Do Your Bit To Make Movie History

It's fundraiser time for PORKCHOPP3D tonight at The Empty Glass. Bring a donation of a toy or canned goods and save half the cover charge. Help complete the trilogy.

PopCult Gift Guide Day Five: Local Art

Today's gift suggestion is local art. ArtWalk in downtown Charleston takes place this evening and you will have a great opportunity to visit all the local galleries and find that special objet d'art that you need for that hard to buy for person on your Christmas list. You can drop a ton of money on an original painting, or you might pick up a calendar or notecards, all featuring artwork created by the people who live in the lovely Kanawha Valley.

Among the cool items you might want to look at are calendars featuring the photography of Clayton Spangler, available at Art Emporium; antique bits of coolness at The Purple Moon and Stray Dog Antiques; hand-blown glass ornaments at Visions Day Spa; pottery by Eric Pardue and others at Taylor Books Annex Gallery; and a wide assortment of nifty artworks at Studio 1013 and Gallery 11. The possibilities are endless!

PopCult Gift Guide Day Four: Yoe Books

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If you're a regular reader of PopCult, you probably know I'm a big fan of comics historian Craig Yoe. In addition to about a million other comic and cartoon related things, Craig has released a steady stream of beautifully-assembled historical comic book archives. Today, we're going to look at five of the niftier recent tomes of Craig's that I haven't previously plugged in PopCult. These books can be found almost anywhere books are sold and if they're not in stock, you can probably order them from Taylor Books in time for Christmas.

First up, we have "The Carl Barks Big Book of Barney Bear." Carl Barks is a comic book legend, known primarily as the creator of the very best Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge comics. While Barks made his reputation as "the good duck artist" for Walt Disney, he did lesser-known, but equally brilliant comic books starring the MGM cartoon character, Barney Bear. "The Carl Barks Big Book of Barney Bear" collects the extremely rare stories in a deluxe, full color hardcover for the very first time. It's a fabulous collection of rarely seen work by a comic book legend.

(ISBN-10:1600109292)

PopCult Gift Guide Day 3: Rad Music

Today's entry in the PopCult Gift Guide is "Naked Souls," a brand new CD by Parkersburg's John Radcliff, a frequent guest on Radio Free Charleston and an old friend.Simply put, "Naked Souls"is an exquisite album, starting with the McCartney-esque "RocknRolla" and ending with the ultra-catchy "It's Not The End." Rad's album is almost like the second coming of XTC's "Skylarking." I mean that as very high praise indeed.

The ten songs that make up this CD are finely crafted musical treats, with catchy melodies and clever lyrics. Radcliff's quirky sense of humor is on display throughout, particularly in the song "My Plastic Lover," which is about exactly what you think it is. Another highlight is the infectiously pseudo-optimistic "It Might Work Out."

Sasha Colette, Trielement, Jordan Andrew Jefferson And More In The RFC Holiday Extravaganza!

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That's Radio Free Charleston 149, "Shredd's Pizzeria Shirt," at the top of this post, and it's an early Christmas present, loaded with special gifts for our fans. We are proud to present a World Premiere music video by Sasha Colette, "Rock of Ages," plus we have a music video by Jordan Andrew Jefferson, the RFC debut of a new band, Trielement, and we flashback to a special Christmas tune performed by RFC's resident Diva, Melanie Larch and The Diablo Blues Band. We also have two trailers for special projects and we meet Hasbro!

PopCult Gift Guide Day Two: Razor Sharp DVDs

Homegrown Horror

Out second item in the PopCult Gift Guide features film work of Eamon Hardiman on DVD or Blu Ray. His most recent movie, "Porkchops," a film in which yours truly can be seen briefly sans hat, is on sale for a short time directly from Razor Sharp Studios, for a mere seven bucks (plus shippping) or ten dollars on Blu Ray.

"Porkchops" the first-ever sequel to a West Virginia-made film, tells the story of the legendary Pig-masked serial slasher, Porkchop, who mows down innocent (and not-so-innocent) victims left and right. With a lower budget and a higher sense of fun than your typical slasher movie, "Porkchops" offers just the right mix of blood, gore, boobs and cleverness to make for a fun viewing experience for the adult devotee of fine slashercentric entertainment.

If you're curious, but not yet sold, check out the trailer for "Porkchops" on RFC 149, coming to PopCult Monday evening. Completists can also find the original movie "Porkchop" from Razor Sharp Studios, too.

The PopCult Gift Guide will continue on weekdays until December 22. Check back every day for suggestions of Pop Culture gifts for the ultra-hip, or maybe just nerdy, person on your shopping list. Also good for disaffected loners!

Monday Morning Art: Dr. Sketchy's Redux

Today's art is from last month's edition of Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art show. This is a digital pastel sketch of Pepper Fandango and Kitty Killton. This coming Sunday Dr. Sketchy invades Lost Legion Games and Comics in South Charlestn (the new location on D Street). It'll be a night of "Gotham City Sirens" Starring models dressed as three caped (or undraped) crusaders. It's Sunday night starting at 7 PM. Admission is eight bucks in advance, ten dollars at the door.

Also, later tonight check back in PopCult for RFC 149 with a world premeire video by Sasha Colette, plus music by Trielement, Jordan Andrew Jefferson and Melanie Larch with The Diablo Blues Band. You'll also see trailers for the DVD "Porkchops" and the graphic novel, "Carbon."

Sunday Evening Video: Improv At GW

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This Thursday you can oin GW's Improv Comedy Troupe "Batteries Not Included" for an evening of improvisational comedy! Admission is free, but donations are accepted. Starring Sabah Ahmed, Louis McQuade, Michael Tighe, Nathan Thomas, Caitlin Moore, Mariah Plante, Taylor Shaw, Austin Susman, Jacob McGloughlin, Madison Riffe, and Gabe Conley. Hosted by everyone's favorite GW Freshman Honors English Teacher Adam "Crazy Legs" Jones!

It's at George Washington High School from 6:30 Pm to 9:30 PM, and it's your chance to check out some of the area's best young talent, including several CYAC vets.

 

The PopCult Gift Guide Kicks Off, Plus WV Indie Filmmakers Fundraising

The PopCulteer
December 9, 2011

This week's PopCulteer sees the beginning of our annual PopCult gift guide. For the next two weeks you can hit up this blog for a daily gift recommendation. We'll point you to books, CDs, toys, and all sorts of bizarre novelty items, all designed to thrill and delight the Pop Culture devotee on your Christmas list. We've also got several local fundraising efforts to tell you about, so let's get on with it...

The PopCult Gift Guide Day One:
Mail-Order Mysteries
by Kirk DeMarais

There are some people who believe that, when you die, every question that you've ever had in your life will be answered. Thanks to Kirk DeMarais you won't have to wait that long for answers to some of the most pressing questions.

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Mail-Order Mysteries is a pretty comprehensive look at all the stuff they used to sell in cheesy ads in comic books. DeMarais has spent years scouring eBay to track down all the cheap, crappy toys, bodybuilding and karate books, rubber masks and other dubious wonders that were so tempting to kids who didn't know any better way back then.

Of course, when you were a kid, you didn't have enough money to send seven bucks in so that you could buy a Nuclear Submarine. Hell, it was tough to scrape up a dollar for a "Monster Size Monster." If you asked your folks they'd tell you it was a rip-off and say "no."

Admit it, since then you've been wondering. How different would your life have been if only you had a six-foot tall Frankenstein? Would ordering from the Johnson Smith catalog make you the coolest kid in school? Would you be wealthy now if you'd been able to get "1,001 Things Free?" Could you have taken a Sea Monkey to the prom?

Monday Morning Art: Evolution of a Tree

This week's Monday morning Art is a digital painting of a Christmas tree. It didn't really start out that way. You can click on the above image to see it larger. After the jump you can see the backwards evolution of how we wound up with this finished image after starting with a random doodle.

Sunday Evening Video: Christmas Toy Parade

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This month in Sunday Evening Videos we're looking back at random and offbeat Christmas memories. This week we're looking back at a shocking holiday toy story. Toy kids say the darnedest things!

What A Weekend

The PopCulteer
December 2, 2011

A Monster Weekend Approacheth

I always hear people complain about how there's nothing to do in Charleston. I think my new stock reaction to that statement will be a swift punch in the face. This weekend in particular, there are so many cool things going on in and around town that it would take a team of bloggers just to make a token appearance at all of them.

This is truly an embarrassment of riches for our smallish metropolis. This week's PopCulteer is devoted to detailing three whirlwind days in Charleston, West Virginia.

Friday

The Contemporary Youth Arts Company will present the final weekend of its 15th annual production of the Scarpelli-Kehde rock opera MARY at 8 pm Friday and Saturday at the WVSU Capitol Center, 123 Summers Street, Charleston.

Monday Morning ArtWalk

The PopCulteer
November 28, 2011

There was no PopCulteer last Friday due to Thanksgiving. However, a special Black Friday edition of ArtWalk took place, and since there's another special ArtWalk this coming Saturday, we're bringing you our mini-PopCult Photo Essay as a bonus Monday PopCulteer.  At right you see Suzy Sketchman at The Purple Moon, plugging next month's Dr. Sketchy's show.

If you like what you see here, be sure to check out these galleries and more after the December 3 Charleston Christmas Parade. This Saturday from Noon to 4 PM.

Participating Galleries-
Art Emporium Gallery
Gallery Eleven
House of Luxe
Modern by Design
Stray Dog Antiques
Taylor Books - Annex Gallery
The Purple Moon
White Oak Photography

For more information visit the ArtWalk website.

Sunday Evening Video: "MARY" Revisited

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Tonight's video comes from the end credits of RFC148. It's Sarah Shlies, as Mary, performing "Child, My Child," from the CYAC rock opera "MARY."  You will have three more chances to see the show after today's 2 PM matinee. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, December 1,2 and 3, at 8 PM at The WVSU Capitol Center Theater, 123 Summers Street in Charleston. We thought it would be cool to bring you this clip without credits rolling over Sarah's face.

"MARY," Frenchy and the Punk Headline RFC 148

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At the head of this post, you will see "Red Popeye Shirt," episode 148 of Radio Free Charleston. This edition of our show is hosted from a very soggy Veteran's Memorial in Nitro, and presents music from the rock opera, "MARY" and Frenchy and the Punk.

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In this episode  we bring you three songs filmed during the rehearsals for the Charleston institution, "Mary." This is the fifteenth production of "Mary" the Scarpelli/Kehde rock opera from The Contemporary Youth Arts Company. We also have a brand new music video from our friends, Frenchy and the Punk, plus animation by Rudy Panucci, and we also have more confusing superhero action from Turkey, in honor of Thanksgiving.

Monday Morning Art: Pepper And Kitty

We're kicking off this week with some digital paintings based on photos taken from last night's edition of Dr. Sketchy's Anti Art Show. Above you see Pepper Fandango and Kitty Killton fed through the Stark Charleston filter. After the jump you'll find digital paintings of each of last night's models.  You can click the imagrs to see them bigger. And you can find a folder with even more images over at the Radio Free Charleston Facebook Page.

PopCult Instant Video: "Mary" Returns For Year 15

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Today we bring you video of a preview performance of the Scarpelli/Kehde Christmas Tradition, the Rock Opera "Mary," presented by The Contemporary Youth Arts Company.  This year is the fifteenth production of what has become a Charleston holiday tradition.

This preview performance of the fiftheenth anniversary production of the Scarpelli/Kehde Rock Opera "Mary" was performed by the cast of "Mary"  at The Charleston Town Center on November 19, 2011 and was posted here in PopCult less than twenty hours later. These four songs from the show feature Donnie Smith as Herod, Jonathan Tucker as Joseph , Sarah Schlies as Mary,  and Maddy Gourevich as the archangel Gabriel and the cast of "Mary."

You can see "Mary" at The WVSU Capitol Center Theater on the following dates:

Friday - Nov 25 at 8 PM
Saturday Nov 26 at 8 PM
Sunday, Nov 27 at 2 PM
and December 1, 2 and 3 at 8 PM

Dr. Sketchy's Does The Fan Dance While Porkchop Does Wal Mart

The PopCulteer
November 18, 2011

Dr Sketchy's Returns

Dr. Sketchy's Anti Art Show returns to The Kanawha Players Theater this Sunday for a very special evening of Burlesque figure drawing. This month the theme is Classic Pin Up poses with The Fan Dance. On the model front, Pepper Fandango returns, and we will see the Dr. Sketchy's debut of cult film star, frequent RFC guest, and The PopCulteer's imaginary daughter, Kitty Killton (Seen right) .

In case you don't know what I'm talking about, Dr. Sketchy's is a DIY figure drawing session that aims to bring the life-drawing experience to the masses.For the lowdown, let's go to the PR: "Can you only draw stick figures? Are you a professional artist? Or are your skills somewhere in-between? Who cares?

Monday Morning Art: Not That Again!

Yep, above you see "Scape No. 105," the latest in the never-ending series of digial paintings indigenous to PopCult. Click it to see it bigger.

Random Images

The PopCulteer
November 11, 2011

Thousands Of Words

Your PopCulteer is a bit swamped this week. I have two magazine articles in the works, another pressing deadline, and I'm preparing for an out of town trip.

This means that you lucky readers are going to get a special treat this week. I have searched my hard drives for cool images that I probably haven't posted here in PopCult yet! That's vintage flyer art for the band, Three Bodies, from 1990, on the right. Most of the images are more recent than that.

On top of that, each image will have a clever, charming and/or educational caption. Since every picture is worth a thousand words, that makes this one of the longest columns I've ever written. At least that's my story.

RFC 147 With Giants, Nerds, Volts, And Superheroes

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Floating at the top of this post you will find Radio Free Charleston 147, "Mighty Avengers Shirt." This installment of our webshow features music by Miniature Giant, Dual Core, Volt 9000 and Disturbing The Peace. We also have animation from Frank Panucci and other weirdness.

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Host segments were shot at a random parking lot in Kanawha City along MacCorkle Avenue. Sometimes we do things on the show for no reason. Like opening with a vintage commercial for Teaberry Gum, for instance.

Monday Morning Art: Dissonance

We kick off this week with a geometric/organic digital abstract painting called "Dissonance."  Click to see it bigger. Check back later Monday to see Radio Free Charleston newest episode, "Mighty Avengers Shirt" with music from Miniature Giant, Dual Core, Volt 9000 and Disturbing The Peace.  Look for it soon!

Sunday Evening Video: Volt 9000

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Tonight's video is "American Machine" by Volt 9000, a Toronto Industrial/Electronica musician.  This video was created by my brother, Frank Panucci a couple of years ago, and we featured it on Radio Free Charleston.  The reason we're bringing it to you tonight is that we have a brand-new collaboration between Frank and Volt 9000 on the next episode of RFC, which will be winging your way Monday. Enjoy!

Halloween Hangover, No Pants Players, Spinach Rant and The Return Of The Quarrier Diner

The PopCulteer
November 4, 2011

HallowEast Revisited

Here we are, a couple of days past dia de los muertos, and Halloween is over for another year. I have to admit, it was hard for me to get into the Halloween spirit this year. I had a bad case of Hallow-ennuin. But I did make it out to a couple of the HallowEast events, and they were loads of fun.

I brought you highlights of the ArtMares exhibit last week in The PopCulteer, but that was before the big reception on Friday with music by Tofujitsu and a special edition of Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art Show. Later Friday night the world premiere of Eamon Hardiman's new epic motion picture, "Porkchops," took place at The Empty Glass.

Zombie Walk 2011

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The East End Zombie Walk, part of HallowEast 3 Freak Out, took place Saturday and that's the video of the event you see right up at the head of this post.  The event was loads of fun. The editing of the video, not so much.  This was supposed to be our Sunday Evening Video, but I had to deal with so many inexplicable technical glitches that it took more than two days to get this beast to fart out of my computer intact.

Many thanks to Chase Henderson for contributing some great video, and to Mark Wolfe for coming up with the idea in the first place. Kudos also to Ric Cavender of East End Main Street, and our talented crew of makeup artists.

Monday Morning Art: Happy Halloween

It's that time of the year again, folks.  Our art for today is a digital painting of Cait Cool, taken from the Dr. Sketchy's session of a couple of weeks ago. Click to see it larger. Check back with PopCult late tonight for video from Charleston's Zombie Walk.

BOO!

The PopCulteer
October 28, 2011

Halloween Weekend

Are you ready to have the crap scared out of you?

It's Halloween time, and that means that there are more things to do in town than a human possibly could.  ArtMares, a horrific art show at Kanawha Players Theater, is still going on with a big reception tonight. Come on down, partake of the free food and booze, then spend your rent money buying art.  We'll be looking at some of the ArtMares art at the end of this PopCulteer.

After that, get yourself over to The Empty Glass. You can witness the world premiere of "Porkchops," the first-ever sequel to a West Virginia-made horror movie.  I'm so enthusiastic that I'm going to quote the Facebook event page:

"We're kicking off the EMPTY GLASS HALLOWEEN HOOTENANNY WEEKEND with the premiere of our latest film PORKCHOPS. Also on the bill are the awesome horror-punk sounds of THE RENFIELDS as well as the hyper-energetic ska-pop-punk horn blasts of THE TOM MCGEES, featuring ex-members of 69 Fingers!

Monday Morning Art: Steampunk Sketchy's

Our art this week comes from a special "Steampunk" edition of Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art show that took place in a very tiny room last Saturday night during Ccharcon at The Charleston House Ramada Inn.  Above you see a digital painting of Susie Sketchman and Elle Xombeah, and below you see another digital painting of Sarkany and Penny Maple. As always, click the images to see them larger.

Sunday Evening Videos: The Beatles Halloween

It's Halloween Season, so let's have fun with The Beatles!

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This last one is not really a Halloween clip, but the lads are wearing costumes...

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October's ArtWalk In Photos and Video

The PopCulteer
October 21, 2011

The big story at last night's ArtWalk was the triple dose of Diller at Taylor Books last night. Brad Diller was on hand, signing copies of his book of cartoons, "The Neighbors Have Two Flamingos," while his brother, Brian, and nephew, Nathan, were performing in Taylor's cafe. When the matriarch of the Diller clan, Polly Diller, showed up, the family reunion was nearly complete,

But that's not all that ArtWalk had to offer. The Charleston Ballet entered the fray with a cool exhibit, Art Emporium had a dazzling show by April Waltz, The Purple Moon offered up a room of way-cool vintage items like the one at the head of this column and the other galleries all made their mark.

We will jump into the photo essay after the "read more" link, right after this PopCult Instant Video of Brian Diller performing an old Stubby Dill classic.

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DILLERMANIA!

Brad, Brian and Nathan Diller will be at Taylor Books during ArtWalk Thursday evening. Brad will be signing copies of his book, and Brian and Nathan will be providing some great music.  We're going to re-present my recent review of Brad's book, and take a look at a 2010 episode of Radio Free Charleston featuring Brian and Nathan to remind you why you should come out to Taylor's and see what all the fuss is about!

The Neighbors Have Two Flamingos

Charleston native and cartoonist extraordinaire, Brad Diller, has released the first collection of his "Funday Morning" cartoons, "The Neighbors Have Two Flamingos." This nifty spiral-bound book collects dozens of his single-panel cartoons from his Funday Morning.com website.

Single-panel cartoons are an under-appreciated art form. With merely one drawing and one caption to create a humorous situation, the cartoonist has to stick firmly to the rule that brevity is the soul of wit. They have to combine a fresh, offbeat perspective with observations that resonate in the reader. Diller does so in a spectacular manner, with a sense of humor that skews off-kilter enough to be genuinely funny, without being so far gone that you worry about the safety of pets living in the area.

Monday Morning Art: Ghouls Night Out

Today's little bit of art is a digital painting based on a photograph taken last night at Dr. Sketchy's Anti-art show's special Halloween edition.  In this photo, Elle Xombeah, Lavender Menace and Penny Maple, terrorize Sarkany, in a classically horrific manner.

I did two versions of this, the Gothic Oil painting above, and the brighter, more lurid painting below. Click on them to see them larger.  And don't be surprised if you see a lot more art from last night's Dr. Sketchy session here in PopCult in the next couple of weeks.



 

Sunday Evening Video: The Walking Dead

Walking Dead

Season two of TV's best episodic zombie show, The Walking Dead starts tonight on AMC, right after a day-long marathon of the first season.

However, there's a little bit more Walking Dead for you. If you've seen the show, then you may remember "Bicycle Girl," a sad zombie from the first episode.

Well, here's a web-only look at her story, uh, it's pretty gory, just in case you're not into that sort of thing...

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Everything Under The Sun, In One Long Post

The PopCulteer
October 14, 2011

Your PopCulteer has a lot of ground to cover this week, so let's dive in, shall we?

A Happy Birdie Story

RFC Big Shot and one of my oldest friends, Brian Young and his wife, Debbie Hunt Young are off on a wonderful adventure. They're going to China to adopt a baby girl, Birdie Ge.That's her over there, see how cute!

This happy occasion has been a long time coming. Back when I first met with Brian at LiveMix Studio almost six years ago, he and Debbie had begun the grueling process of international adoption.

Tons Of Music And Leaves On RFC 146

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Episode 146 of Radio Free Charleston, "Pepper Fandango Shirt," finds us driving around the state looking at the fall colors. We have great music this week with songs from Born of Conviction, John Lancaster, Gabriel, and the cast of Jack The Ripper, plus we have animation from Frank Panucci and an art film by yours truly.

Our host segments were filmed all over West Virginia as Melanie Larch and I made the Charleston-to-Clarksburg-to-Parkersburg-to-Charleston loop so we could check out the changing foilage and basically just take a day away from everything. The trip was a load of fun, and it's still a couple of weeks away from the peak colors, so you might just want to consider making the trip yourself. There are tons of places to stop and linger along the way. It was also nice to show off some of the other areas of the Mountain State in RFC.

Monday Morning Art: Crestfallen

Today's art is one of my exercises in pattern creation, which, in a different hue, was used in the short art film, "Blues no. 1" which you can find in this week's episode of Radio Free Charleston.

Speaking of RFC, our latest show, "Pepper Fandango Shirt" will be posted here, along with full production notes, later tonight. This week we have music from John Lancaster, Born of Conviction, Gabriel and the cast of "Jack The Ripper," plus my art film, animation from Frank Panucci, and a short promo film for HallwEast 3 Freak Out.

You can click the image above to see it larger, and if you can't wait until this evening to see the new show, head over to the RFC Facebook Page, where it just might turn up sooner.

Sunday Evening Video: HallowEast 3 Freak Out

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Check out the HallowEast website for more details.

Randomosity (And Guitars) Abounds

The PopCulteer
October 7, 2011

Your PopCulteer has been swamped a bit this week, and has not had time to finish reading the first month's worth of DC's "New 52." The plan is to wrap this up with a long column next week, two weeks into the second month for some of these books. This week we're going to fire off some random items, including a photo essay on last Monday's Taylor Guitar Roadshow at Route 60 Music in Barboursville.

Just One More

Around a hundred guitar aficianados made a pilgrimage to Route 60 Music in Barboursville last Monday evening for a Taylor Guitars Roadshow. Dozens of the latest Taylor Guitars--a high-end company manufacturng some of the finest instrements on the market--were on display, as Taylor rep, Zacher Arntz and master musician Wayne Johnson (The Manhattan Transfer, Bette Midler) showed off and demonstrated the latest in Taylor Guitar wizardry. It was an informatie and educational night, as Johnson explained in great detail the advantages and uses of each model of Taylor's guitars.

Monday Morning Art: Blue #5

Today's art is an element from "Blues no.1," the short art and music film I posted here a few days ago. It's a detail piece. Detail of what depends on the viewer. Click to see it beigger.

Sunday Evening Video: Time Flies

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Today I began working on episode number 150 of Radio Free Charleston. Don't panic. You haven't missed any. I'm also working on episode 146, which I have delayed until October 10 to take advantage of a great host location, but with a milestone show coming up, I want to be prepared. Anyway, it seems like just yesterday that we hit episode 100. Actually it was less than a year-and-a-half ago.  That means we will have produced almost fifty episodes in the last eighteeen months.  Time flies when you're having fun.

Let's take a look at that previous milestone show, featuring Hellblinki, Eva Elution, The Nanker Phelge, Kitty Killton, Top O' Rock, David Synn and Jeff Ellis, shall we?

Bad Comics

The PopCulteer
September 30, 2011

You may have noticed that your PopCulteer is way behind schedule with his promised reviews of DC Comics New 52. There is a reason for that. Reading and reviewing comics is not quite as much the fun job that I thought it would be.

Let me explain.

I love reading comics, and I love rambling on about comic books. However when I took on the duty of reviewing DC's new 52, that meant that I'd be reviewing comic books that I would not normally waste my time reading. Frankly, some of the new DC Comics first issues are really bad, for a variety of reasons. We have 22 of DC's New 52 left to examine, and today we're going to go all negative and focus on three of the stinkers.

Virtually Porn

Note that this is not "virtual" porn, but virtually porn. DC has released a few titles that might as well be porno comics. There has been a pretty huge outcry on the internet about two of last week's titles, Catwoman and Red Hood and the Outlaws, but there's a candidate for the worst sexploitation comic of the New 52 in this week's releases, too. So let's take a good look at some of the more twisted bits of chaff, shall we?

Catwoman #1
by Judd Winnick and Guillem March

This book is written by Judd Winnick, so we know right off the bat that it's going to be garbage, but cracking it open still reveals a pretty awful experience. The first three pages of the book are nothing more than close-ups of a half-dressed Catwoman running. The close-ups are of her boobs and butt. We don't see her face until page three. It's easy to figure out why the artist took a character who is already wearing a costume that is essentially latex bondage gear, and decided to have the top unzipped so that her bra is exposed during a chase scene, but it's still so blatant that it catches you off guard.

To be fair, the artist does a competent job of copying poses from porn and swimsuit mags, and then drawing what little there is of Catwoman's outfit on them.

Ripper At The Glass

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Tuesday night Mark Scarpelli and Dan Kehde took the orchestra from "Jack The Ripper," along with members of the cast, to The Empty Glass for an unusual and spectacular night of sophisticated and complex music.  Here's a selection from the night the string quartet played the Glass. You have three more chances to see the show, tonight and Friday and Saturday nights at 8 PM at The WVSU Capitol Center Theater. Don't miss the show of the year!

Monday Morning Art: Brawley On Cough Medicine

Today's piece is a digitally-assaulted photograph, an as-yet-unseen still from the "Stark Charleston" project, that shows what it's like to walk through Brawley Walkway while under the influence of cold medicine.  Click the image to see it bigger.

Sunday Evening Videos: Sunday Evening Art

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Tonight's videos are two short art films by your truly.  I had some rare downtime this weekend and cranked out a couple of rather useless little films where I take some music I composed and use it as the background for some pointless zooming around and semi-animation using my digital art. There's a remote possibility that you might enjoy them. At least they're short.

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Two Great Local CDs, Funding Porkchops And Artists, Taking A Stab At Things Plus More Comics

The PopCulteer
September 23, 2011

Great Local Music

One of the challenges I've faced writing this column is reviewing CDs by local artists while trying to maintain a sense of objectivity. Since I know so many musicians through Radio Free Charleston, to present an honest review, I feel the need to explain any connections I might have with the band. In today's PopCulteer, we're going to look at two excellent CDs by two bands that have long histories with me and the show.

InFormation is a band that I first saw over four years ago at the LaBelle Theater in South Charleston. We had them on RFC, and when the band experienced some growing pains and line-up changes, I introduced Curtis Chittenden and Shane Durham to bass player, Roy Graley. The trio has gelled into a major creative force in the area, making music that really stands out, even in a vibrant and diverse music scene such as Charleston's. I'm honored to have played a small part in this band's story.

Cool Comics Covers More Of DC's "New 52"

We are in week three (or four, depending on how you're counting) of the big DC Comics relaunch, and your loyal reviewer is way behind schedule. I still have ten comics from last week to go over, and now we have twelve more this week. The reviews are going to be shorter and a little less detailed, but I'm still going to try and get them all in.

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First there is some news to report on this endeavor. Thus far the gamble has been a huge success, with every book released so far going into at least a second printing, and some of them going into third or fourth printings. This may not be as impressive as it sounds, since some of the more marginal titles had initial print runs below 30,000, but it's still a vast improvement over DC recent sales figures. So in that regard, this has paid off. Whether the new readers stick around has yet to be determined.

Jack The Ripper Does RFC 145

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[caption id="attachment_6612" align="alignright" width="210" caption="Dan Kehde, the writer/director of "Jack The Ripper""][/caption]

This episode of Radio Free Charleston is a major departure: It's a documentary following the 2011 revival of the Dan Kehde/Mark Scarpelli musical, "Jack The Ripper." Produced by The Contemporary Youth Arts Company, this daring and complex piece of musical theater was pulled together in less than six weeks. Included in the show are interviews with Dan and Mark, intercut with "fly-on-the-wall" footage from the rehearsals leading up to opening night.You will also see footage of the original production from 2008, starring Ryan Hardiman. This is rare video that has never been seen by the gneral public before.

Monday Morning Art: Come On Grab Your Friends--Adventure Time At Dr. Sketchy's

Last night Dr. Sketchy's celebrated the coolest show on TV, Adventure Time. Molly Tilly, Cait Cool and Sarah Lane brought Finn the Human, Princess Bubblegum Hair and Marcelene the Vampire to life for a loyal gang of artists who didn't stay home to watch the Emmys or go to the Clay center to see Colbie Callat. It was great fun, and you'll be seeing more from this night when I'm not quite so swamped. Click to see it larger. To see it even larger, put your nose right up to your computer monitor.

A Hot Weekend, A Brisk ArtWalk And Cool Comics

The PopCulteer
September 16, 2011

We've got a pretty packed week behind the scenes at PopCult, so your PopCulteer will rely on the true-tested trick of the photo essay. Last night, ArtWalk snuck up on unsuspectimg Charlestonians. Your PopCulteer had a committment to a top-secret project (we'll let you know more about that as soon as we can) so this month's photos were taken a few hours before the official start of ArtWalk, which is why there are fewer of them and not so many with people.

Before we do the ArtWalk, though, there are some very cool things happening in twon this weekend.

On Sunday, The Empty Glass is holding a benefit for Hospice House.  This is a show that Melanie Larch had a hand in planning, and with the aide of Richard Abdalla and The Empty Glass, it's come together. Starting at 8PM Sunday, a killer line up of musicians, including Pepper Fandango, InFormation, The Diablo Blues Band, Oliver Dawgs, The Scrap Iron Pickers and Hobo & Moe will donate their time and music to a great cause. There will also be raffles throughout the night. 100 % of the proceeds go to Hospice House, and 100% of that goes directly to patient care.