Former award-winning journalist, political pundit, and TV producer in West Virginia. On sabbatical from reporting. Working in state government. Opinions are my own.
My friend Taylor captured this great video showing you the faces behind the news at my former workplace, WOWK and The State Journal. It was a dysfunctional place that made me tear my hair out at times.
In hindsight I liken it to a journalism version of M.A.S.H. But I made some great friends during my time there. While I am far happier in the statehouse, I do miss working with these guys from time to time and I wouldn’t have traded my time with them for anything. Great people.
The song being played is called “Words” by Coyotes in Boxes. Friend Sean Knisely, a WOWK director, sings and plays guitar for this band. Check them out at the link.
The organ, and later the keyboard and synthesizer, was typically used in houses of worship. But the man who solidified the keyboard as a rock instrument has broken on through to the other side.
Ray Manzarek, a co-founder and keyboardist for The Doors, died today. As is all too common, cancer was the culprit. He was 74.
As a member of the legendary rock band that formed in 1965 in Los Angeles and effectively ended with the death of frontman Jim Morrison in 1971 (though the group continued to perform and release music in other iterations for many years), Manzarek became an enduring symbol of the era — he was portrayed by Kyle McLachlan in the 1991 Oliver Stone biopic The Doors, and wrote a best-selling memoir about his experiences, Light My Fire: My Life with The Doors, in 1998.
I had heard The Doors in my youth, but they never really officially came to my attention until high school. A combination of fellow high schoolers who were into moody music, and oldies station MIX 100.
Many loved Jim Morrison; his songwriting talent, his vocals, and his looks. I liked Ray Manzarek. He was the quiet one, but the one who really was the heartbeat of every Doors song.
I got to meet Leamer (pictured above on the left) briefly the night before at the Red Carpet Lounge, though my friend Taylor (an energy journalist at The State Journal) didn’t tell me who he was. Taylor and I walked to Taylor Books to listen to the presentation. I also went ahead and bought the book.
I haven’t read the book yet to review it. “The Price of Justice” is about two attorneys, Stanley (pictured above on the right) and Dave Fawcett. These two lawyers took Massey and Blankenship to court after Blankenship tried to bankrupt their client’s company. It’s a tale of political corruption and bad politics.
In case you couldn’t make the presentation, video highlights are below. I’ll be reading through the book over the next few days.
As I said earlier, Saturday was a whirlwind day. Jessica and her mom were on their way back from their Florida vacation. And it was my last day with the furry fellow.
Mr. Lucie was a good cat. He didn’t make any messes. He simply laid around or rubbed on my leg and feet. I do love cats and I love Mr. Lucie, but I’m definitely glad he is gone now. I just can’t deal with the mountains of cat hair around this apartment.
Friend and investigative reporter David Iversen brought over this chair I purchased from him. He and his girlfriend are leaving so he can take an investigative reporting job in New England. They’re selling off some of their furniture and I fell in love with this chair. I got it for $40, but it turns out this style of chair is way more interesting and valuable than I realized.
It’s called an Eames Lounge Chair, and they apparently go for between $1,000 and $4,000. A similar chair is displayed in the New York Museum of Modern Art. Hell, I just thought it was comfortable and less bulky than the Archie Bunker-style chair I had. Now my reading corner is far more classy.
During a trip downtown for a book signing (which I will talk about a little more in the next blog post), Taylor and I went to the new Charleston Brewing Company. It’s a gastropub which brews its own lagers and ales. For about $6.99 you can try a sampler of any four brews on tap. They also have a British-style menu and you can buy growlers of your favorite brew. Quality stuff.
So, I did Moxxee Coffee that morning, where they have new frozen cafelado drinks. I made a quick appearance at the East End Bazaar, where Tofujitsu was playing. Plus I stopped by Sullivan’s Records and did lunch at Subway, on top of cleaning the apartment before Jessica got home.
Jessica and her mom arrived just after 6 p.m. and brought me all sorts of goodies from Kennedy Space Center, including a framed commemorative stamp of Neil Armstrong‘s moon landing, a gold-plated replica of the space shuttle orbiter, and another shot glass for our growing collection.
Speaking of shot glasses, the girl and I made a quick appearance at our favorite bartender’s party for her son who graduated high school. Jessica and I met up with friends Brent & Bethany and Amber & Allen. Not sure if any other Red Carpet patrons were invited, but it was certainly an honor.
Saturday was a whirlwind day for me, going from place to place to place on Charleston’s East End. But one place I definitely made time for was Sullivan’s Records, located at 1588 Washington St. East, in Charleston, WV.
Sullivan’s opened last Saturday during the Old Colony East End Yard Sale, so they’ve only been open for a week. Owner Sam Lowe told me there is still organizing going on as they add new records to the collection.
I found Sullivan’s to be a bright, cheery place that was easy to navigate. I’m very glad that it’s a record store and not a head shop that happens to sell records. As much as I support marijuana legalization, I don’t need to wade through bongs and pipes just to buy a vintage record. No distractions here.
If you’re looking to get into vinyl or are already back on the bandwaggon, Sullivan’s has what you need. Beginners can actually buy turntables here. Non-newbies can browse the hundreds of selections, mostly arranged alphabetically.
I’m a vinyl guy, but not for the sound. That’s usually why people buy these ancient round grooved discs, because they enjoy the unique sound only a record can produce. On the other hand I just enjoy the artwork, so I’m starting to collect albums that made an impact on me musically so I can frame and display them.
But no matter what your desire is, Sullivan’s can help. Their selection is good, including having multiple copies of the same album. Owner Sam Lowe is friendly and helpful. It’s a great new addition to the neighborhood already known for its live music.
OK, if you saw the headline, then you are probably thinking two things: a) I didn’t like Star Trek Into Darkness and b) I’m going to reveal spoilers. One is true, the other isn’t as clear cut.
Did I like Star Trek Into Darkness? I’ll say that I liked 95 percent of the movie, but the 5 percent I didn’t like pretty much ruined the movie for me. This review will include spoilers because I feel the more information you have, the less likely you’ll do what I did in the theater, which was scream “what the fuck.”
Let’s get a few things straight first. As you Trekkies know from the first movie, this is a whole new Star Trek. Spock screwed things up by not saving Romulus in time, and sending a grief-stricken maniac back in time with an extremely advanced ship, killing Kirk‘s dad. That act was the butterfly flap that created a new timeline, and therefore a new universe where anything can happen.
Several of my fellow Star Trek fans have sometimes expressed anger at J.J. Abrams creating a more militaristic universe, contrary to the vision of Gene Roddenberry. But you’ve got to understand, in the Roddenberry Star Trek universe, a gigantic super-advanced starship didn’t show up, destroying a shit-ton of Federation and Klingon ships.
It seems apparent that this incident, which was the basis of the Abrams Star Trek movie, sets up the new movie. Yeah, they’re still explorers, but now they’re preparing for a possible war with the Klingons and will do anything it takes to get the upper hand. They’re exploring, but looking for new tech. At some point they find the Botany Bay and famous Trek villain Khan plus his crew.
Yup, the bad guy is Khan. That doesn’t get revealed until halfway through the movie. This is a tactic Abrams uses constantly, which I hate. I understand wanting to keep the plot secret before the movie comes out, but was it a big deal to just say Khan is in the movie?
In the Trek universe, Khan is one of several genetically-enhanced superhumans. He became a dictator in the 1990s, but the regular humans fight back. They put Khan and the other superhumans in cryogenic sleep and shoot them into space. In the regular universe Kirk finds the ship, unfreezes Khan, who wreaks havoc until he is captured and beamed to a planet with his crew. Years later they escape to get their revenge on Kirk in “The Wrath of Khan.” Google it.
In the Abrams universe, Khan is given a new generic name of John Harrison and is forced to make advanced weapons of war, with Starfleet threatening to kill his still frozen crew if he refuses. He soon decides to bomb a special Starfleet facility, then kill several Starfleet admirals and captains in retaliation. Kirk loses someone close to him, so he decides to chase Khan to the Klingon homeworld, where Khan used a interplanetary beaming device to escape (which was technology that didn’t exist until the last movie, when Old Spock gave new Scotty the formula, changing the future once again. Thanks Old Spock).
All is well thus far. The acting and action is quite enjoyable. Kirk and Khan work together to battle a mad Starfleet admiral hellbent on destroying the Enterprise and erasing all evidence of his crimes. Again, so far so good. But then Abrams decides to steal from “The Wrath of Khan.”
You remember this seen from Wrath?
Or how about this classic scene?
Also, how can we forget the Khan scream?
OK, now just imagine those scenes, except flip-flop the characters. Kirk fixing the engines, Kirk on the other side of the glass giving his dying speech, and Spock screaming “Khan!!!!”
This was all about a 10-minute span, which caused me to yell back at the screen, scaring my fellow theater-dwellers. Seriously J.J. Abrams? You created a new universe to create new, original tales, and instead you steal the best scene from one of the greatest Star Trek movies? And your brilliant idea to make it different is to flip-flop who dies?
And before you accuse me of being just a fanboy, my complaint is more important than that. I’m not complaining as a Star Trek fan, I’m complaining as a fan of movies. I know filmmakers borrow ideas from other movies all the time. I get that. But some do it because they’re time-tested ways of moving the plot and stirring emotion in your audience. This, in my opinion, was laziness from a man I thought was pretty creative.
It also doesn’t work. The first five minutes of the movie Kirk gets demoted to commander because Spock tattletails on him to Admiral Pike. Kirk is not really angered, but annoyed at Spock for not understanding loyalty and friendship. The death scene with Kirk (they obviously bring Kirk back to life) is forced because they still didn’t feel like friends to me.
I could go on and on, but I won’t. Will I see the movie again? Yes, as my girlfriend is home from Florida and she is a big J.J. Abrams fangirl. We’ll probably see it today. If my opinion changes I’ll let you know.
Lewis Black has been around for a long time in TV and movies, but he is most recently known for his segments on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. That’s how he came to my attention years ago.
I took the next step and started buying his comedy albums. Lewis black has been a stand-up machine, putting out nine albums over 12 years. That’s probably not much of an accomplishment for Black, because I imagine there is no shortage of content for him.
My seat was four rows from the front, giving me a fantastic vantage point to experience Lewis Black’s rage at everything. Opening up for Black was comedian John Bowman, an old friend of Black’s that you often hear on the comedy albums. He was funny, opening up with observations from their recent tours and songs on the ukulele.
After a 15 minute break, Lewis Black hit the stage. He ranted for nearly two hours about Social Security, Benghazi, alternative energy, and other topics of the day. But he had a lot to say about social media and today’s smartphone culture.
Comedians ultimately don’t tell jokes as much as they hold up a mirror showing us, the audience and therefore society, how ridiculous we are. We are addicted to our phones. I certainly am. If I plan to go without I do fine, but unexpected service interruptions and phone misplacements cause my anxiety to skyrocket.
Lewis Black was great to see in person. Thanks for coming to Charleston and holding up the mirror.
