No way I say!
Apparently, someone out there has come up with “a way” to trick people into hitting the play button early when they are fast forwarding through the commercials recorded content on their Tivo or cable company’s DVR. I guess not everyone out there fully believes that people don’t like to be force-fed commercials for stuff they don’t want or like, when they are watching TV…
Posted in News | 231 Comments »
More sweet TV posters from Mattson Creative, this time for all you Lostophiles.
Pick prints up at *snicker* ABC’s Cafepress page.
Posted in Design | 127 Comments »
Posted in Design | 128 Comments »
The hipster portion of me would like to inform all of you that I only have a television because someone brought one to my apartment once, and I certainly don’t have cable, THANK YOU; while the rest of me happily admits to being a TV lover. What can you do?
Here in Cincinnati, as with much of the rest of the country, Time Warner Cable dominates our television options, and apparently they have refreshed their look. That thing is supposed to be an eye AND and ear…who knew? I always saw some weirdo hieroglyphic.
So it’s basically a trendification/friendlification of the exact same mark as before. That’s fine. I personally rock Cincinnati Bell for my internets and this box looks a lot better than theirs, but something about the applications is just weirding me out.
I guess I just don’t like that illuminati eye watching me so prominently now. It’s hypnotizing but not in a good way for me.
Posted in Design | 173 Comments »
Did you ever start watching a dumb TV show for a laugh, ha ha this show is so stupid, who would ever watch this, and eventually end up genuinely becoming a fan and/or regular non-mocking viewer? I have. I have indeed, and my show was Pokémon.
Recently, some similarly-aged fans created a spectacular fan-trailer for their not-real dramatic big-screen fandaptation of Pokémon. I present to you: Pokémon Apokélypse
Don’t try to tell me that wasn’t totally awesome. Read an interview with the trailer’s creators here.
Posted in Design | 149 Comments »
Imagine all the hype, excitement, and anticipation associated with the Superbowl, World Series, and NBA National Championship combined and make it into a month-long soccer tournament every 4 years. That is pedestal that the World Cup rests on in Europe, which nearly reaches national holiday status in most European countries. Now add a 3D broadcast, and you have a phenomenon.
Sony just announced its “fake 3D” ad campaign for the 2010 World Cup to truly show the audience what they are missing without upgrading to Sony’s new 3D TV, conveniently on sale in the U.K. the day before the first match.
The campaign will show the ads as they appear using 3D broadcasting without the needed technology, creating a grainy, blurry image that can only be corrected if the viewer purchases the TV.
This is, in my opinion, a stroke of marketing genius. Sony has made a name for itself with its 3D movies, such as Alice in Wonderland; however, because 3D DVDs are still a bit of a nuance, Sony could not solely rely on these to create a need for their new 3D TVs.
Instead, Sony has created a market for its product, not unlike Edison did for his radical invention of the light bulb. Ideally, Sony hopes this campaign/product duo will solidify them as the forerunner in 3D technology and TV sets.
Although this campaign will not run in the United States, the mainstream use of 3D technology in advertising no longer seems to be looming in the distant future.
Posted in Technology | 15 Comments »
"I pity the fool who doesn't know the theme to The A-Team!"
What ever did happen to the TV themes we grew up with? I was reminded of this the other day as I was humming the theme to The A-Team with my five year old son. (He has committed most of it to memory now.) In fact, this is such a great theme, when you listen to the new movie trailer, you can pick out the theme from the original TV series. A classic.
It struck me as odd to see only a five second musical chord build and a big letter “V” for the TV series V. In fact, one of the only theme songs I can remember from more modern TV shows is the Law and Order theme. “Who wrote that?”, I thought to myself. Wikipedia credits the theme and most of it’s soundtrack to Mike Post.
I dug deeper into my more formative TV watching years of the 1980s and early 90s:
How about The A-Team?: Mike Post
Hill Street Blues?: Mike Post
Greatest American Hero?: Mike Post
Magnum P.I.?: Mike Post
Prolific Composers Wear Short Shorts
Mike Post, composer of the TV theme song to Magnum, P.I., pictured here with Tom Selleck on a 45 RPM album cover. Permission by R. Masters.
The same goes with LA Law, Quantum Leap, Doogie Howser, MD, NYPD Blue, and just about every successful TV show over the last 30 years. Even if Mike Post didn’t write the opening theme music, he’s scored literally thousands of the soundtracks to many of the TV shows we still watch today. In fact, Mr. Post is also good friends with Stephen J. Cannell, the creator of over 40 TV series.
So my question is this: Without Post and Cannell, would the extinction of the TV theme song have taken place even sooner? Perhaps, but in today’s world where networks forgo the intro theme to fit in another :30 TV commercial for profit, I believe there is still a place for a TV theme song, the kind that you can remember and hum along with your five-year old son. Perhaps TIVO and DVR technology will help, and the true value of the intro theme music will be appreciated once again. Until then…
Thanks for the memories, Mr. Mike Post.
Posted in Uncategorized | 184 Comments »
So our little city is well-known for its chili. (We love it here at HQ.) To many folks, it’s not really chili, but that’s a whole other story.
The thing about chili in Cincinnati is there are factions of fans here that almost religiously support one establishment, never setting foot in a competitor. This has made for an interesting competition between the two main players, Skyline and Goldstar.
It looks like someone is trying to take that rivalry to the next level and settle once and for all, who the true Cincinnati chili champion is.
I’d like to go on record and state that I’m biased on the topic, but am psyched to see that people are lobbying for the Travel Channel’s ‘Food Wars’ to come to Cincinnati for a throwdown, Cincinnati Chili Style. Apparently, there were more requests on the “Food Wars” website for a Cincinnati Chili episode than for any other city or any other type of food, according to a story on Cincinnati.com.
Our city is becoming quite well known for its culinary delights, as Food Network’s “Diners, Drive Ins and Dives” with Guy Fieri was recently in town, and tiny OTR diner Tucker’s was named one of the best diners in the country by GQ Magazine (March 2009 issue).
We keep trying to tell you, there is fun stuff going on in Cincinnati. Come visit, you’ve always got a place to stay at HyperQuake.
Posted in Uncategorized | 248 Comments »
