On John Hughes 8 August 2009
Posted by Lao Tzu in arts, entertainment, evolution, media, movies, philosophy, sociology.Tags: john hughes, maslot hierarchy of needs, maslot's pyramid, the breakfast club
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Courtesy MSN Online
The movie writer, director, producer John Hughes passed away recently (06 Aug 2009). For those that don’t know, Mr. Hughes did not only make movies about culture in the 1980s, the culture of the 1980s were built around his movies. His movies helped make the 80s what they were – deep, happy, and highly artistic. His movies demonstrated how Maslot’s pyramid can be applied to an entire society, not just a single individual. We were at a point, partly thanks to the cold war, where we were not in a real war, the economy was positive, and as a whole, this country had little concerns (except the threat of total global nuclear war) – allowing, I feel, for this country to self-actualize. It appears that DEVO might have been right, and we were at a point where we could only devolve from there.
His most recent movie is Drillbit Taylor. If you have not seen, “The Breakfast Club”, I cannot recommend it highly enough – one of my top 10 movies of all time. It is a timeless summary of life in high school at a depth not accomplished in other attempts. We won’t forget about you.
Michael Jackson’s Legacy 28 June 2009
Posted by Lao Tzu in arts, entertainment, media, music, sociology.Tags: michael jackson
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If you are my age, or older, you are familiar with the many phases of Michael Jackson’s career. And although he was a bit eccentric at times, he was an icon that had great influence on music and pop culture. Although I am not a fan of pop music, I cannot deny his impact. To watch any of his early performances (e.g., the Ed Sullivan show), one can easily see how amazing this person was.
As for the child molestation accusations, it’s common sense. If someone molests your child, you don’t ask for money – and you definitely don’t forgive for money. If the police were smarter, either case would not have gotten as far as it did. The press made MJ a star, and made him a pedophile. His talent not withstanding, the media built him up, and tore him down. And it was not until his death that any media spoke of these accusations as weak. Truly a shame. I hope he is remembered for his positive accomplishments.
Video Did Kill the Radio Star! 1 September 2008
Posted by Lao Tzu in arts, entertainment, media, politics.Tags: mtv, music, music video, rock
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Some of you may be familiar with the new wave song (far on the geeky end of the spectrum) by the Buggles entitled, Video Killed the Radio Star. Intentionally ironic, it was the first video played on MTV, back when MTV meant Music TeleVision, not Teenager BrainWashing. Videos added a new dimension to music (literally). However, even though pop music has been around for decades – whether popular due to constant, unsolicited air play, or popular because it spoke the language of the adolescence mindset rather than that of music – video gave pop music an even greater power. Video made songs a visual experience as well as audio experience. Hence, songs that had videos that were visually entertaining, sexy, or otherwise appealing became popular even when the music quality was obviously lacking. This progressed to the point where it is now where the is very little if any music quality in mainstream music these days. The age of the manufactured commercial “bands” (collection of pretty faces with no musical talent) is squelching any attempt for real musicians to become successful. I envision this small collection of 40-something executives that sit around a table suffling magnetic word puzzles around to create new songs for each of the pop stars that are currently in the business. And, apparently, the word pool is quite small. Picking a radio station these days is like picking a president, they all suck, but you know you have to settle on one of them, so you pick the one you can tolerate for awhile and hope the trip will be over soon, constantyl thinking to yoursefl, “Isn’t there something better out there.”
Boy George Denied Visa 30 June 2008
Posted by Lao Tzu in entertainment.Tags: boy george, rosie o'donell
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Singer Boy George was recently denied a Visa to perform in the US due to legal troubles in England. Given this photograph, however, I don’t think any further explanation is necessary.
. Of course, I am merely referring to his use of makeup, not his poor choice of friends.
Heroine Addiction 12 June 2008
Posted by Lao Tzu in anthropology, arts, biology, entertainment, evolution, movies, sociology.Tags: chivalry, heroics
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Although I support the now outdated concept of women’s liberation, there is a new disappointing trend lately in the arts that is distally related. You see it in many movies and television shows. A strong woman coming to the rescue of a helpless man. Although this makes a good story, there is a clear trend evident from the abundance of such scenarios – almost ubiquitous and expected. Now, before any female reader starts typing their nasty reposte, let me explain my stance. It is not the strong female character to which I object, it is the helpless man, waiting to be rescued by some fair maiden. Yuck. There is something inherent in the very definition of man – a male of the current human species – that includes being able to not only stand up for oneself, even if it means sure defeat, but to also protect others. Men are evolutionarily designed for this, it’s called testosterone. So, while I think strong females are great, and helpless females are just as fun, helpless men are hard to stomach. Can there be a more obvious sign that chivalry is dead?
