Thoughtful Preparations: Media Spin Blog

PDI/Dreamworks has really come up with something special in Madagascar. Saw the film last night. Went to the Madagascar press conference today. Need time to think and write about it. Also need a new camera.

See my additional coverage of this over at ParMedia.org, as well as a comments over at CGTalk.com. More to come…

Brad Bird recently spoke at the San Francisco International Film Festival on a topic that was entitled, “State of the Cinema Address.” The Oscar winning writer and director of Pixar’s “The Incredibles” warned that cinema is in trouble due to the deterioration of the movie-going experience.

Coincidentally, Ishared that experience last November on a Friday night trying to see The Incredibles – it was sold out at two theaters that had overflowing parking lots. I vowed to stay clear of going out to the movies for awhile. Instead I settled for Polar Express, after 15 minutes of commercials and warnings, through cell phones and kids theater hopping.

No surprise that Bird spoke of movie productions now factoring DVD material into their schedules as an important component of the overall revenue stream. A nod to the well managed art cinemas still doing business, and yet for many, cinema resides with a home DVD collection, where great movies such as those by The Criterion Collection can be enjoyed in comfort. For less than the price of two going to a movie and buying refreshments, you can own the movie.

P.S. In a timely interview, vanguard of French new wave cinema, Jean Luc Godard, is quoted on cinema, “It’s over,” he sighs. “There was a time maybe when cinema could have improved society, but that time was missed.”

Busy with more going on and less time to blog. Joined an Internet start up venture which I may not write about at present, which will demand a lot of attention. On my way to the office I felt compelled stop and take this photo, nearly causing an accident by surprising high speed vehicles on a nearly deserted country road. Photography can often interrupt the flow of life. Such are the risks of stopping time.

I will continue to blog here and also contribute to ParMedia.org when able. Stories in the works that I look forward to publishing: DreamWorks’ Madagascar and Marla Ruzicka.

Remember that Memento guy who couldn’t remember anything, so he took Polaroids of himself? Polaroid was once on the cutting edge, but instant digital photography antiqued the photo-chemical process into an Industrial Era memento.

Meet the new boss. In March 2003, Polariod appointed Michael Pocock as president and CEO. In August 2003, Polaroid declared bankruptcy.

Same as the old boss. Two years later, Polaroid’s remnants are being sold off, and Pocock gets $8.5 million!

More than 4,000 Polaroid retirees last month received a check for $47 – a one-time payment from a trust fund to compensate retirees for legal expenses.

“It’s such a shame, because we got killed,” said Peter Bass, a 72-year-old Lexington resident who retired 13 years ago after 35 years at Polaroid. Bass used his $47 to take his wife out for pizza and will very likely need to come out of retirement to make ends meet.

For more details, listen to the Marketplace radio story.

So, don’t get fooled again. We hear lofty speeches from Presidents and CEOs about values and ethics, and those are mighty fine words. Show me the secret CEO handshake! Unless you can be the boss, the president, the CEO, or a guy who gets a lot of money and stock, why bother taking the chance of being fooled again?

P.S. Comic relief Social Security toon.

Is practicing Christian Reconstructionism, Fundamentalism and Dominionism life’s E-Z Pass to heaven? Let’s say you know you’re going to heaven, but you’re worried your golfing buddies may not qualify. Thanks to RaptureLetters.com you can send your sinner sidekicks e-mail messages after you’ve ascended. That’s assuming their computers, system administrators and power company are all hell bound unbelievers. Hallmark Cards should really look into this market.

TheocracyWatch.com can help you keep track of the movement to run the U.S. government by divine guidance. A conference at New York’s CUNY Graduate Center, “Examining the Real Agenda of the Religious Right,” April 29th and 30th, 2005 addresses these issues.

More on the Religious Right.

Rush Limbaugh’s up periscope must be checking out the Suicide Girls website for his meter on modern youth sexual morality. Finding no space at MySpace: a place for friends or having no Nerve.com or no invites to Friendster must pain the portly pompous pundit.

See a list of 35 of Rush’s Kinky Truths here.

Following up on the Adobe-Macromedia story, today’s San Francisco Chronicle Business section On The Record: Bruce Chizen.

This is a lengthy interview, and Mr. Chizen lays many cards on out on the table, open and personable, while remaining firmly and discretely professional. Regarding any threat from Microsoft, Bruce describes a scheme in which mighty MS attempts to gain partnership with the IRS telling us to fill out tax forms with MS Office Professional. Chizen states, “the fact that PDF is embedded in society, we believe it’s really going to be hard for them to displace us.”

The interview turns kinky approaching the relationship with Apple…

Q: Being in a marriage with Apple means being in a marriage with Steve Jobs. What’s your relationship with him like?

A: I have a very good relationship with Steve. It’s very open and very direct. There have been Saturdays and Sundays where we’ve had very active conversations about a variety of topics.

Q: Physically active?

A: No, no, no — verbally active. He’s brilliant.

There are serious topics I am contemplating, such as Nationalism, Militarism and Christian Fundamentalism and why so many Americans blindly follow. Others march to Diff’rent Strokes, such as free thinking, independent and good natured Gary Coleman. He’s a tough little guy, challenging Arnold Schwarzenegger by campaigning in the 2003 California race for governor.

I checked Celebrity Blogwatch and was disappointed that Gray has not gotten into blogging the way David Duchovny has. A poll of the web tells me poor Gary suffers from public whipping boy status: celebrities who are fair game in the press, who some folks just love to hate, such as Jane Fonda. Still, it would be interesting to read what is stroking in his different mind.