Tales of True Adventure for Rugged Men Not Unlike Yourself
This is bonkers.
Inside billionaires Row, London’s rotting derelict mansions worth 350 million pound a third of the mansions on the most expensive stretch of London’s “billionaires row” are standing empty several huge mansions have fallen into ruin after being abandoned for a quarter of a century.
I explored all that I could wear such risky explore.
It’s such a fine line between stupid and clever. Somehow, this song manages to be both. I’ve heard “Werewolves of London” on the radio most of my life without ever giving it much thought – until today.
You might know that this was the first single off Excitable Boy, Zevon’s third solo album. You might even know that it stayed in the Billboard Top 40 for a month, reaching number 21 on the Hot 100 in May of 1978. But did you know Mick Fleetwood and John McVie are playing on it? Wikipedia, where you at?
The song began as a joke by Phil Everly (of The Everly Brothers) to Zevon in 1975, three years before the recording sessions for Excitable Boy. Everly had watched a television broadcast of the 1935 film Werewolf of London and “suggested to Zevon that he adapt the title for a song and dance craze.” Zevon, LeRoy Marinel and Waddy Wachtel played with the idea and wrote the song in about 15 minutes, all contributing lyrics that were transcribed by Zevon’s then-wife Crystal. The song is in the key of G major, with a three-chord progression that runs throughout. However, none of them took the song seriously.
Not long after, Jackson Browne saw the lyrics and thought it had potential, so he started playing “Werewolves” live. (T-Bone Burnett also played it on the first leg of Bob Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Review in 1975.) Zevon thought about putting it on his second solo album in 1976, but for some reason, decided against it.
According to Wachtel, “Werewolves of London” was “the hardest song to get down in the studio I’ve ever worked on.” They tried at least seven different configurations of musicians in the recording studio before being satisfied with McVie and Fleetwood’s contributions. The protracted studio time and musicians’ fees led to the song eating up most of the album’s budget.
Zevon later said of the song, “I don’t know why that became such a hit. We didn’t think it was suitable to be played on the radio. It didn’t become an albatross. It’s better that I bring something to mind than nothing. I still think it’s funny.” He also described “Werewolves of London” as a novelty song, “[but] not a novelty the way, say, Steve Martin’s ‘King Tut’ is a novelty.”
Unfortunately, the new Hellboy sucks ass. So why not watch Paolo Rivera draw and paint him instead?
This one may not be around long, but definitely worth a look.
It occurs to me that one of my earliest childhood memories is going to the Summer Twin Drive-In with my parents. (It’s still around, one of the few drive-ins left in the United States.) Of course, being from the South, we had a pickup truck. My mom and dad watched The Sting. I got in the truck bed, and unbeknownst to them, watched The Exorcist.
I was 4! This explains so much …
Conan reviewed Grand Theft Auto 5 for his Clueless Gamer segment way back in 2013. Still funny. And relatable.
https://youtu.be/PaWSQuS_ZUw
This takes me back …
The Frankenstein Monster’s skull, possibly one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen. Every detail is perfect, from the flat metal plate on top being held in place by clamps to the wires running down the back of the skull to the neck bolts. My favorite part is the unevenly placed lid, haphazardly attached as if the person who made it didn’t know quite what he was doing – or was in a hurry. The little baroque nameplate on the base is a lovely touch as well.
Discovered amongst several other skeletons in a burned out castle in Darmstadt, Germany this strange skull is all that remains of what is believed to be the creation of Dr. Viktor Frankenstein. While somewhat crude in its design, the function of the skull was to enable repeated surgeries as well as to act as a conductor for electricity. A rudimentary iron skull cap is riveted to heavily calcified bone growth and a bulbous forehead. Wired from the skull down to the base, are the two neck electroconductors.
Sculpted and hand finished by professional artist Thomas Kuebler, this Frankenstein skull with spine is cast in solid resin chosen for its resemblance to actual bone. It measures about 15 inches from the top of the skull to the wood base, and the skull is about 9 inches from the top of the skull to the mandible. No detail has been missed in this mysterious and very rare piece of horror history. It is a must have for Frankenstein fans and horror enthusiasts or the collector of oddities.
This guy sold at auction for $1275.00.
I had this poster when I was a kid, only recently discovering that it was created by Tom Shadyac, the director who now lives in Memphis. We ran into him at [REDACTED] when we were buying tile for our bathroom remodel. Small fucking world.
Remember the poster Are You A Preppie? It was printed in 1979 by University of Virginia undergrad Tom Shadyac, who went on to film school at UCLA and later directed Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and Evan Almighty. The poster was wildly popular when it came out. I have to wonder whether it might have inspired Lisa Birnbach’s more in-depth anthropological treatment in The Official Preppy Handbook, which appeared one year later.
Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?
