Playing Games

Hey, Dave McGee, here. I’ve been wanting to do reviews of games for a long time, now, and RJ’s been kind enough to give me some space to do it. I’m sure nothing could possibly go wrong with this.

A little about myself, first. I’m over the hill, married, have a couple offspring, and have been playing games for as long as I can remember – all kinds of games; video games, board games, role-playing games, miniatures, cards, drinking, athletic – you name it, I’ve played it, or some form of it.

I think I started playing games with Monopoly. My folks used to play it, and I might have been four when I first played it. From there, I played all the popular ones: Checkers, Chess, Trouble, Parcheesi, Life, Clue, Sorry!, etc.

One morning, I found Tank Battle under the Christmas tree – and then it started. I loved any kind of game that had to do with war and battle. I had more plastic army men than would fit in a Hefty bag. As far as I was concerned, nothing could be better.

I was wrong; while on vacation at Niagara Falls, we sat down at a table in our hotel lobby. It had a television screen set into the top. Pong. Several dollars worth of quarters later, and Dad bought us a Telstar for Christmas. We played the bejesus out of Pong, Tennis, and Squash. Video games were my new obsession.

After Star Wars came out (yeah, the original – I’m that old), video games got cooler. Space Wars, Space Invaders, Asteroids, Pac-Man, Defender – all those ate my hard-earned paper route money (anybody even remember the Bulletin?). My father was concerned that I was blowing all my money at the arcade; so much so that he bought me an Atari (the 2600, baby). Unfortunately, that only fed the addiction. It provided a fall-back once I ran out of cash for the week.

At around age 14, my buddy introduced me to Dungeons & Dragons, by TSR. Then the quarters went to the latest module, rulebook, dice, miniatures, edition and gallons of soda and bags of snacks. We wasted many hours and lots of money that could have, otherwise, been spent dating girls on Friday and Saturday nights. We were sick, but we succumbed to the vice like lambs to the slaughter.

After graduating high school, I did a stint in the United States Air Force.  I found many like-minded folks, and we played games like Car Wars, Axis & Allies, Warhammer 40,000, Aftermath!, Laser Tag, Paint Ball, and, of course, Air War.  At least, this time, I managed to get some dating in there.

When I left the Air Force, I came back to the Philly area, tried to re-join the group, but many of the group had moved and moved on.  I needed a new group of folks with which to play games.  I bought a Sega Genesis, and got lost in all the cool new graphics and gameplay.  I got the CD-ROM attachment.  I got the cable-TV attachment, through which you could download and play games every month!  HEAVEN!  I bought a computer, and discovered computer gaming.  Along with the really cool games coming out at that time (Dune, Civililzation, Strip Poker, Command & Conquer, Total Annihilation, all the Madden titles), the internet only added to the experience.  But, I missed the group setting.

I found my good buddy, Jeff Dodge, on the internet.  We had a common interest in games, and we found others of the same ilk.  Now we have a regular group of gamers numbering close to twenty, and game three, four, five times a month (sometimes more).  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been pwned, and I’m no 1337, but I love playing games.  It’s fun.  It’s a great hobby.  It is one of my most fervent wishes that gaming becomes as popular in this country as it is in other parts of the world, like Europe.  I hope to pass on the love to my kids (my wife just won’t buy into it).  I don’t ever see myself stopping, and will play just about anything these days.  I have a large library, almost an entire lifetime of experiences and a desire to share my opinions – I love the internet.

Talk to you, soon.

An Amazing Life Story, A Personal Perspective & A New Inspiration

 I’m sure those of you that are truly familiar with the story of Woodstock 69 have heard of Artie Kornfeld.  Artie Kornfeld was not only one of the key minds behind the greatest rock concert and peaceful event in history (Woodstock 69) but continues to be a driving force in charities and inspirational events across the globe. This is a man who was VP of rock at Capitol Records, worked with artists like The Beatles, Bruce Springsteen, Pink Floyd & Neil Young but still never lost sight of what was important…helping those in need. Even today, he is working on a new foundation to help recovering addicts.

Artie has new book coming out “The Greatest Peaceful Event in History” and I think we owe it to him to help get the word out about his book. After all, he did give generations the gift of a music milestone. With the 40th anniversary of Woodstock on the horizon, this is a perfect time to show your appreciation and support so please copy and repost this into your “notes”, forward it to your friends, post it in on your blog, etc..

You can visit Artie’s official website at :

http://www.artiekornfeld-woodstock.com

 

source- vinnie colella

Want some vintage Kiss photo’s?

If your a Kiss fan, check out this killer website: http://www.vintagekissphotos.com It has one of the largest collections of Kiss photos. Most are from exclusive never before seen shots! Photo’s from the earlier years like 1973 all the way up until 1981. If your a die hard Kiss fan, you won’t want to miss this- you won’t be disappointed.

Join the Guerilladelphia Girls

Ladies, do you want to join This Is Some Scene writing about film, television, music, books or anything else in the entertainment world? Now you can be part of a unique society online – The Guerilladelphia Girls. If you are interested, email This Is Some Scene at info@thisissomescene.com and we will set you up immediately with a username and password so you can start posting today.

JAWS First Time on TV ABC Special – 1979

 
 

Jaws ABC Special – 1979

A Big Thanks goes out to Erik Hollander from The Shark is Still Working for finding this gem.  This opening for the television premiere of Jaws aired back in 1979 and just makes me giddy and super nostalgic. I miss my youth

 

 

Missing My Mego Iron Man

My anticipation for Marvel’s Iron Man movie coming out May 2nd has me thinking a lot about my favorite Iron Man toy I had as a kid. The Mego Iron Man was part of the World’s Greatest Superheroes line. A lot of people were not big fans of Iron Man, I always had a fascination with him. His armored costume, that light on his chest and he was a drunk, ya know. That’s a fault that made him very human. If you are a child of the 70s there is no doubt Mego touched your life with many of their great toys. But what happened to Mego? What’s the history?

Mego (pronounced Mee-Go) began as a small toy manufacturer in the 1950’s, but didn’t get into the Action Figure market until 1971. They tapped into the market trying to cash in on the success of Hasbro’s GI Joe. They opted for a smaller, less expensive toy. They settled on a new design, the result was 8″ of drastic plastic: Action Jackson! Soon after, Mego licensed the rights to various comic book, television, and movie characters, all to varying degrees of success. Their largest mistake, however, came from not licensing a property. In 1977, they were offered toy rights to a little known film called “Star Wars.” Kenner Toys ultimately got the rights, and a toy legend was thus created. Mego continued on, and tried to copy the success of Kenner’s Star Wars line by introducing figures in both the 3 3/4″ scale and the 12″ size. None of this seemed to matter, however, and Mego eventually went bankrupt in 1982.

Mego’s legacy, however, remains as a symbol of a once dominating toy company. Any child who came of age in the 1970’s will remember owning a Mego or two, and if not, then they certainly had friends who did. There’s no way to know for sure how many Megos were made, but the number must be staggering. Some estimates put peak annual production at 12 million units. Even halving that number is astounding, considering the 8″ figures were in production for over 10 years. That 60 million Megos.

Sadly, I don’t have my Mego Iron Man anymore or any Mego toy in fact. I think soon I’ll have to take a trip to eBay and see what he’s going for these days. If you want to take a trip down memory lane or if you are younger and you want to see what cool toys look like there is only one place you need to go to online – The Mego Museum.

The Smartest Toy Robot In The World

In 1978 the world was introduced to the smartest toy robot in the world, 2-XL. Now you can revisit 1978 through the miracle of the Internet. The link below will take you to the 2-XL simulator where you can plug it, put in the 8-track tape and answer the actual questions from the original demo tape.

2-XL was made by Dr. Michael J. Freeman, Ph.D, an inventor with an interest in educational robots. 2-XL’s basic function was to teach, hence his name, “To Excell.” However he did it in a way that was entertaining for both children and adults. 2-XL could ask questions, tell jokes, play games and puzzles, and even had an interactive game called “Tri-Lex,” which was a cross between checkers and tic-tac-toe. He was not only educational and entertaining, but he was friendly too, and played some pretty cool music (although his singing, by his own confession, was pretty bad).

Play 2XL Online

2-XL shirts and gifts click on the shirt image.

Johnny Sokko and his Giant Robot are back!

Recently I found Internet gold with Hulu.com. Somehow this site has managed to load up with a wide selection of televison shows and movies for your viewing pleasure and all for FREE!

One of the nostalgic gems on this list is Johnny Sokko and his Giant Robot.

With the success of the Godzilla and Gamera movies Japanese TV began to produce similar properties. Ultraman was one of the first (and longest lived) series. Premiering on American syndication in 1969, Johnny Sokko was based on a popular manga called Giant Robo. The show followed the adventures of young Johnny, who after gaining control of a giant flying robot, is recruited by the Japanese super-spy agency UNICORN to help defend Earth against an invasion from the planet Gargoyle. The Gargoylians are led by the evil squid-headed Emperor Guillotine. Among Guillotine’s chief henchmen are the silver skinned Dr. Botanus, The Executionor, Harlequin, and Spider. The Gargoyle troops appear to be a combination of Nazis and Beatniks in drab gray uniforms with cool Ray-Ban glasses and sporty black berets with skull symbols. The Gargoyles deploy a variety of Godzilla-type monsters to fight Giant Robot.

I have become addicted to Hulu.com, rewatching shows from the past and catching up on shows that I missed the first time around. First free internet porn now this! I love technology.

Confessions of a toy-junkie (Part 1)

Confessions of a toy-junkie (Part 1)By Chris Blake Sasser I love toys and I have to be honest I don’t mind admitting it. There’s no shame there. I’m also a 70’s kid. I only just missed being a “Monster Kid” of the sixties. But perhaps I was lucky. The Aurora Monster kits were still around and I had ‘em! Plus, there were so many neat toy treats that came out during that fine decade when I was kid, I think I did just fine.What follows is look back some of my favorites from that time periods I won’t bother to get into the whole Star Wars thing – that was something that completely unto itself. Star Wars changed toys and that phenomenon continues on to this day. So instead, I shall focus on some of the classics that inspired me. 1. MEGO ACTION FIGURES (Mego) 

Still the most playable action figures ever. And what an assortment of characters! Both Marvel and DC Super Heroes! Monsters! Pirates! The frickin’ Wizard of Oz! And perhaps best of all, Planet of the Apes! What more could a young imagination ask for?

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2. HUGO, MAN OF 1000 FACES (Kenner)What an ingenious, if not creepy toy concept! You never see anything like this for kids today. No way. Hugo- a character with no back story or history to speak of. Is he an actor? A top secret spy? A mad villain bent on world domination? Only the child’s imagination knows for sure! The strange little bald man can be disguised with an array of scars, eyes, noses, chins, teeth and hair. It was the greatest! Maybe it’s just me, but I think it is high time for a Hugo motion picture.

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3. GRE-GORY, BIG BAD VAMPIRE BAT (Mattel)Here’s another terrific toy I can’t believe they made, but so darn glad they did. Ol’ Greg was a large rubber bat who came in a beautifully illustrated box which claimed the Bat you love to hate! Press his back! See blood flow in his chest! Shake him and his wings flap! And it’s all true! He boasted a whopping 15 inch wingspan and had a plastic window in his chest where one could indeed see blood flow when pumping the button located on his back. Plus his feet were made so he could hang upside down. Wonderful.

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4. CASTLE DRACULA FUNHOUSE COLORFORMS (Colorforms)Colorforms. You had to love ‘em. But there was one set that was heads and fangs above the rest. Forget your Snoopy colorforms. Forget even your Spidey colorforms, because we’re talking Castle Dracula here, kiddies. Drac, Frankie, Wolfie, Creature, Phantom and even the Mummy. They are all here; lovingly and rather humorously rendered. The artwork on this set is just gorgeous.There are three floors of fun to be had on the Castle play board along with several doors (or caskets!) to open up and hide colorform characters behind. Plus, you could put Gillman in a bathtub with a rubber duckie! It doesn’t get better than this! 

The Book Mobile Report

The Book Mobile Report

By Chris Blake Sasser

MOVIE MONSTERS Monster Make-up & Monster Shows to put on By Alan Ormsby 80 Pages Scholastic 1975

I don’t know what goes on in elementary schools these days, but I can recall a time, a far more innocent time when grade schoolers would have book fairs, visits by the Bookmobile or look forward to ordering printed gems from Weekly Reader flyers.

It was a particularly magic period because thanks to folks like Thomas Alyesworth and Don Glut, there was almost always a classic movie monster book to look forward to. There were even monster themed kids books such as Norman Bridwell’s classic How to Care for Your Monster to devour by monster loving youngsters.

But at the top of the heap was Alan Ormsby’s Movie Monsters. Ormsby as you may know has gone on to become a successful filmmaker, boasting a resume which includes such films as Death Dream, Deranged, Children Shouldn’t Play With Dead Things, The Cat People ‘82 and Pop Corn. He’s been a screenwriter, actor, make-up man, producer and director. But in 1975 he was author and illustrator of an exceptional children’s book.

The first portion of Ormsby’s Movie Monsters focuses upon all the classic ghouls. Dracula, Frankenstein, The Wolfman, The Creature and many more all covered in loving detail. There’s even a section on Young Frankenstein! The tricks of the trade are revealed to young readers as Ormsby explains just how these fearsome monsters were brought to life on the screen.For second portion of the book, Ormsby sparks the child;s creative impulse by providing handy recipes for creating do-it-yourself monster make-ups: Warts, blood and scars! Melting man and Mummy’s hands! Dracula, Blacula, Wolfman and the Bride! They’re all here including my favorite, The Brown Bag Frankenstein! 

The recipes are all lovingly illustrated by the author who also provides tips of where to find the required ingredients inexpensively. But wait! There’s still more! Ormsby encourages young monster fans to stage their own monster play, even supplying a creative little script to follow. Believe me, this book is a true treat for monster lovers. It was a source of inspiration at an early age and still holds a beloved spot on my bookshelf to this day.