Reber Clark - Music and Movies

Lovecraft Paragraphs the Full Movie Streaming now on YouTube!

2012-01-16T14:16:00.002-06:00

Lovecraft Paragraphs - the full movie, is now streaming on YouTube.

Please Click Here to view it!

Lovecraft Paragraphs to begin streaming soon

2012-01-15T22:39:00.000-06:00

Hi all.

I just finished uploading my short movie Lovecraft Paragraphs to YouTube tonight. It will be released for free streaming soon. I'll post when it's ready. Please be gentle.

New Band Music Album (New Album - Old Music)

2012-01-12T16:43:00.001-06:00

Hi Everybody,

I've got a new album up on bandcamp.com - it's not Lovecraft oriented but it's free! - Cheers and Happy New Year!

New! Tracks for The Call of Cthulhu by the H. P. Lovecraft Literary Podcast!

2011-11-03T13:08:00.008-05:00

Five NEW tracks that were composed specifically for the H. P. Lovecraft Literary Podcast’s production of The Call of Cthulhu are now available for download.

Click on the picture above or click here to browse or buy on BandCamp.com!

Click here to browse or buy on Amazon.com!

Additional tracks used in the production are available at bandcamp.com on the albums Lovecraft Paragraphs and At the Mountains of Madness

The additional tracks are also available on Amazon.com at Lovecraft Paragraphs and At the Mountains of Madness

Click here for a free download of the track Cthulhu Blues by Blind Lemon Jermyn

The Call of Cthulhu – by H. P. Lovecraft, a reading by Andrew Leman – was produced by Chad Fifer.

Hugo - Martin Scorsese

2011-10-23T20:36:00.002-05:00

An ad runs before the trailer I think - sorry.

Everything's Amazing and Nobody's Happy

2011-10-21T14:09:00.001-05:00

No Comment (HA HA!)

2011-10-18T01:11:00.002-05:00

All Hallows Read

2011-10-15T23:20:00.001-05:00

This Halloween give someone a scary book! It's a great idea by author Neil Gaiman for a new tradition.

Here's the website: http://www.allhallowsread.com/

What if Computer Problems Were Real?

2011-09-29T13:00:00.002-05:00

Amazing Water Fountain!

2011-09-13T13:52:00.000-05:00

Sailing Season Nearing End

2011-09-01T23:14:00.000-05:00

Now that sailing season in Wisconsin is nearing it's end I will have more time to update this darn blog thing. Over the next few weeks I hope to get back up to speed. Yay Fall!

POLAND?!

2011-07-13T11:20:00.000-05:00

I just realized I've posted two things from Poland, of all places, recently. Why this is only the Powers That Be know.

Realtime Pacific Ocean in Poland

2011-07-13T00:02:00.000-05:00

tele-present water from david bowen on Vimeo.

1/1/11, 1/11/11, 11/1/11, 11/11/11

2011-06-29T23:04:00.000-05:00

This year we're going to experience four unusual dates 1/1/11, 1/11/11, 11/1/11, 11/11/11 and that's not all!

Take the last two digits of the year in which you were born - now add the age you will be this year The results will be 111 for everyone in whole world!

It is explained in Chinese Feng Shui.

It's a mystery. Good Luck to us all!

(I got this from someone else's post. Thought it was rather interesting.)

Amazing Summer Solstice Launch in Poland

2011-06-28T09:59:00.001-05:00

Pixar - BRAVE

2011-06-27T13:39:00.001-05:00

Lovecraft Paragraphs Trailer Hits 1000 on YouTube!

2011-06-27T10:39:00.002-05:00

The trailer for my movie Lovecraft Paragraphs has now passed 1000 hits on YouTube! The original soundtrack is avaliable worldwide at reberclark.bandcamp.com.

I am very close to a re-edit and up-rez to HD on this movie. There are many changes in the works so that it can be released as a DVD or BluRay disc (and possibly a download). Stay tuned.

Be sure and watch this trailer in HD!

I Gots T' Clean Up This Page

2011-06-23T20:01:00.002-05:00

Things are getting a bit crowded here. I gots t' clean this here page up purty soon.

DOWNLOADS NOW AVAILABLE INTERNATIONALLY!

2011-06-21T16:10:00.002-05:00

NEW! NEW! NEW!

My music AT THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS, sketches for the H. P. Lovecraft Literary Podcast is now AVAILABLE FOR WORLDWIDE INTERNATIONAL DOWNLOAD at reberclark.bandcamp.com!

Also available are the original soundtrack for Lovecraft Paragraphs and the FREE single Cthulhu Blues!

International Inquiries

2011-06-15T20:44:00.002-05:00

I'm getting some international inquiries into sales of my MP3 downloads on AMAZON.com. Apparently the recordings are not available outside the US - something I was not aware of until recently. So I am thinking of listing them with a service such as CDBaby.com or something.

That way international listeners could download my stuff as well as USA listeners.

I can sort of understand why a physical product such as a CD might be restricted, maybe "affected" is a better word, by national borders and their accompanying tariffs and agreements but cannot fathom why downloads would be.

So if I list with CDBaby.com it may take a little additional time for my stuff to become available, but the potential audience would be wider. One drawback is that to list on CDBaby costs a bit of money - AMAZON listings are free of charge.

Please send me input on this. I will make a decision next week.

Click here for My Amazon Stuff

Texting at the Alamo Drafthouse

2011-06-08T17:44:00.004-05:00

One thing I really really REALLY hate is phone screens lighting up FOR ANY REASON at a movie theatre.

The Alamo Draft House in Austin, Texas takes care of it this way with their own in-house, on screen, PSA using the offender's own after-the-fact voicemail:

<p>&amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Just&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;gt;</p>

Dramatic Readings by Richard Dreyfuss from the iTunes EULA

2011-06-08T12:40:00.002-05:00

I love these:

Dramatic Readings by Richard Dreyfuss from the iTunes EULA

(End User License Agreement)

I especially like "Damages" and "Effective Until".

Great stuff.

At the Mountains of Madness - NOW AVAILABLE!

2011-06-07T18:04:00.005-05:00

At the Mountains of Madness - Sketches by Reber Clark for the H. P. Lovecraft :Literary Podcast is now available from Amazon.com!

27 tracks in all! Click here to browse or buy for only $8.99!
Individual tracks are only $.99 each!
Buy the MP3 album for only $8.99 and save $17.44 over buying single tracks!

At the Mountains of Madness

2011-06-02T12:25:00.008-05:00

At the Mountains of Madness - Sketches for the H. P. Lovecraft Literary Podcast is now available from Amazon.com.

27 tracks in all!
Individual tracks are only $.99 each!
Buy the MP3 album for only $8.99 and save $17.44 over buying single tracks!

34th America's Cup Coming to San Francisco

2011-05-28T13:29:00.001-05:00

This Site Reaches 3000 Hits!

2011-05-27T01:04:00.002-05:00

Since having to restart my visitor count this site has attained the 3000 hit mark! Yay team!

Sketches from At the Mountains of Madness

2011-05-19T17:35:00.002-05:00

A podcast (The H. P. Lovecraft Literary Podcast) concerning the 1920's-1930's weird fiction author Howard Phillips Lovecraft requested some sketches concerning his story At the Mountains of Madness which concerns an expedition to the Antarctic and their strange findings.

Links to four of these sketches are in the "Audio Links to My Music" section to the right on this page.

It was alot of fun to do these (I did eleven in all) and I hope to do more.

Please note all music ©&(P) 2011 by Reber Clark
International Copyright Secured All Rights Reserved Made in USA

Cotton Balls and Boxes!

2011-05-15T11:36:00.001-05:00

Zimoun : 138 prepared dc-motors, cotton balls, cardboard boxes 40x40x40cm, 2011 from ZIMOUN VIDEO ARCHIVE on Vimeo.

Way Cool!

2011-05-09T17:14:00.001-05:00

...and It's Counterpart!

2011-05-05T18:01:00.001-05:00

The LONG version of a Great Commercial

2011-05-04T16:34:00.001-05:00

HA! Good One!

2011-05-02T12:32:00.000-05:00

Great Big Sea - Lukey's Boat

2011-05-01T23:39:00.002-05:00

Worth it:

Well, Ya Just Gotta See This

2011-04-28T14:43:00.001-05:00

Definitely in a Different and Stranger Part of the Woods

2011-04-23T12:03:00.002-05:00

I am definitely in a different and stranger part of the woods now. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing.

Lip Dub - Evidence that the Future is Gonna Be Okay

2011-04-15T14:57:00.002-05:00

BE SURE TO WATCH IN HD!

Lovecraft Paragraphs Trailer Hits 900 on YouTube!

2011-04-06T12:43:00.001-05:00

Watch in HD!

Robots Are About to Take Over the World

2011-03-29T09:11:00.002-05:00

If this is any indicator of things to come us mere-humanz had better watch out!

The Death of Lovecraft

2011-03-15T10:36:00.001-05:00

Today is the anniversary of the death of one of my favorite authors - Howard Phillips Lovecraft of Providence, Rhode Island. Rest in Peace, Howard.

Ho Chi Minh City ( Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh )

2011-03-07T22:25:00.007-06:00

I've gotten a few hits from Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon). Hello Ho Chi Minh City!!!

In fact there has been a remarkable uptick in the hit count from Asia. I have gotten many from India and Indonesia as well. Hawaii has checked in and also many additional hits from the US, Europe, Africa, Australia and even Iceland!

There are some curious and seemingly remote hits from deep Russia, Mongolia and Nepal.

Hello to all.

New Blog

2011-02-25T10:52:00.009-06:00

I've started a blog about sailing my new boat, a Flying Scot that is yet to be named. It is an attempt to follow what happens when you buy a boat and get back to sailing after a 30 year hiatus!

You can read it at Finally Sailing (http://finallysailing.blogspot.com/)

E.T. - The Sequel

2011-02-22T15:30:00.001-06:00

The H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society

2011-02-14T22:21:00.006-06:00

Ladies and gentlemen I am pleased to announce that I have been officially accepted and certified (upon unanimous resolution of the executive council) as a member of the prestigious H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society.

This distinguished honor I humbly accept proclaiming:

"Ludo Fore Putavimus!"

Trailer for Every Oscar-Winning Movie Ever

2011-01-03T16:49:00.000-06:00

One Thousand Hits

2010-12-30T22:46:00.009-06:00

Since I changed my "hit map" (see below, right) and had to re-start my visitor count a few months ago I have, as of today, received one thousand additional visitors!

I'm still waiting to hear from Hawaii, Alaska, South Africa, Mongolia, China and a huge chunk of Asia - although visits from India, Thailand and Japan etc. have appeared recently. Namaste, Arigato 'n stuff, y'all!

The hit that I would prize the most...the visit that I am waiting for...is from ANTARCTICA! If I could get a hit from the Mountains of Madness themselves it would be great. C'mon Antarctica, check out this site!

Lovecraft Paragraphs Trailer Hits 800 on YouTube!

2010-12-28T14:42:00.009-06:00

The trailer for Lovecraft Paragraphs has hit 800 on YouTube!

Additionally my very short Happy Birthday H. P. Lovecraft has passed 400 hits!

Merry Christmas to All

2010-12-26T14:47:00.002-06:00

Watch in HD!

Watch in HD!

Merry Christmas Eve Everybody!

2010-12-24T09:52:00.002-06:00

This is the best:

Midwest 2010

2010-12-20T16:03:00.013-06:00

An extremely brief look at the 2010 Midwest Band and Orchestra Convention in Chicago, Illinois at McCormick Place. It's extremely brief because the camera operator screwed up...GAAAH!

Star Trek Christmas Gingerbread!

2010-12-19T14:50:00.000-06:00

The Midwest Clinic - The Day Before the Storm

2010-12-14T16:30:00.004-06:00

This is a picture of McCormick Place in Chicago - site of the 2010 Midwest Band And Orchestra Clinic. "Midwest" is an annual pilgrimage for musicians from all across the globe. Most publishers, manufacturers and schools have booths here.

I am taking my video camera tomorrow to the Clinic hoping they will let me in with it. I will be at the C. Alan Publications booth (the publisher who publishes most of my stuff) most of the day and I hope to get a wide variety of video. We shall see.

The Secret Commission - Revealed!

2010-12-08T23:34:00.013-06:00

A few posts back I mentioned that I had completed a secret commission. It was delivered tonight to its intended giftee and I thought I'd post a link to the music and tell you about it.

Band Trip was commissioned by the Lisle Band Parent Organization and the Lisle Community Band in Lisle, Illinois and dedicated to Mr. Steven Green, Director of Bands for Lisle High School on the occasion of his retirement after 30 years.

I have been in bands since I was in sixth grade. The annual band trip is always one of the highlights and privileges of being a member of the band and for many is a peak experience of their high school career.

I have traveled with bands over the years as a student, a director, a chaperone and a guest artist. The trips and bands have ranged from local outings to cross-country bus trips to trans-Atlantic journeys involving planes, trains, buses, watercraft and countless other modes of transportation. No matter how simple or exotic the trip the bands are remarkably similar in how they enjoy it.

Trip events are also very similar; not bounded by resources or goals. There is always the crazy person, the crazy group of kids, the shy ones, the new boyfriend-girlfriend, the troublemakers and the easy going ones. There is usually one big performance that the ensemble readies itself for and, this being the first time some are away from home, the challenges that this presents are many – for the students as well as their chaperones and directors.

Some students stay up too late and don’t get enough sleep. Some eat too much pizza with the attending consequences. There are the inevitable rule breakers but most abide by the rules, take care of business and perform admirably. It is amazing to watch. Band comprises some of the most disciplined students in high school and no matter how raucous they get on the trip, they always buckle down and treat their performances seriously.

The band at Lisle is no exception. They always have a great time and lots of fun but take care of business when it is time. Of course there are the inevitable dramas and crises as well as exciting performances and their attendant anxieties. There is usually some craziness and there are even occasional injuries, but without fail the band always rallies to its members and attains its goals.

Band Trip attempts to encompass the many events attendant to a typical band trip – the excitement of performance, the travel, the new experiences, some drama and a little craziness. The band trip is one of the most iconic of all high school experiences. It is remembered and talked about for years and sometimes decades afterwards.

Both of my daughters have been through Mr. Green’s excellent music department and its band trips. Being in the Lisle band program was one of the most positive and focused experiences of their school careers. I wish nothing but the very best for Steve in his definitely earned and well-deserved retirement.

Click the link in the first paragraph above to listen to Band Trip or click the link in "Audio Links to My Music" to the right.

New Studio Set-up

2010-12-07T17:06:00.014-06:00

A new addition to the studio arrived today - the Roland A800 Pro keyboard. This thing takes the place of about five separate pieces of equipment that I was running and consolidates all of their functions into one package. I have more space than I've had in a long time and it frees up a few USB ports.

The only potential drawback that I anticipate is that I am used to working on an 88 key keyboard and this is 61.

It'll take some time but I bet I'll adapt. I used to work on a 61 key Ensoniq sampler keyboard. I've also had to reconfigure where my computer keyboard and mouse are. When I reach for them they aren't there! It may take a while to develop those habits.

The A800 Pro was very easy to set up and was humming along about 15 minutes after unboxing. I'm looking forward to playing with it.

BTW this is my first order from Sweetwater Sound in Fort Wayne, Indiana and it was a great experience from beginning to end. After placing my order online I received a phone call making sure everything was like I wanted it before it shipped. I had a few questions and they answered them right away. When it arrived they had thrown in some Bit-O-Honeys, a small Tootsie Roll and some Laffy Taffy - sweet! They said they would follow up with a post-delivery call on Thursday. Pretty amazing - I recommend them.

The 4+1 Video

2010-11-18T11:45:00.011-06:00

In the mid-1970s five music students from Arkansas Tech University (four others and myself) hit the road during spring break to travel in my 1969 Malibu to Washington, D. C. in search of the elusive Holy Grail (mainly being inspired by the movie Monty Python and the Holy Grail which became the theme of the trip). We called ourselves the "Four Plus One" because we were four trumpet players and a clarinet player (at whose house in Maryland we would be staying during our visit).

I was interested in making movies and took along my Super-8 camera and Mark Tenney took along his super-duper 35mm SLR. We shot alot of film and upon getting home presented what we had to an audience of friends and family.

We thought it was great.

30 years or more pass and I have gotten into video editing. It turns out I had the old Super-8 film in the basement along with a cue list and Mark still had all of his photos and more scripts/cue lists for the "show" we did. To make a long story short we digitized the photos and film and I just finished editing them into a DVD. It was edited and produced in 1080p high definition but I do not have a blu-ray burner yet.

To enhance the presentation I included some free stock footage of DC, but the whole thing is mainly our material. I produced four copies of the DVD and sent three off. There are not five copies because one of the members, Brian Amos, died in a car crash in San Antonio many years ago while in the Air Force. The DVD is dedicated to him.

The other two memebrs of the Four Plus One were Michael Casey and Randy Meyer (the lone clarinetist).

Secret Commission

2010-11-04T22:30:00.003-05:00

So I've been working for a year or so on a secret commission which is now complete. I can't release it until its premiere but I really like it. I know this info doesn't help you the reader but I needed to document the completion!

Now that this commission is complete I am going to have some time to do personal projects. I am excited about this. There are a few movie ideas in the works and, of course, quite a few music ideas as well.

I always have mixed emotions at the end of a project. I've lived with it for so long that letting it go is kind of a downer. But I am then freed up to do something new. There is the inevitable slump after the completion as well. It's almost like raising a child and then letting them go off into the world to face their fate. Bittersweet. Mixed emotions.

Between projects comes a nebulous time of raw ideas and unformed thoughts. It can be uncomfortable but I am learning to just let the ideas come to me in their own time. One would think that after thirty years of doing this I would have learned this already. I wonder about that. This part of it really isn't a mental exercise. There is something else going on. When I force it it never really works well. I can make it work, but it isn't satisfying. Once I get the kernel, the basic idea or melody then everything flows easily.

Anyway, I will have more time to devote to this blog writing and I hope to hear from many of you all over the globe.

Click Link then Press the BIG RED BUTTON

2010-10-27T13:36:00.008-05:00

[Speakers ON] Click here then click the BIG RED BUTTON

Amazing Advertisment

2010-10-27T13:29:00.000-05:00

Time Traveler?

2010-10-26T11:16:00.000-05:00

Well this is just weird...

Beautiful Word Clouds

2010-10-21T11:37:00.007-05:00

So there is this site called Wordle that takes webpages or text blocks or RSS feeds etc. and makes them into word clouds in which you can change the shape, the font, the colors or many other variables. Probably everybody else in the world knows of this site already but I found it fascinating and have use this site in the graphic above.

Pretty cool.

Lessons and Carols finished for Woonsocket, Rhode Island School

2010-10-19T23:55:00.009-05:00

Lessons and Carols a work for mixed ensembles commissioned by the Mount Saint Charles Academy Music Department in Woonsocket, Rhode Island was finished and sent off to Marc Blanchette, the Music Director, last week.

Listen to Lessons and Carols here.

New Trailer! The Whisperer in Darkness

2010-10-16T01:58:00.003-05:00

I saw this trailer premiered at the H. P. Lovecraft Film Festival in Portland, Oregon. I can't wait for the official release! The H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society looks like they've outdone themselves.

Be sure to select 720p HD!

Dan O'Bannon's The Resurrected

2010-10-16T01:48:00.007-05:00

I found out today that Dan O'Bannon's take on Lovecraft's The Case of Charles Dexter Ward is available on Netflix On-Demand. I watched it tonight and think it is the most faithful adaptation of this story I have seen. It blows The Haunted Palace out of the water. I've wanted to see this film for awhile, having heard about it from many sources, and am glad I had the chance. Richard Band’s score is very good. The music is much better than the schlock-fest stuff he has done with Charles Band’s productions that I have seen. Good job all around.

Ain't It (Too Often) The Truth!

2010-10-13T12:43:00.003-05:00

Had to post this recent pic sent to me by Dr. Peter Boonshaft:

A Different Part of the Woods

2010-10-12T18:29:00.002-05:00

Just a note to Who It May Concern:

I realized today that I am now in a different part of the woods.

HPL Film Fest Final Entry

2010-10-12T17:04:00.015-05:00

So I finally have a bit of time to finish posting about the H. P. Lovecraft Film Festival in Portland, Oregon.

The after-festival party was at Moon and Sixpence, not Tony Starlight's. It was great but I don't know why there was a venue change. I met Stuart Gordon there, director of Dagon and other Lovecraftian things, and he was very interested in getting a drink, a Manhattan I believe, and did not seem interested in talking business. Man, do I ever understand THAT and passed the rest of the evening enjoyably talking with various people including Nicolas Simonin, the director of Derailed, a fantastic French film and to a Turkish (Istanbul) Film maker, Can Evrenol whose To My Mother and Father was absolutely horrendous - in a good way - he won the "fucking evil bastard" award I believe. Well deserved and really an evilly fun film!

I spoke for a good length of time with Greg Lowney, seeming heir-apparent to the Directorship of the HPL Film Fest. I do hope if Greg takes over as director that I could put together some small films for him. He's a really good guy and always a friendly face to see every year.

Wilum Pugmire has had a wonderful new publication released from Centipede Press (Jerad Walters). It is an omnibus of his tales replete with illustrations from all sorts of fantastic sources. It is a richly realized work and he deserves much congratulations (and sales!) for the achievement. All the best to Wilum and Centipede Press for continued success.

After hours entertaiment was provided by Tony Starlight's, on other Fest nights, in the form of Chik'n Hed - from what I could tell a couple of guys and a computer sound manipulation program that was suitably ambient and cosmic. I loved it.

The closing Benediction by Robert M. Price was appropriately ominous and humorous. Great stuff Bob. I meant to ask his North Carolininian Holiness about his influence from Manly Wade Wellman, another North Carolinian, but it was not to be.

Watching a rehearsal video (reading/singing rehearsal) of Herbert West: Reanimator: The Musical, was hilarious and tedious by turns. Having done theatre in this way I could predict where the faults are going to lie in the music production and I itched to get my hands on the music director and beg for some relief in keys, form and presentation. If I could get my hands on that score I could do wonders with it as well as orchestrate it very efficiently. But, damn, they got some work to do. This was the final event before adjourning to Moon and Sixpence. Why Somerset Maugham? I have no idea, but their Bushmills is good.

I keep coming back to The Whole Wide World. A great film. More should be done with Robert E. Howard's stuff. BUT Arnold is NOT right for Conan.

Oh...viewings of The Unnameable and Unnameable 2 were typical teenage "boo fantasies" with some pretty good attempts at humor thrown in. I guess ya had to see em when you were in college to appreciate em.

Winners of the Brown Jenkin and Deep Ones awards were:

Brown Jenkin Awards:

Best Weird Tale - Derailed by Nicolas Simonin

Best Lovecraftian Film - Fyren (Keeper of the Light)by Robert P. Olsson

Best Comedy - Frank DanCoolo: Paranormal Drug Dealer by Andrew W. Jones

Special Audience Award for Most Disturbing Film:
To My Mother and Father by Can Evrenol

Deep One Awards:

Best Screenplay - Cult Flick by Brian R. Hauser

Howie Award for Lovecraftian Cinema:

The H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society - Andrew Leman & Sean Branney

Special Jury Award for Spirit of the Festival (Vancouver Film School):

Call of C'thulu
Dunwich
Rats in the Wall
Dagon

Picture in the House, Silas and the Tomb were also both nominated for Best Adaptation.

40 years has won the Festival Director Award for best Cinemaphotography and Sound Design.

The Tell-Tale Heart by Michael Swertfager has won the Festival Director Edgar Award for Outstanding Effort.

I'm sure there's more which I'll post as it comes to me. All in all a really great time which has generated alot of ideas for projects. I hope the festival continues.

I KNOW I KNOW

2010-10-08T10:33:00.001-05:00

I know I promised to write more about the HPL Film Fest after I got back but I just haven't taken the time. I will probably get to it this weekend. Please hang in.

The End is Nigh

2010-10-03T12:44:00.007-05:00

It's Sunday and the last day of the fest. This afternoon I will be watching Unnameable and Unnameable II: the Statement of Randolph Carter and then Shorts Block Three.

Tonight there is a closing Benediction and the remaining awards - the Brown Jenkin and Deep One awards - will be given out for best short, best adaptation etc.

Then it's either a viewing of Primal or of Stuart Gordon's Dagon - one of the most faithful adaptations of The Shadow Over Innsmouth by a commercial studio.

A final visit to Tony Starlight's will end the festivities and I will write about how today turned out either tonight or after I return home on Monday.

Saturday Continued

2010-10-03T12:20:00.006-05:00

The H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society (Andrew Leman, Sean Branney & Co.) showed clips from their soon to be released production The Whisperer in Darkness. They showed a new trailer as well that was absolutely fantastic and promising. Very creepy. They were awarded a Howie Award from the Festival for major contributions to Things Lovecraftian.

Definitely hard-won and absolutely well-deserved.

I had the pleasure of meeting and talking with their composer, Troy Sterling Nies, whose music for Call of Cthulhu was brilliant - nailing the perfect atmosphere in the opening. Turns out he's a low brass player (not one of those keyboard geeks!) and it was very much fun to talk with him. I am looking forward to his score on Whisperer.

I met and talked a bit with Messrs Leman and Branney as well. I like these guys, they're serious about their projects, and if I could work with them I think it would be my kind of fun.

After the Howie Award they showed Dreams in the Witch House aka What's It All About, Elwood? that cannot be described, only experienced. Audience participation of foot stomping, Brown Jenkin cheering and other things was highly enjoyable. Questions? Don't ask.

After the the theatre closed for the night the party moved to Tony Starlight's where Aaron Vanek and Andrew Migliore showed a retrospective of the past 15 years of the HPLFF. They also shared stories and anecdotes and it was a great time.

I had the "Fried Deep Ones" (calamari with garlic aioli) and two pints of a very good stout. Conversation with publishers, artists and the general public abounded and when I left, somewhere around 1:30 or 2am things were still in full swing.

HPLFF Shorts Block Two

2010-10-03T03:28:00.003-05:00

So, a short rundown of Shorts Block Two from the H. P. Lovecraft Film Festival:

40 years
Effective (british?) tale of a childhood mistake dealt with after 40 years. Excellent CGI animation in real world situations.

Canon Alberic's Scrapbook
A one man performance of an M. R. James story. Well done, I thought, but probably not for this audience. Will repay a second viewing I suspect.

Call of C'thulhu
The Vancouver Film School's offering had not much to do with the actual story but did end with a surpisingly effective realization of Cthulhu looming over a cityscape.

Keeper of the Light
Murky Swedish film that starts off promisingly but degrades into bland unfocused crap.

The Picture in the House
Faithful adaptation of the Lovecraft story. Don't know 'bout that ending though.

More tomorrow!

Searchers and the True Weird

2010-10-02T19:38:00.009-05:00

I sat in on a couple of authors' sessions this afternoon. Combining deep insights with self-indulgence, self-deprecation and glimpses of the Void We All Deal With, they were mainly effective in communicating the confusions and agreements of the human race on the topics of the cosmic mystery, transcendence (if it exists) and many other things hardly approachable by words.

A good time but there were many on the path. There was a glimmer of hope when an audience member brought up impermanence. Another brought up Buddhism, but Hinduism, the foundation for Buddhism, was ignored. A mixed bag with a few sparks. In general probably a good presentation for those looking to see if there are others out there like them. Confirmation assured.

Afterwards I attended a screening of The Whole Wide World based on Novalyn Price's book One Who Walked Alone. The book and movie concern the writing life of Robert E. Howard, one of my heroes, and the times leading up to his suicide. This is probably my third viewing of this film and I am still gleaning insights. Maybe it just takes me awhile.

Day Two - Portland, Oregon - The H. P. Lovecraft Film Festival

2010-10-02T14:24:00.004-05:00

Last evening, Friday, was the opening of the festival. The invocation given by Robert M. Price, complete with robes and Cthulhu miter, was priceless and to the point.

Last year I was a film maker attending the event. This year I am just one of the
"great unwashed," hence the picture above of the line waiting to get in the festival.

Shorts Block one had upas and downs. Frank DanCoolo, Paranormal Drug Dealer was alot of fun and well received.

Roe, however, could have been much shorter and dealt with cyclical egg-laying circle-of-life themes. Meh.

The French entry Derailed, although dealing again with cyclical evil, did so effectively and built the tense atmosphere expertly. I enjoyed it very much.

To My mother and Father was just a great rollercoaster ride into childhood's subconcious! Well done, well timed, and a great shocker.

Shorts Block One closed with David Prior's fantastic AM 1200 which never fails to deliver. Great to see it on the big screen.

I attended a screening of the feature Pan's Labyrinth, which I have seen on the big screen and also on DVD. I am very interested in Guillermo Del Toro's take on things and now that he is doing a big budget version of Lovecraft's At the Mountains of Madness (which I would love to write music for) viewing Pan's Labyrinth revealed more and more of itself to me on this third viewing.

Del Toro is rumored to be in the area, but as these things go it may be all hype to add buzz to the festival.

The afterfest at Tony Starlight's was made very interesting by the performance of computer sound manipulators Chik'n Hed. Great stuff guys. I had a Yog-Sothoth cocktail (absinthe and orange with lime) and a "Burger Out of Space" which was all good.

I am off to sit in on some panel discussions on Cosmic Horror and will report more later.

Day One - Portland, Oregon - The H. P. Lovecraft Film Festival

2010-10-01T16:11:00.005-05:00

The ever-present crows woke me this morning with their incessant cawing. It is mid-afternoon now and they are silent. I showered and dressed and explored the Hollywood District of Portland a bit. Crows were sitting, silent, in the trees, on buildings and on electric lines. They seemed to be watching and waiting.

I don't feel any specific menace coming from the crows. My feeling is more like listening for portents and omens. It's probably nothing.

I took several pictures of the Hollywood Theatre's marquee - much like every other picture taken over the years of the same sign announcing the H. P. Lovecraft Film festival. Trying to find a fresh angle was unfruitful.

It is overcast today and pleasant. The Festival begins tonight at 6pm. There is a gathering afterward at Tony Starlight's.

I hope it's a good time. I will report more later.

Pre-Festival Day - Portland, Oregon - The H. P. Lovecraft Film Festival

2010-09-30T22:16:00.010-05:00

Little did I know that my relatively easy day of flights from Chicago to Minneapolis to Portland would slowly dissolve into that curious atmosphere of foreboding and hidden dark splendors peculiar to Andrew Migliore's H. P. Lovecraft Film Festival, that wonderful kick-off to Fall.

As I walked into the parking lot of the hoary and aged Banfield Motel, from time immemorial the place to stay for the festival, a large black crow perched on the motel's sign cawed a cold greeting. Luckily I had reserved a room months ago - it fills up for the festival - but the lock on my room had to be replaced (who knew that magnetic key locks ran on batteries?) and the eldritch plumbing, whose depths I hesitated to look into much less ponder for very long, needed the muscle of the manager, a genial enough fellow, to start its gurgling forward rush of suspicious water.

Robert M. Price, an author and Lovecraft Authority from North Carolina, was on the flight from Minneapolis with me, he was flying first class however (I was not), and he is staying here at the venerable Banfield as well. I heard from eminent Lovecraft scholar S. T. Joshi last year that this was the place to stay and apparently I was not steered wrongly.

Echoes of Lovecraft's Gilman House permeate the walls of my room here at the Banfield, also something of Barton Fink's room at the Hotel Earle. I hope against hope that that is as far as it goes.

More tomorrow.

H. P. Lovecraft Film Festival Portland, Oregon October 1-2-3, 2010!

2010-09-29T11:08:00.010-05:00

↑ This is the Hollywood Theatre in Portland where the festival will take place.

↑ The fantastic T-Shirt for this year's festival!

↑ This year's poster.

I will be attending the H. P. Lovecraft Film Festival in Portland Oregon this year. This year promises to be a giant bash.

It may be the final year for the H. P. Lovecraft Film Festival in Portland. Rumor has it (pretty solid rumor) that the Fest will be moving to Los Angeles next year. With the recent news that James Cameron (Titanic, Avatar) will be producing Guillermo Del Toro's adaptation of Lovecraft's At the Mountains of Madness the move could be a good thing.

I was just getting to know and love Portland, the Hollywood Theatre and the denizens of the Fest and now I find it is to be uprooted. Ah well...wherever it goes I will be there. I am in it for the long haul.

Andrew Migliore's (founder and director of the H. P. Lovecraft Film Festival) goal all along, as I undertsand it, was to bring to the forefront and encourage serious treatment of Lovecraft's work. Apparently his efforts over the years have borne fruit. He will be taking a much deserved rest.

Onward!

Lovecraft Paragraphs Trailer Hits 700 on YouTube!

2010-09-25T12:09:00.006-05:00

The trailer for my movie Lovecraft Paragraphs has hit 700 views on YouTube!

The movie, an official selection for the H. P. Lovecraft Film Festival in Portland, Oregon in 2009, is presently being re-edited for evaluation for commercial release.

It's Banned Book Week!

2010-09-25T10:56:00.010-05:00

It's here! Banned Book Week starts today and runs through October 2nd, so get out there and check out Huckleberry Finn, Harry Potter, Twilight (I hate it but I won't ban it!), To Kill A Mockingbird and Catcher in the Rye (among a slew of others) from Your Local Library. List and more info here: American Library Association.

Our local library, the Lisle Library, celebrates this week every year by prominently displaying and checking out many of the books that have been banned over the years. I love this library just for that reason. If your library doesn't do this I would encourage you to inform your library administrators and get it going!

Don't let those Nazis manage your mind! Take charge, have some balls, and read freely!

Kindle

2010-09-23T17:28:00.006-05:00

I received my new (WiFi only) Kindle reading device from Amazon.com today. I have tried e-books and e-readers in the past and have not liked them. The Kindle promises to be different - the e-paper screen (yes, it's actual electronic paper whose ink (yes, real ink!) is changed electronically!) can be read in the brightest direct sunlight just like the paper page of a book. The screen is not relfective or shiny in any way. It's easy on the eyes.

I've spent a couple hours today with it and I am impressed. There is alot more to it than I had thought and I am beginning to like it.

There are free books as well as paid. There are also periodicals and newspapers. You can get samples of most of these for free to evaluate before buying.

So far so good. As I get to know it better I'll write a bit more about it.

THE END

2010-09-20T22:01:00.004-05:00

Home again, home again.

The end of the journey. Short and sweet. It was a great trip.

720HD anyone?

Iowa...Birthplace of...?

2010-09-20T20:58:00.006-05:00

Iowa Adventures.

You ought to give Iowa a try.

I have deleted this video because the music I chose for it was copyrighted by someone else. If I re-edit it with different music maybe I'll re-post it.

Denver to Nebraska...

2010-09-20T11:00:00.009-05:00

...in which I travel to Denver and see my college friend Ken Walker. Ken is a bass player in Denver and the bassist on the number one jazz album in the country - Curtis Fuller's I Will Tell Her. We were Music Education majors together at Arkansas Tech University - long, long ago and far, far away.

Ken also has his own album out with his own ensemble - the Ken Walker Sextet. The album is entitled Terra Firma.

Music from Terra Firma is heard on this video. The cut is entitled Velocity.

As always please view this in HD!

Ketchum, Idaho and the Grave of Ernest Hemingway

2010-09-20T00:32:00.005-05:00

Here I visit the Salmon River, the Sawtooth Mountains, Ketchum, Idaho and the grave of Ernest Hemingway. I stayed at the Tyrolean Lodge and you will hear (possibly inappropriate) yodeling when it appears. I, however, did not do the yodeling.

Don't forget to bump it up to 720p HD.

Welcome to Flatskatchewan!

2010-09-18T17:38:00.002-05:00

Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat Flat.

Not really up to HD standards - I had to compromise in the editing at one point, but still viewable at 720p HD.

Oh...and FLAT.

Outside Missoula, Montana, USA

2010-09-17T13:27:00.004-05:00

One hour north of Missoula, Montana, USA. Music: The Blue Bird, sung by: Anuna.

Don't forget to select 720p HD!

Into Idaho

2010-09-16T14:57:00.001-05:00

So...Into Idaho!

More from Banff

2010-09-16T14:29:00.002-05:00

Some of these video posts may be out of order. I'm sure you can figure it out!

This video clip shows the Bow River below the falls, the Fairmont Inn that sits just above the river, some morning views from downtown Banff, and a shot of incredible mountains just outside of Banff.

Be sure to watch it in HD.

Salmon or Wisdom?

2010-09-16T12:42:00.002-05:00

The eternal question - do I choose (the) salmon or do I go with wisdom? I have to make the choice as I get close to the Idaho border.

I liked Idaho. Alot.

Be sure to select the 720p HD resolution.

Outside of Banff

2010-09-15T23:17:00.001-05:00

This looks fake - or like a Bierstadt painting but it is actual video of the Canadian Rockies just outside of Banff. The views there are just incredible and the area would take three weeks just to get to know. Be sure and bump up the resolution to 720p HD!

Bow River Falls in Banff, Alberta, Canada

2010-09-15T00:05:00.002-05:00

This is a video I shot in Banff of Bow River Falls. I thought it might be fun to post some of the better video that I shot. More to come. Watch it in HD!

Ken's Wine

2010-09-12T13:08:00.005-05:00

In my post below (September 2nd, 2010) about visitng my friend, bassist Ken Walker, I forgot to mention that he had been honored with a wine label of his own by Balistreri Vineyards of Colorado! I don't know if this is the label (I am trying to order a few bottles and will post images as I get them) but this is the promo poster for the event:

Trans-Canada / Rocky Mountain Odyssey, Leg Ten - Omaha, NE to Lisle, IL

2010-09-03T21:40:00.021-05:00

Ah...Iowa. After the miserableness of Nebraska, Iowa was cool and rolling-hilled relief. After all it is the land of Field of Dreams.

Iowa Stubborn from The Music Man
Music: Meredith Willson
Lyrics: Meredith Willson
Book: Meredith Willson and Franklin Lacey
Premiere: Thursday, December 19, 1957

Townspeople:
Oh, there's nothing halfway
About the Iowa way to treat you,
When we treat you
Which we may not do at all.

There's an Iowa kind of special
Chip-on-the-shoulder attitude.
We've never been without.
That we recall.

We can be cold
As our falling thermometers in December
If you ask about our weather in July.

And we're so by God stubborn
We could stand touchin' noses
For a week at a time
And never see eye-to-eye.

But what the heck, you're welcome,
Join us at the picnic.
You can eat your fill
Of all the food you bring yourself.

You really ought to give Iowa a try.

Provided you are contrary...

We can be cold
As our falling thermometer in December
If you ask about our weather in July.

And we're so by God stubborn
We can stand touchin' noses
For a week at a time
And never see eye-to-eye.

But we'll give you our shirt
And a back to go with it
If your crops should happen to die.

Farmer:
So, what the heck, you're welcome,
Glad to have you with us.

Farmer and Wife:
Even though we may not ever mention it again.

Townspeople:
You really ought to give Iowa
Hawkeye Iowa
Dubuque, Des
Moines, Davenport, Marshalltown,
Mason City, Keokuk, Ames,
Clear Lake

Ought to give Iowa a try!

******************************

Corn was everywhere, mostly harvested. This pic does not do the beautiful countryside justice.

Ah...Iowa. Many wonderful people were born here...John Wayne...Me...Captain James T. Kirk...

Yes, really!

In 1985 Steve Miller, a member of the Riverside, Iowa City Council, had the idea to ask Gene Roddenberry to designate Riverside as the official birthplace of Captain James Tiberius Kirk. Roddenberry agreed and the rest is history. See this Wikipedia article for more detail.

Carol and Scotty Riggan were good enough to show me the sights!

This is The Voyage Home a museum and information center about Kirk's birthplace.

This is the official monument commemorating the future birthplace of James T. Kirk. They hold a birthday celebration in March of every year as well as an annual TrekFest late in June.

This plaque is mounted on the floor under the massive pool table in Murphy's Bar and Grill in downtown Riverside. It states "Captain James T. Kirk conceived at this point on June 22, 2227." One has to scramble under the pool table to get the shot. Both Carol and I took pictures, I don't know if this is hers or mine.

The TV Series Invasion Iowa, starring William Shatner, was filmed in Riverside. Please see this Wikipedia article for more info.

The Illinois border - whew. Glad to be home.

Trans-Canada / Rocky Mountain Odyssey, Leg Nine - Denver, CO to Omaha, NE

2010-09-03T20:15:00.005-05:00

What can I say? Almost nine solid hours of flat. FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT. Gaaaaaah!!!

Yay highways! Yay flatness! FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT, FLAT.

and one more thing...F L A T .

Trans-Canada / Rocky Mountain Odyssey, Leg Eight - Provo, UT to Denver, CO

2010-09-02T18:43:00.010-05:00

There were alot of great bare rock desert mountains which gave way to alot of semi-forested mountains which gave way to fully forested mountains and then Denver.

This is a mesa/mountain pic taken from I-70 to Denver:

This is a better shot of the tumbleweed from the previous leg:

Welcome to Colorado! I think after reflecting on Montana, Idaho and Utah, I like Idaho best.

I think I might have figured out why Ernest Hemingway liked the Ketchum area...it looks like Spain. From Barcelona to Pamplona and down to Salamanca the country looks like this:

The scrub trees like this in Spain are cork trees (they are a little bigger in Spain). There are hidden ice-cold trout streams down in the gullies, like Spain, and I'll just bet that's what he liked about the Ketchum area. I know THIS is a pic of Colorado - but it's what helped me to the realization.

I re-crossed the Continental Divide while in the Eisenhower Tunnel on the way to Denver. The green sign on the left marks it (not my pic):

The hills are alive! This is what the mountains in Vail, Colorado look like this time of year (again, not my pic):

Here I am (below) with Kenneth Walker. We went to school together way back when at Arkansas Tech University for our Music Education degrees. Ken now lives in Denver and teaches bass at DU. He is also the bass player on the number one jazz album in the country "I Will Tell Her" by Curtis Fuller and has produced his own album with his sextet entitled Terra Firma. Click those album titles to go to Amazon.com and listen to some tracks then buy the CDs! Ken plays locally as well as all over the country, most notably with Pharoah Sanders in Manhattan then with Benny Golson at the Iridium Club in Manhattan.

We stayed up late talking about everything and everybody and it was great to see him again.

And now we come back to urban stuff with a very nice room at the Denver Hilton Garden Inn. Tomorrow - Nebraska (corn! corn! corn!...more corn!)

Trans-Canada / Rocky Mountain Odyssey, Leg Seven - Ketchum, ID to Provo, UT

2010-09-01T17:26:00.012-05:00

Okay, this is a pretty lame post for several reasons. After leaving Ketchum the land is just flat. Desert flat, tumbleweed scrub flat. I've already posted tons of flat land pix so - screw it. Most of the pix in this post are ripped off from the web. Some are mine. In the last part of southern Idaho they don't want you to pull over except for emergencies because of severe dust storm and wind dangers! So no pix from me (mostly - I did the tumbleweed and the view from my room) - just ripoffs.

But, out in the desert a hint of excitement:

Shoshone Ice Caves!

Dinosaur at the Ice Caves!

What are the Shoshone Ice Caves? I have no idea, but ice in the desert is kinda cool. Huh, Huh.

I saw hundreds of tumbleweeds! They're shaped differently from the ones in the cartoons but they're pretty funny.

Tumble weed:

Many hours later it was time to turn east on Interstate 84. This was the turning point for home just as the turn west at Moose Jaw was the turning point for Banff.

Welcome to Utah! But don't stop to take pix or we'll get you!

The traffic in Salt Lake City was really bad. Lots of construction and industrial parks.

I wanted to see this in person but the traffic had me beat. Plus after starting out at 38 degrees this A.M. then reaching 81 in Salt Lake, I was worn out.

This is the actual Great Salt Lake at sunset. It's really nice.

La Quinta! Where I am staying the night:

Mountain view from my room:

I forgot to mention that I crossed the 45th parallel yesterday. It is the halfway point between the arctic circle and the equator.

Tomorrow I see my famous bass player friend, Kenneth Walker, in Denver. He has a gig so I hope to hear him play. Check out his recordings on Amazon.

EDIT: I was a little hard on Provo just coming off the road and hassled. I've since had a chance to cool down and drive around and the backdrop of the mountains is really nice. I'm sure it's a nice town.

Trans-Canada / Rocky Mountain Odyssey, Leg Six- Missoula, MT to Ketchum, ID

2010-08-31T00:13:00.016-05:00

"Kilimanjaro is a snow-covered mountain 19,710 feet high, and is said to be the highest mountain in Africa. Its western summit is called the Masai 'Ngaje Ngai', the House of God. Close to the western summit there is a dried and frozen carcass of a leopard. No one has explained what the leopard was seeking at that altitude." - Ernest Hemingway, The Snows of Kilimanjaro

******************************

So after leaving the plains of Missoula behind I had a choice to make - Salmon or Wisdom. Hmmm...to get to Ketchum I had to choose Salmon, but maybe I ought to go for Wisdom instead. Decisions decisions...

I chose Salmon and crossed the border into Idaho. I have found Idaho to be wonderful. The woods feel almost like the Ozarks and so do the mountains. Much more comfortable, in my experience, than Montana.

Idaho Highway 75 runs right along the Salmon River into the Sawtooth National Recreation area. I chose to follow it, against the advice of Google Maps and the Garmin GPS unit, and it was mountain driving like I remember Highway 22 being in Arkansas - called the "pig trail" it is some of the steepest and curviest driving I've ever done.

Welcome to Ketchum! You had better obey the speed limit here! I saw several people pulled over for not obeying the strict 25 mph signs. I guess that's why they call it "Ketchum." Nyuk, nyuk.

This is my hotel - the Tyrolean Lodge (cue yodel music). It's a Best Western and is very nice.

This is the entrance to the Ketchum Cemetery. There is another "Ketchum Cemetery" between here and another town south but Hemingway is not buried in that one.

I was completely alone in the quiet cemetery. The gravesite is between two pine trees. It is in the back, unobstrusive - no shrine, memorial or statue or any crap like that. I think Hemingway would have liked it. The advice I had on how to locate the grave had two errors or was in need of updating. The parking area is now paved, not gravel and the grave is more in the center of the cemetery instead of the northeast corner.

The things you see all over the stone are coins, mainly pennies. When I spotted a few nickels it reminded me of something Hemingway wrote to A. E. Hotchner about Darryl F. Zanuck. Zanuck told Hemingway a certain amount he would pay to turn one of Hemingway's stories into a movie. Hollywood had ruined most of his stories and Hemingway was through with them. He told Zanuck to convert all that cash (was it $50,000.00?) to nickels and cram them up his ass till they came his ears!

I love that story. So at the grave I had mixed emotions. The Zanuck story makes me laugh gleefully, which I did. My mom liked Hemingway's stories, and writing, and it was her interest that started me reading him. His work is one of the great loves of my life. So because of mom's death all those emotions came up.

Next to Hemingway's grave, to the viewer's left, is Mary Welsh Hemingway's grave. She was his wife at the end. I'll bet she had to put up with alot of crap from the man, so we talked about that. They loved each other, though. I know how much my own wife puts up with. Hi honey.

This is a shot of beautiful downtown Ketchum. It's okay, I guess. It's a ski town in the off season. There were paragliders circling in the sunset which was cool.

Tomorrow I head for Provo, Utah and have no idea what to expect.

Trans-Canada / Rocky Mountain Odyssey, Leg Five - Banff, Alberta, Canada to Missoula, Montana

2010-08-30T21:55:00.013-05:00

It's been a LONG day ... BUT the skies over Banff were clear enough for some great video and several good pix:

This is just outside of the town of Banff on the way south:

This marks the Continental Divide. Click the pic to enlarge and read.

The entry into British Columbia:

The water here is actually that ice blue. Almost teal.

I drove through several avalanche areas:

The sign for Radium Hot Springs. Hope I'm not now irradiated!

Columbia Lake - source of the Columbia River:

Almost to the US border:

Crossing the US border - no problems, the guard was really nice. Wanted to know where my wife was and why I was traveling alone so far from home. He asked, "Did she make ya mad?" He was pretty funny.

Montana after the border. Got a speeding ticket near Flathead Lake on an Indian Reservation. I figure if the money goes to the indian tribe, that's okay with me - plus I was guilty! Long day.

Arrived Missoula safely if ragged. Tomorrow is Ketchum, Idaho - final resting place of Ernest Hemingway whose grave I will visit. Easy drive tomorrow so I'll probably sleep late and not push. Stay tuned...

Trans-Canada / Rocky Mountain Odyssey, Leg Four - Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan to Banff, Alberta, Canada

2010-08-29T18:11:00.013-05:00

So the most interesting thing after leaving Moose Jaw was the sign for Medicine Hat - many FLAT miles away. 2/3 of the way to Banff, actually.

This is the welcome sign into Banff. It's a national park of Canada and I needed to buy a pass to stay at a hotel in the park.

This where I am staying. It's okay, but next time I'd like to stay at the Fairmont (see final pic).

I was driving around and just stumbled on this place - Bow River Falls. Many revelations here. Words are just not enough. I've had dreams of things like this. (Don't forget you can click each picture for a much larger version.)

This is the Bow River below the falls.

This is the Bow again with the mountains beyond it. I'm sure they have names - everything seems to here. But they just hold me in an energized stillness. Not a dead stillness at all. What Joseph Campbell calls "asthetic arrest." Yup. Yup. Yup.

More Bow River.

This is the Fairmont Hotel in Banff. It's in the ads for Banff and looks amazing. It overlooks the Bow River from an extremely high point. When I looked up and back at it from the trail along Bow River Falls the clouds behind the hotel parted for a few seconds and I saw incredibly tall mountains rising beyond it! This place is like a dream - it feels like a dream.

One would need a week or two to take this all in.

Trans-Canada / Rocky Mountain Odyssey, Leg Three - Minot, ND to Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada

2010-08-28T17:43:00.019-05:00

I think I've figured out how to post pix and keep the text in correct relation to the pictures. You can click each image for a larger view.

A day of flatness.

Here are two shots of the Canada / US border at Portal, North Dakota. The obelisk marks the border. Passing into Canada was easy and smooth. We'll see if re-entering the US goes as well. I hope so.

A pic of the welcome sign for Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan.

Apparently Moose Jaw is the Band Capital of North America - according to the mural beside the highway. I don't know what the moose is doing behind that guy and the notes look a little like Hebrew...

This weird looking mass of food is called "poutine." I suppose it's a bit of local cuisine. It's french fries with cheese curd covered in gravy. I DID NOT indulge in one of these, but I can see how in the long deep winter here a poutine might be welcome.

So...tomorrow I hope to leave the prairie/plains behind and get into some real mountains. I'm more of an oceans/mountain guy than a prairie/city guy.

Trans-Canada / Rocky Mountain Odyssey, Leg Two - Minneapolis, MN to Minot, ND

2010-08-27T15:22:00.015-05:00

Day two and I'm in Minot, ND. It's 92 degrees and very windy. There are windfarms everywhere. Almost as many wind turbines as sunflowers.

I'm at the Super 8 (!!) Motel. Along the way I went through Fargo, ND and fields and fields of sunflowers. I got some video of the sunflowers. This must be the sunflower capital of the world.

Tomorrow I'm off to Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada. It's supposed to be an easy drive. We shall see. I'm ready for a change of scenery - flat flat flat flat flat. But there is A LOT of sky. Good meditation driving.

Trans Canada / Rocky Mountain Odyssey, Leg One - Lisle, IL to Minneapolis, MN

2010-08-26T17:01:00.013-05:00

I don't know what it is but every time I'm in Minneapolis I see it from a hotel room window. The last time was in 1984 in the winter while touring with The New Sam and Dave Revue. Nothing eventful today to report other than my daughter Jessica allowed me to borrow her GPS unit for this trip and, although I absolutely hate to admit it (I'm more of a map guy), it's easy to use, fun, accurate and efficient.

The "Lost Dream" Put Into Production

2010-08-22T14:44:00.012-05:00

No, it's not a movie or a piece of music. It's going to be my new Flying Scot sailboat! A few days ago I visited Harry Carpenter (next to red truck, above) at his facility in Deer Park in Western Maryland and began the process of having a boat built to my specs. The trip was great, Harry and his wife Karen were relaxed, fun and professional and I look forward to seeing and taking delivery of the completed boat in January and launching it in in the spring.

It is tentatively named the "Lost Dream" after a story by Henry Chaftez with which I grew up. The story concerns a young boy who loses a dream and after diligent seeking finds it again, is happily reunited with it and dreams it to its very end then decides to become writer. I've always loved the story and it's the only name so far that seems to stick.

The boat will be on display at the Strictly Sail boat show on Navy Pier in Chicago in January 27-30, 2011. Come see it!