Month: February 2006

RIP Al Lewis aka Grandpa Munster

Al Lewis [born Alexander Meister ], who was best known as Grandpa Munster, died yesterday at the age of 95.

I can remember watching Lewis on “Car 54, Where Are You?” and later “The Munsters” when I was very young. Lewis seemed old then… but as the years passed he didn’t seem to age. Another benefit of growing older was that with each passing year Lewis seemed to get more and more popular. He was always a LIVELY guest where ever he appeared.

Lewis is survived by his wife, three children, four grandchilden and generations of fans. Our thoughts and prayers go out to everyone of them.

Who is Keyser Soze?

The February 10, 2006 issue of Entertainment Weekly is a special double-sized issue which looks at the Academy Awards. That’s not why I’m suggesting that you check it out though. The reason that I think that you might want to pick it up is for the article that tells the story behind the making of “The Usual Suspects.”

Chris Nashawaty‘s excellent article takes us back to the very origins of the screenplay and then sheds light on the process that brought it two Academy Awards. Part of the fun is Nashawaty provides us with little tidbits that fans of the movie will love. [Did you know that Keyser Soze‘s name was based on a real person? That Christopher Walken, Tommy Lee Jones, Jeff Bridges, Charlie Sheen, James Spader, Al Pacino and Johnny Cash [Johnny Cash!] turned down role offers?]

Reading Nashawaty‘s piece not only reminded me how much I enjoyed “The Usual Suspects” but makes me want to pull it off the shelf and watch it again. “The Usual Suspects” rates an A+.

A Hamner Trifecta

Today’s comic book cover features the work of one of my favorite comic artists, Cully Hamner.

Probably best known for his excellent work on the Batman miniseries Tenses, my personal favorite Hamner artwork can be found in the Red miniseries that he did with writer Warren Ellis.

I absolutely loved Red… so much so, that I’m going to give you a look at the covers for each of the three issues [ 1, 2, 3].