • Predator‘s original script when it was titled HUNTER (not to be confused with James Byron Huggins’ novel of the same name)
  • John McTiernan Interview
  • An Oral History of Predator
  • Rare Magazine Articles
  • “If It Bleeds We Can Kill It” – The Making of Predator
  • Hand Drawn Storyboards and Creature Designs
  • John McTiernan on Filmmaking Philosophy
  • Rare behind-the-scenes photos
  • and much more!