a sketch-fest over at Dennis' place!

Dennis Perrin, biographer of Michael O'Donoghue and all-around comedy head, has posted several of his favorite sketches from Mr. Show, Exit 57, and other YouTube-friendly shows. Check it out!

Solar glass

Okay, things are getting just TOO cool. Now there's a type of glass that generates electricity. Read more about it here. Look out your window at all the high rises with sealed shut, smoked/reflective windows. Now imagine them with solar glass. Then imagine how cheap solar glass would get to make, if it were being produced on that scale. Then imagine the incredible economic incentives that would then exist for its improvement. Big problems do not necessarily have big solutions; many small ones can work, too. The new world is becoming available, folks; all we have to do is ask for it.

"Tickle me" my eye!

Courtesy of my internet-roving wife... Grand mal Elmo? Thrashing orgasm Elmo? Devil-zombie Elmo? Join in the madness here. But don't say we didn't warn you.

My ridiculously talented friends

Two friends of mine have recently had books published, and since they're on topics likely to interest readers of this blog--and I can vouch for their quality--I wanted to encourage everybody to take a look. The books are (in order of publication): A Futile and Stupid Gesture. Doug Kenney was a seminal figure in the revolution that transformed American comedy in the Seventies. After co-writing "Bored of the Rings," Kenney co-founded National Lampoon, co-wrote "Animal House," and created "Caddyshack"--then fell/jumped/was thrown off a cliff in Hawaii. As a fellow Midwesterner, I've always been a rabid Kenney fan, and have been waiting for someone to write this book for decades. Josh Karp conducted over 150 interviews--AND talked humor with me much, much longer than any sane person would--in the course of writing what is likely to be the last word on this mercurial, fascinating, essential figure. Those who know see a big Doug Kenney-shaped hole in the comedy of the 80s, 90s, and today. Anybody the least bit interested in where comedy was in the Seventies--and where it might've gone had people like Kenney and Belushi survived--should buy this book. The Prisoner of Trebekistan. Bob Harris is one of those people who, like Doug Kenney, is too smart to be just funny, and vice-versa. It's not always a comfortable way to be. But all of us who know Bob enjoy the hell out of it, and his relentless intelligence makes him one of the funniest writers around. This book--about Bob's many appearances as a contestant on the game show Jeopardy!--gives him ample room to struct his unique combo of stuff. There are jokes, of course, philosophy, too; even some insights into programming your mind. I read Trebekistan in an early form, and even then it was funny enough to make my testicles shrink up into my body. You, as a non-comedy writer, will probably have a much more pleasant reaction, but there's only one way to find out. Buy it. Here endeth the shameless plugging.

Greatest QB hit ever?

In celebration of the beginning of the NFL season, I present this devastating hit dealt by Chicago Bears LB Wilber Marshall. Frankly, I remember this sort of thing happening regularly between 1984-86. It was fun to be a Bears fan then, lemme tell you. The Bears are playing the Lions this weekend, but you won't see anything like this. And it's a good thing--when I saw it a moment ago, first I whooped, then I threw up into my mouth a little. (It was a complicated emotion.)

St. Olaf vs. Carleton vs. Stutts

Carleton and St. Olaf's, two top-notch liberal arts colleges in Northfield, MN, are betting on wind power. Carleton built their windmill in 2004; in the best spirit of collegiate rivalry, it was only a matter of time before St. Olaf's did the same. These two schools are not the first to erect their own windmills to provide power. That honor rather predictably goes to Stutts, the world's most prestigious university, based in Great Littleton, CT. Unfortunately, Stutts' mammoth, skyline-dominating project was taken off-line last May, after it was discovered that it was actually nuclear-powered. Undeterred, Stutts has just announced a vast network of new power plants located all over the third world. "Each one is totally green," said Stutts President Patrick Manolo Rivington. "By 2020, we're hoping to employ the entire nation of Guinea-Bissau, even the children. Especially the children." Called "Jobs for 50 Million," the new Stutts project has come under fire from human-rights groups. "Chaining poor people to bicycles is simply inhumane," said Gavin Matare of Nicer World. But Rivington is unapologetic. "We want a world where spinning classes aren't just a privilege of the rich."

"Lee Corso Has a Baby Arm"

Did anyone else see that sign during ABC's telecast of the Texas/Ohio State game? Cracked me up. For those of you unfamiliar with the phrase, be enlightened.

Geoffrey Chaucer Hath a Blogge!

Just priceless--anyone who was ever forced to memorize the first bit of Canterbury Tales will enjoy this blog."Serpents on a Shippe," indeed! Just so you know: the post contains "spoilerez".

If you're interested in being green...

...you should surf over to Treehugger.com. Not only does the site keep you up-to-date on all forms of more efficient technology, it also makes you very hopeful that humanity can (and perhaps will) get its act together. Sorry I've been quiet. Just finished a new book.