FRANKENSTEIN GIF

HE SHOOTS, HE SCORES!
AND BOOM GOES THE DYNAMITE!

MUHAMMAD ALI: SATURDAY MORNING CARTOON STAR

As the news of the death of Muhammad Ali spreads across the world, I thought it would be a good time to remember that in the 1970s, Ali was everywhere, including Saturday morning cartoons. NBC aired the animated show, I Am the Greatest: The Adventures of Muhammad Ali.

The show featured Ali, his niece, Nicki, and nephew, Damion, traveling the world with trainer or manager, Frank. They frequently had to solve mysteries. Once Ali had to go to outer space.

Here is a complete episode I found on YouTube.

WILD ANGELS IS COOLER THAN RED DAWN

Sometime in high school, I rented Roger Corman's Wild Angels at the local video store. I thought this was one of the coolest movies I had ever seen (next to the 1980 Flash Gordon movie). I thought "I've got to tell everyone at school about this." Of course, as was common with my classmates at Lebanon High School, they were uninterested in what I thought was a cool movie. Everyone that weekend had seen a movie at the local theater called Red Dawn. When I asked what Red Dawn was about, I was told it was about "a high school football team defending their community from an invasion by the Russian army." I replied "That sounds stupid!" Naturally, this lead to me being punched or kicked or something.

Let me proceed to explain why Wild Angels is a cooler movie than Red Dawn. First off, you have one of the coolest opening sequences in any movie. A mother watches her little boy on his tricycle ride down hill at break neck speed. She runs to stop him before he rides into traffic. She stops him and then looks around to see the head Angel, Blues (Peter Fonda), on his chopper lighting a cigarette (maybe a joint). She has a look of disgust and fear on her face a the sight. Fonda then revs up his bike and takes off down the road to the Fuzztone drenched theme song, "Blue's Theme" by Dave Allen and the Arrows.

Blues goes to a construction sight to tell his friend, Loser (Bruce Dern), that they found his stolen bike in Mecca, California. A co-worker (Dick Miller) starts lecturing Blues on wearing an Iron Cross, so Blues and Loser threaten to pull out his teeth with a wrench. Loser's supervisor yells at him, so he throws the wrench at him, which gets Loser fired.

Yes, she does wear boots in this movie.

The Angels try to retrieve the bike and get into a fight with a group of Mexicans that they believe stole it. The Highway Patrol shows up and Loser tries to get away on a patrolman's cycle. He is shot in the back by a patrolman. Later, the Angels, with the help of Blues' Mike (Nancy Sinatra), break into the hospital and take Loser back to their clubhouse, where he dies.

During the funeral, Blues lashes out at the minister. The minster ask Blues what he and the Angels "want." Blues yells, "We wanna be free! We wanna be free to do what we wanna do. We wanna be free to ride. We wanna be free to ride our machines without being hassled by The Man! ... And we wanna get loaded. And we wanna have a good time. And that's what we are gonna do. We are gonna have a good time... We are gonna have a party." Parts of that speech were later sampled as part of Primal Scream's hit song "Loaded." There has never been any of the dialog from Red Dawn sampled in a song, unless it is crappy country song by Toby Keith, Daryl Worley or Zac Brown Band.

What sets Wild Angels apart from Fonda's other biker movie, Easy Rider, is that Wild Angels doesn't weigh us down with message and characterization. Instead Corman gives scenes of the bikers outrageous partying with beer, bongo playing, loud music, grabing women, fights and even "bull fighting" a biker. Easy Rider is cerebral, where Wild Angels is just mayhem on film. However, Easy Rider is a masterpiece and also has a better soundtrack.

Wild Angels spawned the whole biker genre. Red Dawn didn't inspire any high school football player hero movies. What kind of doofus would watch a high school football player hero movie? Maybe one that looks like this:

A doofus who liked the movie Red Dawn

I guess I should point out. I've never watched Red Dawn. I thought the plot sounded stupid in high school and I still think it sounds stupid. Why waste my time with that, when I can watch Wild Angels again on DVD. Besides, I've never heard of the director, so he must not have made anything else.

Of course, opinions like these are why I'm considered the super villain of the Ozarks!!! Mwu-HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

Detroit Lions/Blazing Saddles/Webster star Alex Karras dies

"Mongo only pawn in the game of life."

‘Blazing Saddles’ star Alex Karras dies

FUN WITH MCKAYLA MARONEY

I realize this post has nothing to do with retro pop culture, but I can't help it. It is one of those "everybody is doing it" type of things. A photo taken of American gymnast McKayla Maroney after she received a silver metal has taken the Internet by storm. McKayla obviously wanted a gold, but was given silver instead. She has a rather perturbed look on her face. While a few people are trying to make her out to be a "spoiled brat," most people are having fun with this picture and photo shop. Yes, McKayla is turning up everywhere and showing her disapproval at the new squeeze of some peoples exes, radio station morning shows and Romney & Ryan.

So I found some photos in my files and began putting McKayla in to show her disapproval. Sadly, I only have Corel Photo House on my computer, so they may look a little sloppy but it is the thought that counts.

Going to cry, baby, going to cry, baby!

Oh yeah, like you are a real athlete.

He is a square dork!

They make me sick!

 

This song sucks!

You're fed up! We're fed up with you!

THE BAN ON GRUNTING IN WOMEN'S TENNIS (and an old Doxidan ad)

Did the news that there will be a ban on grunting in women's tennis remind anyone (besides me) of this Doxidan commercial from the 80s? Also, does anyone else notice that the woman playing tennis is different than the woman speaking? The woman playing is about thirty years younger!

TWINS: BUBBA WATSON & BALKI'S COUSIN LARRY

I notice this every time I see a golf game on TV on Sunday afternoon. Is it just me or does golf champ Bubba Watson and Perfect Strangers star Mark Linn-Baker look alike?

BEST OF DESDINOVA: I HATE MARCH MADNESS

A classic post from the old blog.