vintage
Vintage geek content from the archives of the geek, comic, and entertainment collections.
From the Cult of Celebrity to Politics in Scottish Theatre and the Art of the Performance
This Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning will endeavour to highlight, examine and scrutinise the opportunities open to young performers in Scotland over the last decade. It will also examine the plight of variety theatre in Scotland since its roots over a century ago. Also, it will study the benefits of business theory in today’s entertainment sector and explore performance theory and the role it plays in enhancing a performer. On the back of the success of television shows such as ‘The X Factor’ and ‘Britain’s Got Talent,’ ever-increasing amounts of potential performers are signing up for drama and theatrical schools throughout Scotland. These schools, one could argue, cater to the growing demand among young people to follow in the footsteps of performers being elevated to instant success. But are these schools just exploiting youngsters who dream of instant success in this age of celebrity? What of those who want to make the entertainment sector their vocation? What does Scotland have to offer them? Are there any opportunities to progress naturally through an established circuit of venues, like the entertainment icons of the past, or is there a void hindering the production of new Scottish homegrown talent?
Colin MacGregorPublished 6 years ago in Geeks
Top Television Shows in the 1970s
Ah, the 1970s. It was a decade of bean bag chairs, swag lamps, gas lines, and a President on the ropes and out the door. Waterbeds hove into view, a piece of furniture masquerading as a boat. Mood rings and lava lamps glowed on your finger and in the corner respectively. We washed our cars obsessively. Was it because we were vehicular neat freaks? Nah, we just didn't want the “Have a Nice Day” guy to show up in the dust.
Kim HastingsPublished 7 years ago in Geeks
Field Of Dreams Film Review
"Ray, people will come Ray. They'll come to Iowa for reasons they can't even fathom. They'll turn up your driveway not knowing for sure why they're doing it. They'll arrive at your door as innocent as children, longing for the past. Of course, we won't mind if you look around, you'll say. It's only $20 per person. They'll pass over the money without even thinking about it: for it is money they have and peace they lack. And they'll walk out to the bleachers; sit in shirtsleeves on a perfect afternoon. They'll find they have reserved seats somewhere along one of the baselines, where they sat when they were children and cheered their heroes. And they'll watch the game and it'll be as if they dipped themselves in magic waters. The memories will be so thick they'll have to brush them away from their faces. People will come Ray. The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game: it's a part of our past, Ray. It reminds of us of all that once was good and it could be again. Oh... people will come Ray. People will most definitely come."
Marina Caitlin WattsPublished 7 years ago in Geeks
Why Does Don Draper Go to the Movies?
Since the conception of the motion picture, going to the movies has become a powerful form of escapism. We leave reality behind, if only for a little bit, to find satisfaction elsewhere. Sometimes we live vicariously through others, imagining a life that isn't our own. Movies can instruct, but they can also influence viewers for the worse. Regardless, going to the movies is an evergreen way to escape.
Marina Caitlin WattsPublished 7 years ago in Geeks
Gratuitous Excess: Baz Luhrmann's 'The Great Gatsby'
The greatest novel of the American dream (in my opinion) is F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby. It's sad and sweet and gets read once a year as I sit on the shores of Long Island, beach chair in tow and getting roasted by the sun just to find out if it doesn't end the same way. (Spoiler--Gatsby still dies. I'd apologize for that, but if you haven't read it by now, shame on you).
Marina Caitlin WattsPublished 7 years ago in Geeks
Nightmare on Elm Street Documentary Screams for Recognition of Gay Rights Struggle
To Roman Chimienti, A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge thoroughly awoke his nascent horror movies undertone. So while the second installment slashed the shallow plot lines of the genre (and siblings such as Jason Voorhees and Michael Meyers), this Freddy Krueger's depth had a lot to do with the film's real shock value. But there were still far more laying beneath - and only one thoroughly invested demographic picked up on the subversive gay rights subtext.
Rich MonettiPublished 7 years ago in Geeks
The History of Anne Bonney and Mary Read
As closely as historians can determine, the story of Anne Bonney and Mary Read started in an English port town in the 1680s when a comely, "young and airy" sea wife gave birth to a robust baby girl. The mother's joy was marred by the somewhat glaring fact that her husband had been away at sea for more than two years. But she displayed a kind of ghoulish resourcefulness in dealing with the problem. Her legitimate baby son had recently died, and rather than report the death to kin, she dressed young Mary in the boy's clothes and hoped that no one would notice the deception.
Frank WhitePublished 7 years ago in Geeks
Forgotten 'Toons
Cartoons have been a part of our collective lives in one form or another for hundreds of years. Even Leonardo da Vinci drew caricatures based on famous personalities of his day. The cartoon characters most of us are familiar with are the ones who have turned up on television or been made famous by regular appearances in newspapers and books. While it's safe to assume classic 'toon favorites like Charlie Brown, Garfield, and Mickey Mouse will always be with us, there are some once-popular cartoon characters who have since faded into obscurity -- at least in the minds of recent generations more obsessed with gadgets and social media trends than animated creations that aren't memes or GIFs.
Kenneth CoxPublished 7 years ago in Geeks
'Batman: The Movie' Is the OG of the DC Brand
In 1966, Batman made his big-screen debut in the the comic-book genre, Batman: The Movie. But what special quality of the masked crusader endeared him to the American public? Taking a closer look at the film that helped make Adam West and Burt Ward pop-culture icons adds insight into one of the most popular heroes in the DC franchise.
Stephen HamiltonPublished 7 years ago in Geeks
Audrey Hepburn Succumbs to Charade as the Age of Cary Grants' Movies Come to an End
In 2017, as Netflix or your DVD aligns its digits to the opening of "Charade," the 1963 film gives off a sense that the world is in the midst of an identity crisis that ties to the end of an era for Cary Grant Movies. Stuck between the social restrictions of the past and the tsunami of changes that are coming, Hollywood seems unsure of how to define "cool" in its presentation of this romantic comedy thriller. Lucky for them, Cary Grant transcends such considerations, and while he didn’t necessarily provide a bridge to the future, the past had to fade away because he was the only one left to – well – carry it.
Rich MonettiPublished 7 years ago in Geeks
Woody Allen Finds Himself and the Roaring 20s in Zelig
Who else but Woody Allen himself could insert himself into Nazi archival footage, cause a ruckus to get the attention of a girl he loves and then get a laugh while Adolf Hitler rants on world domination and Aryan purity. The film is Zeliq – a 1983 roaring 20s mockumentary, starring the eclectic filmmaker and his then girlfriend, Mia Farrow.
Rich MonettiPublished 7 years ago in Geeks
‘The Godfather’ – Film Review and Analysis
One of the great classic American films of the 20th century, The Godfather, directed by the legendary Francis Ford Coppola and based off of the novel of the same title by Mario Puzo is often considered to be the most influential film that created the ‘organized crime’ or mafia/gangster genre in cinemas.
