"Does it come in black?"
CNN.com has an interesting article by Peter Valdes-Dapena on its Autos web page about how the Batman Begins Batmobile was created.

There were actually eight different vehicles used for filming, none of the shots of the vehicle were done using computerized visual effects, and there was no air conditioning inside the vehicles driven by stuntman George Cottle.

And something not mentioned in the article: nowhere in the movie is it ever called the Batmobile.

State of Mind

After seeing Raul Midon perform on Letterman, I wanted to find out more about this extremely talented musician who I'd never heard of before.

I checked the iTunes Music Store and his album State of Mind is available, along with a couple of other singles. But what really got my attention was the album's Amazon.com page, which includes a detailed and informative About the Artist Editorial Review, and twelve Customer Reviews. Every single one of the customer reviewers raved about the artist and his music and gave the album a perfect 5 out of 5 stars.

After reading such high praise and listening to the 30 second song samples on iTunes, I downloaded the album. I'm listening to it as I write this entry and everything I read on Amazon couldn't be more accurate.

Blinded by the Light
This should be standard equipment on all vehicles:

Nissan Eliminating Blind Spots

(via Engadget)

Stem Cells FAQ
Wired News has posted a "crash course" on the basics of stem cells. It's a good non-political look at the facts and the potential benefits, and serves "as a foundation on which you can form your own opinions about stem-cell research."

Photoblog
In order to keep my photos post separate from my other blog posts, I've created a photoblog and named it intermittent shots. All of my past Photo Friday entries have been added to the intermittent shots archive and it's where I'll post all future photographs, while posting a notice here on intermittent thoughts whenever a new photo has been added.

UPDATE: I've decided not to post a notice here every time I add a new photo to the photoblog, since I hope to frequently post new photos. Viewers can check intermittent shots on their own, or use the RSS feed to check for new posts using a newsreader.

The Last Word
This should be the definitive statement on the politicization of 9/11:

"As families whose relatives were victims of the 9/11 terror attacks, we believe it is an outrage that any Democrat, any Republican, any conservative, or any liberal stakes a "high ground" position based upon the September 11th death and destruction. Doing so assumes that all those who died and their loved ones would agree. In truth, some would and some would not. By definition the conduct is divisive and, because it is intended to be self-serving and politicizes 9/11, it is offensive. We are calling on Karl Rove to resist his temptations and stop trying to reap political gain in the tragic misfortune of others. His comments are not welcome."

-- Families of September 11 Statement on Comments Made By Karl Rove

Jedi Mind Trick
We finally saw Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith. It's too bad the epic story and incredible technologically-advanced visuals aren't supported by better dialog and/or passable acting. I guess it's fitting that the best performance in the CGI-heavy film is by a digitally created character who's early performances were done by a puppet. At least they kept Frank Oz as the voice of Yoda. George Lucas has said that he now finished making Star Wars movies and wants to focus on smaller projects like those he intended to make before capitalizing on the phenomenon created by the original 1977 Star Wars. But it's hard to imagine him writing or directing anything that has much depth or emotional resonance because it seems the last three Star Wars films have all been about the moviemaking technology instead of the people and the relationships. Working your way up to bigger and grander ideas from more intimate and subtle stories seems logical and feasible, but going the other direction seems like it would be much more of a challenge. As for Episode III, the final chapter in this saga isn't a bad movie. There are some stunning visuals and cool machines. And the final instant of Darth Vader's creation is an iconic movie moment. It just that the painfully stilted dialog and embarrassing acting makes the film seem...incomplete. Lucas certainly has a talent for developing a grand story and for creating interesting characters, creatures, and gadgets. But Star Wars: Episode III is a good example of how some of his other storytelling skills are considerably lacking.

Photo Friday: Orange

15 Minutes
If I were to star on a profane and hilarious cartoon on Comedy Central about a small Colorado town called South Park, filled with a gang of foul-mouthed grade schoolers, I might look something like this:

What's Wrong With This Picture?

Reality TV Show Writers Want to Unionize

I saw this headline today and thought, "Since when does reality need writers?"

What I Did on My Summer Vacation
Podcasting is all the rage these days and it seems as if many podcasts available for download are either too topic specific or overly long and rambling. But the one-minute vacation podcasts available on the Quiet American website are something altogether different. The description of the podcasts reads:

Surely you can spare a minute to clean your ears? Take a one-minute vacation from the life you are living.

One-minute vacations are unedited recordings of somewhere, somewhen. Sixty seconds of something else. Sixty seconds to be someone else.

These short, unique recordings are oddly refreshing and serve as a strong testament to the power of sound and it's ability to trigger the imagination.

Awesome
My sister called me after she saw Batman Begins and said she thought it was awesome. She's right, of course. It's even more awesome in IMAX. We went to the IMAX theatre at the Minnesota Zoo today and saw Batman Begins: The IMAX Experience. I've never seen a feature film on an IMAX screen before, and it's very impressive. The picture is sharper (and much, much bigger!), the sound is clearer, and the movie was just as good, if not better, than the first time we saw it. The downside? Tickets were $14 each, plus $5 for parking at the Zoo. So, while the experience was truly awesome, the price was a bit much. In this case, though, it was definitely worth it.

Photo Friday: Sport

It Has Begun

Batman Begins is a great movie.

Director Christopher Nolan, writer David Goyer, and Production Designer Nathan Crowley deserve a lot of respect and credit for creating a realistic movie about a man struggling with his emotions as he tries to find his place in the world. It's a psychological story as much as it is an action movie, and the only "comic book" aspect of it is that Batman originated in the comics. Batman Begins is an origin story, and the themes of fear, justice, revenge, and allegiance weave throughout the film as billionaire Bruce Wayne accumulates both the resources and fortitude to become Batman.

Christian Bale does a masterful job of playing the three parts of Bruce Wayne - the public playboy Bruce Wayne, the determined and thoughtful real Bruce Wayne, and Batman, who learns to use fear as a weapon against the evil and corrupt. Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, and especially Gary Oldman are perfectly cast as the butler Alfred, Lucius Fox, and Det. Sgt. Jim Gordon. Their characters lend crucial support and friendship to both Bruce Wayne and Batman. Liam Neeson and Cillian Murphy are also great and their characters provide memorable challenges for Bruce Wayne/Batman. While the character of Rachel Dawes is well-written and important to the story, Katie Holmes seems too young and immature for the role.

The car, the cape, the costume, and the gadgets are all terrific and Nolan gets extra credit for insisting that they all be based on real items that have real-world applications.

The fight scenes are brutal, and the action is very fast-paced and filmed up close, which sometimes makes it difficult to comprehend exactly what's happening and who's who. The sound, at least in the theatre we attended, was quite loud and the music and sound effects drowned out some of the dialog in the audio mix.

But those are minor complaints about a definitive Batman film that gets almost everything right. There is no sappy or overblown pop song playing over the end credits, and important elements of the Batman story and character that were overlooked, deliberately ignored, or bastardized in previous movies, are highlighted here and give the film weight and respectability. Sequels are almost a sure thing, and as long as the creative and production team remains the same, they are sure to be as exciting and as great as Batman Begins.

Use it in a Sentence
Spell with flickr is a fun and interesting website which takes the idea of visual spelling to the extreme.

Family Photos
My sister recently spent some time in Montana and has posted some great photos on her website. Click on the links below to see her great work.

Fly Fishin' in Firehole
Yellowstone Bison
Old Faithful

Doubt
We didn't see John Patrick Shanley's Doubt: A Parable on Broadway when we were in New York City last March. But now that I've read the provocative, question-raising, Pulitzer Prize-winning script, I can say this about the character of Father Flynn:

He didn't do it.

I have no doubt.

Deep
Frank Rich has written another excellent New York Times op-ed commentary. As he takes apart the media's reaction to the unveiling of Watergate's "Deep Throat", Rich makes a good point at how the original Watergate crime was mostly overlooked in favor of debating W. Mark Felt's personal morals and ethics. Because any close re-examination of the scandalous Nixon administration would only lead to obvious comparisons with the scandalous reign of Bush II. Once again, Rich makes his points concisely, constructively, and convincingly.

(Be aware, however, that registration is required to read any content on The New York Times website and Op-Ed pieces are only free for one week. It will cost $3.95 to access the article after June 19.)

Photo Friday: Nerdy

This is the very first Apple computer built by Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs.
It's now in the Smithsonian in Washington DC.

Life x2
I read two blog posts earlier that were so well written and deal so well with life both online and off that I felt compelled to mention them here. One is about priorities, maintaining perspective, and balancing creativity with practicality. The other is also about priorities in a way, but it's strength and appeal lies in how much respect and love and loss there is in the writing. They're both about real people dealing with real issues in very real ways. Oh, and they just happen to be written by Wil Wheaton and Kevin Smith.

A cautionary note before you click on the links to read the posts: be aware that neither of these guys are hesitant about using language that would get instantly bleeped on network TV. So, if someone's potty mouth makes you red-faced and disgusted, you're better off steering clear.

Theatre Works
While watching the The 59th Annual Tony Awards last night, I was actually interested in something that was said by the Chairman of the American Theatre Wing, Sondra Gilman, as she explained to the puppet/performers of Avenue Q what the American Theatre Wing and The League of American Theatres and Producers do in addition to giving out Tony Awards. Gilman mentioned something about their regular seminars with theatre professionals being available on the web.

So, I checked out the American Theatre Wing's website and found this incredible list of Real Player streaming video recordings available to watch. The description of the seminars, produced by CUNY-TV, says, "The American Theatre Wing's panel discussion series brings together performers, directors, playwrights, designers, choreographers and behind-the-scenes personnel from the Broadway theatre."

And after a quick glance, the names of the people involved are really impressive. I've only watched a minute or two of one recording so far, but this seems like an incredible treasure-trove of information for anyone interested in the process of creating theatre.

Looks like I'll be trying to fit some theater seminars in between watching Twins games and Netflix rentals this summer!

Punny
Got this from Ma, who got it from a friend...

Here are the 10 first place winners in the International Pun Contest:

1. A vulture boards an airplane, carrying two dead raccoons. The stewardess looks at him and says, "I'm sorry, sir, only one carrion allowed per passenger."

2. Two fish swim into a concrete wall. The one turns to the other and says, "Dam"!

3. Two Eskimos sitting in a kayak were chilly, so they lit a fire in the craft. Unsurprisingly it sank, proving once again that you can't have your kayak and heat it too.

4. Two hydrogen atoms meet. One says "I've lost my electron." The other says "Are you sure?" The first replies "Yes, I'm positive."

5. Did you hear about the Buddhist who refused Novocain during a root canal? His goal: transcend dental medication.

6. A group of chess enthusiasts checked into a hotel and were standing in the lobby discussing their recent tournament victories. After about an hour, the manager came out of the office and asked them to disperse. "But why?" they asked, as they moved off. "Because", he said, "I can't stand chess-nuts boasting in an open foyer."

7. A woman has twins and gives them up for adoption. One of them goes to a family in Egypt and is named "Ahmal." The other goes to a family in Spain; they name him "Juan." Years later, Juan sends a picture of himself to his birthmother. Upon receiving the picture, she tells her husband that she wishes she also had a picture of Ahmal. Her husband responds, "They're twins! If you've seen Juan, you've seen Ahmal."

8. Some friars were behind on their belfry payments, so they opened up a small florist shop to raise funds. Since everyone liked to buy flowers from the men of God, a rival florist across town thought the competition was unfair. He asked the good fathers to close down, but they would not. He went back and begged the friars to close. They ignored him. So, the rival florist hired Hugh MacTaggart, the roughest and most vicious thug in town to "persuade "them to close. Hugh beat up the friars and trashed their store, saying he'd be back if they didn't close up shop. Terrified, they did so, thereby proving that only Hugh can prevent florist friars.

9. Mahatma Gandhi, as you know, walked barefoot most of the time, which produced an impressive set of calluses on his feet. He also ate very little, which made him rather frail and with his odd diet, he suffered from bad breath. This made him [Oh, man, this is so bad, it's good] a super calloused fragile mystic hexed by halitosis.

10. And finally, there was the person who sent ten different puns to his friends, with the hope that at least one of the puns would make them laugh. No pun in ten did.

Unoriginality
Someone with decent Photoshop abilities must've missed the chapter on using your skills for good instead of evil, because this re-use of a political campaign photo is pretty shameless.

(via Daily Kos)

What Do You Mean?
One of the less-publicized features of the new Mac OS X 10.4 "Tiger" system software is the built-in dictionary/thesaurus. Yes, there is a Dashboard widget that can be used to look up words, but what's even better is a keyboard shortcut look up. If you place your cursor over a particular word and hold down the Command (Apple), Control, and D keys simultaneously, a small window will open showing the definition of the word. And at the bottom of the window is a popup menu you can use to switch to the built-in thesaurus.

The combination of many of these great features has to be why PC World magazine named "Tiger" as the Best Operating System of 2005.

Photo Friday: Rare

I used this photo of a small tree branch in our back yard once before for a Photo Friday entry. But it seemed like a good fit for both Discovery (in April 2004), and Rare.