The Winnebago Man Gets His Own Movie

I recently went to the Rooftop Films screening of "Winnebago Man", a documentary about the Angriest RV Salesman in the World. Jack Rebney is the star of one of the original viral videos; a VHS of outtakes from a 1989 industrial for Winnebago that was duped and passed around until it ended up on YouTube in 2005, turning him into an international sensation.

Ben Steinbauer's indie doc "Winnebago Man" tracks down the reclusive Rebney and, in the process, ends up being a fascinating rumination on internet celebrity. The real-life Rebney is a bit of a puzzle at first but as the filmmaker gets him talking he reveals himself to be something of a noble and even tragic figure. But he also is just as profane and hilarious as his internet persona, if not moreso. Congrats to my friend Joel Heller who produced this doc. "Winnebago Man" is currently doing the festival circuit but hopefully will be released commercially soon.

"Look At Me, I'm Dancing!"

On Saturday, I was watching Channel 13's weekly old movie, the 1945 classic "Anchors Aweigh". This film is most famous for one of the Hollywood's first combos of live action and animation as Gene Kelly does a dance number with Jerry the mouse. Last season, "Family Guy" did a wonderful remake of this number with baby Stewie subbing for the rodent. Brilliant!

Here's the original clip from the show and below, a side-by side comparison from YouTube. Gene and Stewie are two of my favorite things so putting them together is like an awesome entertainment sandwich! Either way you watch, it's guaranteed to get your Monday off to a good start.

Porky's: Where Are They Now?

Meat became an insurance agent, the basketball coach coach a Broadway star and the howling, sexually crazed cheerleading chick known as Lassie turned out to be Kim Cattrall! (No surprise there) Moviefone has a nifty little roundup of the cast of my first R-rated movie as well as some great then/now pics. They have also posted the disturbing news that Porky's is being thrown in the studio sausage grinder. That's right...."Porky's: The Next Generation" will hit screens in 2011. Oink.

The Fairy Schedule

There is a new website up just in time for summer weekends that combines the LIRR schedule and the Fire Island ferries schedule for the Pines and the Grove. Genius. There is even an app that you can get for your iPhone that has the same info. Now all you need to do is find a friend's house with an extra chaise lounge to crash on. :)

Anderson Cooper's Mom Is Kind Of A Perv

Anderson Cooper's 85 year old mom, who used to be known as Gloria Vanderbilt, has just come out with an erotic novel entitled "Obession: An Erotic Tale". There's an article in today's TIMES that profiles her and includes some extremely weird and semi-racy excerpts from her debut novel, which is about a woman who is obsessed (duh) with her dead husband's erotic letters from a maybe-mistress. Check it out:

There are scenes involving dildos, whips, silken cords and golden nipple clamps, not to mention an ebony, smooth-backed Mason Pearson hairbrush purchased at Harrods. As the book explains, spanking with a Mason-Pearson is a “serious matter,” not the kind of thing that is rewarded with the “luscious afterglow of warm cocoa butter.” Mint, cayenne pepper and a fresh garden carrot are deployed in the book in ways never envisioned by “The Joy of Cooking.”

This sounds like it could be riotous out-loud beach reading, but actually erotic? Doubting it. One of the funnier things in the TIMES profile was the fact that a couple of her upper class friends advised her against writing this book, saying it would "ruin her reputation". Unfortunately, I think that happened back in 1980 when Ms. Vanderbilt (at a sprightly 54) was featured in TV ads sporting a pair of extremely tight jeans, a look which was then considered borderline slutty (see "Foxes"). As for Anderson's feelings about his mom's new, uhm, interests there is this direct quote:

“The six most surprising words a mother can say to her son are: ‘Honey, I’m writing an erotic novel.'"

I Heart Kathy Griffin

Kathy Griffin was on Larry King last night and she was a riot! Now I know that she makes fun of celebrities who are often some of the easiest targets around these days (Carrie Prejean anyone?). But seriously, this woman makes me laugh out loud. And her Bravo show "My LIfe on the D-List" is hilarious as well. Though I don't know how long she can keep saying she's on the D-List. In my book, she's totally B+. :)

Here's the first part of her chat w/Larry last night. If you can't get enough, part two is also on You Tube.

Flag Waving On The Evening News

I will admit that I am possibly the only person under the age of 60 who actually watches the network's evening newscasts. Compared to the Crisis News Network (aka CNN) and other even more hysterical cable news outlets, I still find some of the most informative and level-headed reporting about the day's events resides on these broadcasts. And, unlike Fox News, they are about as close to "fair and balanced" that you will find on a mainstream outlet.

So I was slightly disturbed to notice that recently both the CBS Evening News and NBC's Nightly News have been featuring the American flag as a somewhat prominent backdrop for their openings as well as more in-depth news segments towards the end. I don't have anything against the flag but what is it doing as the backdrop for the evening news? Have the networks finally taken all those complaints about their leftist, anti-American leanings to heart, brandishing the flag as some sort of defense from this inane criticism?

IMHO, it seems to be there as a subliminal message of patriotism, saying that we may report bad news about Iraq, Afghanistan, Guantanamo Bay, et al but hey, we still love our country, dammit! But is this sort of flag waving appropriate on the supposedly independent and objective evening news? Just askin'....

Accidentally Gay Married

In what appears to be a small but growing trend, a gay couple here in NYC were accidentally married, according to an article in today's New York POST. The girl picture here on the right is actually a boy, with a boy's name (Jason!), but in a classic bureaucratic screw-up, no one quite noticed the bride was a dude. Which is maybe understandable looking at the picture. Less so when you think that the city might have some records on exactly what sex you are.

A similar "whoops" happened in Tennessee when two guys, one in jail who was claiming to be a woman, got married last year. It took the state a year to figure that one out.

So, given the questionable status of legal gay marriage, in California and New York State and across the country as the Obama Administration shockingly defends DOMA, your best bet might be to find a nice set of pumps and a colorful summer skirt and see how far you can get through the system.

Figment Festival On Governor's Island

If you're looking for something unique to do this weekend, check out the Figment Arts Festival on Governor's Island. I was out on "The Island" (as I like to phrase it) last weekend for a bike tour and it's a pretty amazing place; a beautiful abandoned Coast Guard base/ghost town just 10 minutes by ferry from Lower Manhattan. This weekend Figment will be turning the island into a living work of art with participation encouraged (i.e. an artsy Mini-Golf course on the theme "City of Dreams"). The festival runs Friday, Saturday and Sunday and the ferry leaves from the terminal right next to where the Staten Island Ferry departs. Oh--and it's all free, the perfect recessionary activity.

On An All Time High

Back in the early '90s when nightlife was semi-dangerous, I was invited to an outlaw party on the High Line, an abandoned stretch of elevated rail that ran through the then-industrial western part of Chelsea. By the time I got there, the party had been broken up by the cops so I never made it up to the tracks. Well, after 15-some years, I finally got up to there yesterday for a stroll on the first section of the newly renovated High Line park.

The new and improved High Line is a beautiful and unique addition to the city's burgeoning public parks; a clever mix of the old (railroad ties and wildflowers) and the new (a suspended amphitheater with a striking view straight up 10th avenue). It took nearly a decade of organizing, fundraising and building for Rob Hammond and Joshua David's dream of a new High Line to become reality. But it was well worth the wait. It provides a view of the city you've never seen before as you float 30 feet off the ground surrounded by a meticulously landscaped urban garden.

If I have any complaint, it's that the High Line currently stops after just 8 blocks at 20th Street. The next section is due to open in mid-2010 which will bring the park up to 30th Street. If you'd like to see what it looks like, there is beautiful slide show on the TIMES website (where this image is from). Or, if you'd like to walk it yourself, it's now open daily from 7am to 10pm. Outlaw parties start promptly at midnight--KIDDING! :) For more, info check out the official High Line website.