12/01/08

Where on the Web?

Like everything else, I want my pop culture delivered to me through the Internet. But the more I talk to my fellow Valley residents, the more I realize that some people are lost when it comes to finding the good stuff online. Luckily, I'm here to help.

Posted at 08:33 AM | Permalink | Comments: 0

11/23/08

The Westchester Baby-Name Generator for Celebrities

Over the weekend, Ashlee Simpson and Pete Wentz had a baby, and in true celebrity fashion they gave it an unusual name: Bronx Mowgli. Yes, that's Bronx, as in the borough, and Mowgli, like the protagonist of The Jungle Book.

Posted at 05:59 PM | Permalink | Comments: 0

11/17/08

The Simpsons: Who's Next?

I know many of you have given up on watching The Simpsons, so you might have missed a cameo by a fellow Valleyan this past Sunday. Pleasantville resident Will Shortz was the latest to get transported into Springfield — and he ran a Simpsons-themed crossword puzzle this Sunday as a tie-in.

In the episode, Lisa becomes a crossword fanatic (or "cruciverbalist" for the initiated) and enters a local tournament. Here's a clip:

Posted at 01:59 PM | Permalink | Comments: 0

11/10/08

Where are the Oscar Movies?

What's going on? Usually by now, we're drowning in a schedule of awesome Oscar-bait movies and fun holiday-event films. Is it me, or is this November a little… weak?

Posted at 09:59 AM | Permalink | Comments: 0

11/03/08

Election Mania!

After two long years of campaigning, the election is finally here. By now, you (hopefully) know who you're voting for — if not, what's wrong with you? — and you've even researched all those pesky down-ticket races that aren't even lampooned on Saturday Night Live. You go into the booth. You pull those retro levers. (They may be antiquated, but at least they leave a paper trail.) Now what?

Posted at 02:17 AM | Permalink | Comments: 0

10/28/08

The Joker & Sarah Palin

There are few metrics by which we can judge popular culture, but Halloween costumes come close. The general rule of thumb is that the more of a certain character you see popping up at Halloween parties, the more prevalent that character is in pop-culture-land.

Posted at 01:59 PM | Permalink | Comments: 0

10/21/08

Is the Valley Humorless?

I think of the Valley as being many things but, for some reason, it just doesn't make me laugh. Compare the typical Valley weekend to the experience I had in Chelsea on Sunday.

First off, I went to a performance of improv comedy at one of my favorite places in the world, the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater on 26th St. There, for just seven bucks, I was treated to an hour of fully improvised comedy done by performers from VH1 and The Colbert Report. In the past, I've seen an assortment of cast members from

Posted at 01:57 AM | Permalink | Comments: 0

10/14/08

The Music Industry Keeps Trying

With the stock market plunging and the financial system being turned on its ear, are you ready to divest from the Dow and put your money into a different get-rich-quick scheme — I mean, investment? The music biz hopes you are.

Well, not all of the music business. Specifically this one enterprising website, SongVest. SongVest has snookered some songwriters into auctioning off a percentage of their royalties to the highest bidder. Were you to become such a bidder, your investment would switch from stocks to songs, and your dividends will become quarterly royalty checks.

So far, surprisingly, it's the country musicians who have signed on most heavily to this paradigm-shifting idea. Yes,...

Posted at 09:45 AM | Permalink | Comments: 0

10/07/08

Stop Complaining About SNL

From Botox to booties, a lot of people in this area are concerned with maintaining the appearance of youth. Yet how ever you might look on the outside, don’t forget that your thoughts and opinions about popular culture might give away your true age. For example — no matter how much you might love Richard Gere — if the movie Nights in Rodanthe appealed to you in any way, there's no way you're under 40. (And if you're the type to lie about your age, lie about your movie choices, too: say you saw Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist instead.) Similarly, if you saw

Posted at 07:12 AM | Permalink | Comments: 0

09/29/08

Local Musician Part of Weezer’s “Hootenanny”

I’ve been a fan of Weezer ever since they came out with “Buddy Holly” and “(Undone) The Sweater Song” back when I was in middle school. You can imagine my jealousy when I found out that, last week, Pleasantville musician Alex Yacovelli got to play with the band onstage at Madison Square Garden. I badgered him for all the juicy details so I could live vicariously through him.

Yacovelli, who is currently a vocal performance major at NYU, entered the contest to play onstage with Weezer though 107.1 The Peak — and he came very, very close to not winning. In order to enter, he filmed himself singing the Weezer song “El Scorcho,” along with the intro about what the song means to him, and uploaded it to the radio station’s website....

Posted at 10:51 AM | Permalink | Comments: 0