Month: April 2014 (Page 2 of 5)

The PopCulteer
April 25, 2014

It’s another week with a ton of stuff going on and lots of cool things to talk about, so we’re doing the randomosity thing this week. Study this carefully, there will be a test at the end.

Another Shirt Drive for a Local Filmmaker

Austin Susman is gearing up to turn his short film, “Bike Cops of Haycraft City” into a feature film. To raise funds, he has turned to Booster. You can support Austin’s efforts by chipping in to buy a shirt, plus you get a cool shirt out of the deal. You can hit up the Booster site HERE. And you can watch the pitch video and the short film below.

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The PopCult Bookshelf

Fatima: The Blood Spinners
by Gilbert Hernandez
Dark Horse
ISBN-13: 978-1616553401
$19.99

It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of Gilbert Hernandez, one of “Los Bros Hernandez,” of “Love and Rockets” fame. He’s spent years telling engrossing stories with strong female characters, realistic relationships and plenty of twists and turns and fantastic situations.

So when he decided to take on zombies. I was already on board. “Fatima: The Blood Spinners” collects the 2012 mini-series that blends zombies with futuristic science fiction, government conspiracies and drugs. It’s a solid book that tells more story in its eighty pages than most comic books do in a four-year arc.

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Read the production notes HERE.

Thursday night Comedian Patrick Felton is doing something he’s never done before. He will be attempting to do comedy without his trademark red jacket.

This is a terrifying, horrifying and potentially extremely dangerous undertaking. We have been assured that it’s only for one night. You can witness this collosal disturbance in the natural order of things, plus you can also see some of the area’s most talented comedians such as Chris Ryan Carrier, Josh Weeks, Khalid Kalwar, Andy Frampton, and Jacob Hall.This all goes down Thursday night at 9 PM at Mojo’s Sportsbar, behind the Mound in South Charleston.

The night will be hosted by Patrick Felton, sans jacket. Be afraid. Be very afraid.

Earlier in the evening, Kanawha Players will play host to the second of their monthly “One Voice” concerts. One Voice is a monthly concert series that raises awareness and promotes encouragement for SURVIVORS of domestic violence, rape, and abuse. This month’s proceeds will benefit WVCADV (WV Coalition Against Domestic Violence).

Thursday night’s line-up includes Tiffany Talented Finkton, Dr. Cynthia Hall, Pepper Fandango, plus Art by Shelly Barker. This will be an evening of Spoken word, Music, and information full of expression, encouragement, and hope about domestic violence, rape and abuse. A donation of five dollars admits you to the proceedings, which begin at 7 PM at Kanawha Players Theater, 309 Beauregard Street in Charleston’s Historic East End.

At 8 PM, Third Eye Cabaret commences at The Cellar, 8 Capitol Street. This week you may chill out and listen to Louis Argento, Spurgie Hankins, The OJ3 (Derrick Shaffer and crew), Those Manic Seas and The Company Stores.

The Empty Glass is bringing you two great nights of cover-free world-class entertainment this week.  Tonight it’s Jeff Ellis, and on Thursday Crystal Bright and The Silver Hands, both of whom have appeared on Radio Free Charleston.

Jeff Ellis brings his singer-songwriter skills to the Glass this evening. One of the finest songwriters in the state, Jeff is planted firmly in the camp of Americana, and will be performing songs from his latest CD, “The Line,” as well as songs from his earlier three albums. Here’s Jeff performing the title track from “The Line.”

Crystal Bright and The Silver Hands, with opening support from Trojan Whores, will appear cover-free at The Empty Glass Thursday. Crystal is a stunning multi-instrumentalist and musical anthroplogist who has traveled the globe teaching and learning music. Aided by The Silver Hands, she creates indescribable New Cabaret music that melds a world’s worth of influences into an exciting and cohesive new musical landscape. We have been lucky enough to bring you her music on RFC. Be sure to check out her website and follow her on Facebook. here’s her RFC MINI SHOW, from January…

Beginning Friday, the Alban Arts Center presents Sophocles Ancient Greek Tragedy, “Antigone.”  (full disclosure: Your PopCulteer’s significant other is in the cast). This classic play can be seen Friday and Saturday, April 25, 26 and May 2, 3 at 8PM, with Sunday Matinees on April 27 and May 4 at 2PM.

“Antigone” details the final days of the doomed Greek princess, Antigone. Written in 441 B.C., this classical masterpiece asks the question of which is more important: the laws of government, or the laws of the divine? Antigone risks her life to give her brother a proper burial, after the new king of Thebes declares him a traitor and should be left unburied after a war which tore the family apart. After being caught in the act, she reminds the new king, her family and the townspeople that she owes more to laws of the gods and the souls of the dead, because the afterlife is forever, than she does to the politically driven laws of the new government. This ethical dilemma shows the frailty of human life and how choices create change, and reminds us that pride does indeed go before catastrophe. Tickets are $15 for Adults and $10 for Students/Seniors. Tickets can be ordered online HERE.

This should be another stellar production from The Alban. The clip above was shot Sunday afternoon, and can also be seen in the latest episode of Radio Free Charleston.

MEGO Meet 2014 is just about six weeks away in Wheeling, and we will be reminding you about it as it approaches, but there is a ton of news on the MEGO front to report.

If you aren’t in the loop about MEGO, the term is used these days to idenitfy 8″ action figures in cloth outfits, done in the classic style used by the 1970s toy company, MEGO. MEGO dominated the action figure aisles in the early and mid 1970s with a slew of licensed figures in this scale. Every major superhero from Marvel and DC, plus characters from hit TV shows and movies like CHiPs, The Waltons, Star Trek and Planet of The Apes turned up in MEGO form. A devoted fanbase keeps these toys alive over at MEGOMuseum and their related forums.

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Radio Free Charleston 197, “Jake The Dog Shirt” is a diverse collection of great music, cool animation plus a neat theater preview. Our music is from Donnie Smith, The Big Bad, The Terra Firma Ensemble and Jordan Searls. Animation comes to us from Jake Fertig and we also have a preview for the Alban Arts Center production of “Antigone.”

Host segments were shot in the Alban Arts Center theater after our first location, just outside the theater, proved to be unworkable because folks were using lawn-mowers and gas-powered trimmers…on Easter Sunday.

We kick the show off with a promo clip for “Antigone,” which is another reason we were at the Alban. The Alban Arts Center presents the ancient Greek drama beginning this Friday. Full details will be posted here in PopCult on Wednesday.

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Last Saturday Dr. Sketchy’s Anti-Art School was graced with the presence of Paco Fish, the King of Burlesque. Our art this week stars Paco in an appropriately regal pose, digitally painted in oils. We will be revisiting the remarkable Mr. Fish and his Dr. Sketchy’s session later.

You will also want to check PopCult later Monday for the latest episode of Radio Free Charleston featuring music from Donnie Smith, The big Bad, The Terra Firma Ensemble and Jordan Searls, plus animation from Jake Fertig and Frank Panucci, and a preview of the Alban Arts Center production, “Antigone.”

W.C. Fields was a comedy giant in the 1930s, standing alongside The Marx Brothers in terms of subversive anti-establishment humor. Yet, since a brief revival in the 1960s, his movies haven’t seemed to get their fair share of recognition. It might be because he usually played a thoroughly unpleasant child-hating alcoholic curmudgeon, but still, there’s plenty of comedy gold in his work.

To rectify his recent undeserved obscurity, this week PopCult is bringing you the entire W.C. Fields classic, “The Dentist.”