tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36896318089582748292024-03-18T20:46:10.227-07:00Gustaf LingmarkGustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-86108487659959517212016-06-29T06:56:00.002-07:002016-06-29T06:56:18.544-07:00I spent almost half of 2014 publishing my new Swedish book (cover, print, proof) and the other half + 2015 promoting it. The book is called ""Lina + Rymden = Tobbe" (that could be translated to "Molly + Space = Todd"). A teenage book about love, alienation and identity that's very personal, but also something that I think could do a lot of good in schools.<br />
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Anyway, it was a pretty exceptional time. Not only was it my biggest step ever for my author life, but also it made me want to write more. Parallell to this, I got to spend a lot of time with some cool Swedish film makers. They inspired me to switch over to screenplays again. Not that I had to, but it just felt right. As for now, I'm trying to fit in the writing of my next book (another teenage book - a dark, murder thriller story, target audience teenagers / young adults) and still finish off some exciting movie stuff.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZvvEiNbWBQzoXwyoq1okV2x_yMVxu2zBCNO8dBzcIiM5ZonsyJ0fQRHPx1sAfa3aL_B6caCLFmar64qGh6lVLD6t6Zudk5KlB6Jj3EnMDwM6vgYf-y9NdflFiBRajzjUWoqQC_U9IBrnP/s1600/Lina%252BRymden%253DTobbe-bokomslag.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZvvEiNbWBQzoXwyoq1okV2x_yMVxu2zBCNO8dBzcIiM5ZonsyJ0fQRHPx1sAfa3aL_B6caCLFmar64qGh6lVLD6t6Zudk5KlB6Jj3EnMDwM6vgYf-y9NdflFiBRajzjUWoqQC_U9IBrnP/s400/Lina%252BRymden%253DTobbe-bokomslag.jpg" width="255" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cover of my new book "Lina + Rymden = Tobbe"</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1-YPIoJl9hr2rg1TXNzBx9lbgopGaFAHULleAkgbDxRsqT0brIelReqheBYAICPCcLZ900Z8TzAVTEDfQ1hDvvPwLX72EUb6I-GwA4PxX6-v5IP6ut7M4B1jLUXULqDBDUO6ihNc5rrLy/s1600/11113965_10153284484672527_5500597647598310039_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1-YPIoJl9hr2rg1TXNzBx9lbgopGaFAHULleAkgbDxRsqT0brIelReqheBYAICPCcLZ900Z8TzAVTEDfQ1hDvvPwLX72EUb6I-GwA4PxX6-v5IP6ut7M4B1jLUXULqDBDUO6ihNc5rrLy/s400/11113965_10153284484672527_5500597647598310039_o.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm in Kung Fury!</td></tr>
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<br />Gustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-17824863793810193232014-09-22T13:24:00.004-07:002014-10-02T19:54:12.943-07:00Getting the Chalice at the Scarecrow fields<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_mXkyg7yLc3V1FkTUhEOHhIaVk/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank"><img alt=" Getting the chalice at the scarecrow fields" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKrChlldjYMES9K5Yj9yML9eO_GPOmPSIiNGj62B5xl_48zzgCaEyj1O5wV-hrUM-DEFScx2-3wXAmQfYfP6tKlEIxksIzeDt8uxdRUy0gjU6vXnIU1LjoZKemvY_5VFK8JN-uqpxYIhKJ/s1600/getting-the-chalice.jpg" height="360" width="640" /></a></div>
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A short intro I wrote to a scary story. It goes well with the season. Sometimes your hopes can surpass anything that scares you.... <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_mXkyg7yLc3V1FkTUhEOHhIaVk/edit?usp=sharing">Getting the Chalice at the Scarecrow fields</a>Gustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-89604057474447691692013-09-23T08:30:00.000-07:002014-04-15T02:24:16.639-07:00Horror short "Into the woods"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif3cgB_YASyORCAD_IYnnPa3QYHcXSRygeoPsx9Dg0Wp4eFcElU-B2zbhQazPje77oR59_okGexeebCcWVT6O1ZEh0ihPXQDtBZNvXeYXRfSRBbXaUguBGShFLHxHJp_MOCvdw71morGoT/s1600/cabin+night.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif3cgB_YASyORCAD_IYnnPa3QYHcXSRygeoPsx9Dg0Wp4eFcElU-B2zbhQazPje77oR59_okGexeebCcWVT6O1ZEh0ihPXQDtBZNvXeYXRfSRBbXaUguBGShFLHxHJp_MOCvdw71morGoT/s1600/cabin+night.jpg" height="328" width="640" /></a></div>
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<i>He said that he had the car and the cabin and that he wanted most of the characters killed. I re-wrote it a couple of times but he never got around to finish the project. I hope it gets made some day. I'd love to see some American teens run around and become these people; I grew really attached to them...</i><br />
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<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_mXkyg7yLc3RXpXVTVLSm1SSE0/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">"Into the woods" version 1</a> - 20 pages. A long, detailed story. This version generated some great characters; Ricky here is an idiot who knows he doesn't stand a chance to be attractive or clever, so he just chooses to be the worst. Overweight, clumsy and horny. I really love how he and Dirk (the jock) interact. Shauna is the girly girl, Fey is the Tom Boy and Ashton is the sensitive, quiet guy. There is some chess symbolic and a beautiful montage of the party where everyone gets drunk. Then it all turns into classic slasher. Let's see if you can guess who the killer is...<br />
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<a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B_mXkyg7yLc3SzJTRmJoUHhFUVE/edit" target="_blank">"Into the woods" version 2 </a>- 22 pages. A more brutal intro with the deer to give us a more intense character presentation. Dirk is darker, Ricky is more normal and the Tom Boy Fey has now become a soccer girl and carries around a soccer ball to stereotype her even more. The Cabin owner gets a bigger introduction and is creepier than ever. Rule number one still obliges, the party montage is out (but I love the transition from the moon to a lemon), instead, we have Ricky telling a classic horror story. Next people are dying all over the place in very interesting ways. Could someone else be the killer this time...?<br />
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<a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B_mXkyg7yLc3NE9QQS1pRW5uRGs/edit" target="_blank">"Into the woods" version 3</a> - 10 pages. I renamed this one "Cabin night". Don't ask me why... Close to Version 2, but shorter. Much shorter. The pace is up, Fey is now a Hockey girl with a badass Hockey stick! Instead of a party we got a tiny hockey match indoors.Gustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-38648412605363540712013-08-24T09:08:00.000-07:002013-08-24T09:23:14.419-07:00"Make an Impact"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B_mXkyg7yLc3UkRscTJ6M1o4Rm8/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu_T5Kaez8ouM-VGNDD_6oGPeS4JVMj9PYCGYK4SSolcr9EA2Eear0cMY__OsMFc_KFyL4FSpT_HR7llKWfhX6ERNM0W2epyF2Hd3BcCcKR2oISDy2jjoU_y_L7ZAoUNsUMkfQ8ub6bE_J/s640/make-an-impact.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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A <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B_mXkyg7yLc3UkRscTJ6M1o4Rm8/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">30-page outline</a> for a happy love story I wrote that could become a feature.Gustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-7605742358506878832012-12-21T14:24:00.002-08:002019-01-17T07:23:23.604-08:00Revisiting Scabb Island 20 years later (Monkey Island 2 memories)<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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I log into "Monkey Island 2" after downloading it on the <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/se/app/monkey-island-2-special-edition/id376928597?mt=8" target="_blank">iPad</a> and I visit all my friends that I haven’t seen since 1992. I go down to the grassy beach on Scabb Island and I look at the ocean, remembering all my real 13-year old friends standing around me, telling me to use this and that item. They are all grown-up now and they live some place else.<br />
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Not like my pirate friends sitting on logs next to an open fire. They are still
here, even though it’s been so many years. We don't talk much; I just stand
next to them as I listen to the waves in the background. </div>
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I look at the trees leaning towards the water, the quiet lighthouse and how the
fire is making a glowing color on the grass. I haven’t been here for 20 years
and the memories are suddenly rushing over me. I close my eyes and for a moment
I am back in my childhood room. The Scandinavian winter is cold and it is dark
outside. The frost is on my window and the trees are silent. I wonder if anyone
can see my 15-inch VGA monitor from the street?<br />
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I head out into my own night. I run across the Island and around the mountain. I
want to explore every part of Scabb Island; the crystal clear air, the clouds
in the sky. Oh, how I wanted to fly over this Island when I was young, far
above the ocean of Penisula just to spot this ambient place and visit it for
real.<br />
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My parents are calling me for dinner while I am at the Woodsmith’s house. I
look at the dim lights and how the Woodsmith’s hammer is laid out just the way
he likes it. I get a plate and run back to my room. I eat in silence in front
of a comic book, while I listen to him hammer on that peg leg just like he
always have and always will.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir1Y8oUUZLSz7JFZfUJ4hiQmMJB0sBreoUrW6fQxpToV7JpsczWgLg8DmIE16ime0E41hsyMkjgbnaCiOGMhSrSyo8p16b8xJ2qhDxrCza0mFZ6hLgpbpisWfgstGS1nv0qAsO7xtNV3OF/s1600/8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir1Y8oUUZLSz7JFZfUJ4hiQmMJB0sBreoUrW6fQxpToV7JpsczWgLg8DmIE16ime0E41hsyMkjgbnaCiOGMhSrSyo8p16b8xJ2qhDxrCza0mFZ6hLgpbpisWfgstGS1nv0qAsO7xtNV3OF/s1600/8.jpg" /></a></div>
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I'm playing as the Soviet Union is shattered and there are Riots in LA and I play through
the Barcelona Summer games. I don’t look up as the UN is sending troops to
Bosnia and Herzegovina and Bill Clinton is becoming the 42:nd president. The
world is changing so fast, but in here, everything is within my pace. This
world doesn’t let me fall behind. It always waits for me.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR87JT83zzvvjt9IXD0IwWnEO4QlnIwpnlrWLfldfGn14nNOVD3F3syj8t7uuYO-WbGzl27JaoM0olgeDMJxsgYPWUZgn4J0Aiu12kr77gU4gwqg0yr6-bJdRIlU5yqoDEUWC6gVxMUjiT/s1600/9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a>I open my eyes. I move
my finger across the small city built of shipwrecks and I step down the stairs
of "The Bloody Lip bar”. I walk down in the cozy dark with a high wooden
ceiling and an old piano. It is just me and the barkeeper here but he let’s me
walk around as I please.<br />
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I place my hand on the screen, the heat is there, I try to caress this world
with my fingertips… trying to go back to the same time. How this bar used to
speak to me. How I’d feel that I could be myself when I was here. Nothing could
reach me among broken ships in the Caribbean moonlight.</div>
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I am suppose to be
finishing a report for tomorrow, but I am to busy watching the stars shining
through the roof in Wallys cartography shop. The candles are still burning on
his large wooden table. They have burned for so long. I want to tell Wally what
happened to that crush I used to have in high school, how we never talked even
though I used to hang out in here while writing her name in bold letters in my
math book instead of doing homework. Just as Wally, I’d be working with my
pencil, but mostly I’d think about how I would see her in front of me the next
day. How sweet and vivid that love was.</div>
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I visit the houseboat and I'm standing in the door way looking at Captain
Dread, I'm about to speak to him for the first time again – as I used to do for
so many times, but I hesitate. Maybe because it has been so long ago, maybe because I don't know where to begin. He reminds me of a friend who I went to see
“Aladdin” with and who bought a “Metallica” CD after the movie. Later he would get his own
electric guitar. Now he has two kids of his own and they are older than when we were when we first met.<o:p></o:p><br />
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I don't want to bother
Captain Dread. Not this time. This time I leave without him even noticing I was
there. The organ tones in the background becomes a flute that is now playing softly. I used to fall asleep to the
tunes of this music and I realize that I am about to do it again as I go back to the campfire. I
like being here, in a moment and time that will never disappear.<br />
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<!--EndFragment-->Gustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-86539531766091596602012-12-08T01:33:00.001-08:002022-03-29T03:06:56.307-07:00"The Magnet Stone" - an unaired Thundercats episode<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B_mXkyg7yLc3b0F4MFo1akI0UVk" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOz06ym8G-AqC9p-QvyWnW8LY1w_VXgWRN7o0-ZEJ0DcjsZCu5X4a3g6gQ9PpYWsTBBcvhBxggGJXucEI5yggLFAFPhrAK4t8VgrhezPWGl_0GSWTykhe5FI7NJL-CejDqEuqylo6MHmcc/s1600/young_tygra.jpg" /></a></div>
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Throughout 2011 I was spellbound by the restart of Thundercats. I fell in love with the characters, the drama and the amazing idea to have an entire kingdom rely on a group of characters with a complicated past, hidden flaws and young (a lot of times immature) personalities. Not to mention the king who was born into the throne and the brother who had to stand in the shadows. Having "The Kits" around gave the show a unique opportunity to look at the grown-up issues from a young perspective. As we get older, we are often reminded of our own childhood seeing a younger generation interact and so I felt I had the perfect setup to capture this switch to memory lane.<br />
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During the spring of 2012 I was in contact with some of the writers of Thundercats (2011) a long with some names at WB, they heard that I was interested in writing an episode and provided me with a few original scripts of the showand after a few months I returned with an episode I wrote. However, at that time, the show got frozen.<br />
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Now that the show is on hold and reruns on Tooami, I thought that some fans might enjoy reading this piece.<br />
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<a href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B_mXkyg7yLc3b0F4MFo1akI0UVk" target="_blank"> "The Magnet Stone"</a> - an unaired Thundercats episode.Gustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-79870510352539513032012-06-05T02:52:00.000-07:002016-06-29T06:58:04.659-07:00Short stories<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B_mXkyg7yLc3Umc2OG0tdVE3QUk" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNFop5MMq_UPy36pj4lvpUkk86LBFhEp8DZgi0v9gWowQ39iSVVSqXpbhp1xu2P_f_djNBTiezi3keUEMod_gLZ7CBZy_dcgQBMl00SAorHK5dKt2m1JskZ93msuHSxZloVSMeYUzpUcI2/s320/lasvegas-thumb.png" width="222" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B_mXkyg7yLc3Umc2OG0tdVE3QUk" target="_blank">A Las Vegas Color</a></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B_mXkyg7yLc3c1B0XzRnMERmVVk" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5JDZhoMZ2D9f0jOnrJLs-4EGGvq-sOtfRJHn6fy3IH4wkFxknUcVnb77cB6n4IZgkVQ1c02RnS-fg62jLUf5rpLN-i114RT7DbfEHOsQwogHHzEPBX-Sfm23xG7dSgYmnEqBwpCW4-91J/s320/thumb-cover.png" width="226" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B_mXkyg7yLc3c1B0XzRnMERmVVk" target="_blank">David's Party</a></td></tr>
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Two short stories I wrote this spring for a Fiction Writing Class.</div>
Gustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-4556611506585871072012-05-22T13:40:00.002-07:002015-01-09T07:46:23.530-08:00"Creating a dent in the pop-universe" – a background story and interview with Thundercats developer Leonard Starr<i><a href="http://web.archive.org/web/20061201024325/http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/2000/Jul/04/islandlife14.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">L</span>egend</a> has it that in 1981, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tobin_Wolf" target="_blank">Tobin Wolf </a>sat down at the <a href="http://thundercats.vpga.com/cast/tedwolf.htm" target="_blank">dining table</a> with his daughter and sketched a cast of muscular, superpowered characters who combined both "superhuman" and "superanimal" powers. He then handed the sketches over to the producers </i><i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jules_Bass" target="_blank">Jules Bass</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_Rankin,_Jr." target="_blank">Arthur Rankin</a> at "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rankin/Bass" target="_blank">Rankin/Bass</a>" who shared the idea with Stan Weston and his company "Leisure Concepts" where the sketches ended up with </i><i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1645621/" target="_blank">Mike Germakian</a>. Mike <a href="http://www.thundercatslair.org/cartoon/special/mikegermakian/index.html" target="_blank">developed the sketches</a> into a</i><i> couple of character posters a long with their weapons. He also created the iconic Thundercats logo with the cool lettering we all know plus the first conceptual drawings of the characters and their weapons that can </i><i>be seen on <a href="http://theheavencontrolroom.com/michael-germakian-thundercats-art-design.jpg" target="_blank">this iconic photo-realistic art piece</a>. Though Thundercats was indeed the work of many good men, history would have stopped here if it wasn't for a hard-working main writer named </i><i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonard_Starr" target="_blank">Leonard Starr</a>.</i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9ZYJbOhYbfkhGNE55Bspnng6y2yjZFQg4gSMQ64oZad97RvOfIwSuNznav4IaJgF5fP0Gyp5HG_M1-E1CXd-C8PRhLrXN8G09P6sG2ebZng7gG9nSgg28fD_ecQEG0gvrd543pwNNd9J8/s1600/Screen+shot+2012-05-16+at+17.08.32.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9ZYJbOhYbfkhGNE55Bspnng6y2yjZFQg4gSMQ64oZad97RvOfIwSuNznav4IaJgF5fP0Gyp5HG_M1-E1CXd-C8PRhLrXN8G09P6sG2ebZng7gG9nSgg28fD_ecQEG0gvrd543pwNNd9J8/s1600/Screen+shot+2012-05-16+at+17.08.32.png" /></a></div>
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<i>Below is an amazing interview with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonard_Starr" target="_blank">Leonard Starr</a> by <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Last-Chance-James-Gauthier/dp/0595279139" target="_blank">James Gauthier</a>. The interview was found at <a href="http://cheezey.org/">Cheezey.org</a> (I added some pictures and links, the sketches are from <a href="http://thundercatslair.org/">thundercatslair.org</a>). Here we get almost the complete story on what took place when pop-culture was made. In the words of James Gauthier:</i><br />
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Someone I knew, knowing that Leonard Starr and I are friends, asked about a couple of entries on the "Thundercats" site, concerning Ted Wolf's daughter reminiscing about sitting around their dining room table creating the characters in the series. I'd dropped in on Leonard in the studio he was sharing with Stan Drake often in the 80s when in addition to writing and drawing "Annie", collaborating with Stan on "Kelly Green"; he was also working on "Thundercats". I remembered him working on the "Bible", drawing a map of 3rd Earth, there was a drawing he did of Lion-O looking through the eye holes of the 'Sword of Omens' with the 'Eye of Thundera' to give him 'Sight beyond Sight', that kind of thing. There were also photocopies of Thundercat type characters. I know, of course, that the opening credits of the show say 'Created by Ted Wolf", but had no doubt that Leonard was solely responsible for developing the show in the form that went on the air. Still, I was remembering events of 20 years or so ago, so I phoned him to ask about it, but then I thought, wait - the next time I come over I'll bring a tape recorder so that you tell your side. He said "My side? I have no side. It was a job and I did what I did, but okay if you want to take the time."<br />
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So - a week or so later, I live farther from him now, I came over to tape the session (the clarifications in parentheses are mine.). I also brought printouts of the Ted Wolf items from the Internet. He looked at them and laughed.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8CAO17lHx_yzZz0X4O7h0s7iEcOJPP7aGNkjelF_jSeFURRgAra5egU1_Psnvrlp5gKEWh2SYUjKJdc3yhzsqbVpaNJgXlQzZwbpJquXM7i_4jt9Lw3HMb91aLujRUhlgNsHK0nyaeUMu/s1600/228px-Leonard_Starr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8CAO17lHx_yzZz0X4O7h0s7iEcOJPP7aGNkjelF_jSeFURRgAra5egU1_Psnvrlp5gKEWh2SYUjKJdc3yhzsqbVpaNJgXlQzZwbpJquXM7i_4jt9Lw3HMb91aLujRUhlgNsHK0nyaeUMu/s200/228px-Leonard_Starr.jpg" height="200" width="132" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLnh-hqqh0cQ5NXYcOSt1qDpoG_4nCvsslA_rNnaFcioGFTkNvCOiSoZyGbYR1yJRzEjykJTEPP5eIQevL60LhGqZFaYNZq2r72rvvuZ-9LnxOFFuInzKqvuSuLmZRrgv_TyHdMjD9LWfu/s1600/Leonard+Starr.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLnh-hqqh0cQ5NXYcOSt1qDpoG_4nCvsslA_rNnaFcioGFTkNvCOiSoZyGbYR1yJRzEjykJTEPP5eIQevL60LhGqZFaYNZq2r72rvvuZ-9LnxOFFuInzKqvuSuLmZRrgv_TyHdMjD9LWfu/s200/Leonard+Starr.jpeg" height="158" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYL5SoPmRoJVFyV7TOOY6R1jOjfw1HBC0oFdoi5VbG9W-od-dSqcG1j_jROn-3WF7OnB6b3hiBWBVmJh2RJDW3JhZZVygWNDaPORijYwW7_xZwmEd7rXeZ_eAHUwmD6c4eZjDy_5I0KdQR/s1600/Leonard+Starr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYL5SoPmRoJVFyV7TOOY6R1jOjfw1HBC0oFdoi5VbG9W-od-dSqcG1j_jROn-3WF7OnB6b3hiBWBVmJh2RJDW3JhZZVygWNDaPORijYwW7_xZwmEd7rXeZ_eAHUwmD6c4eZjDy_5I0KdQR/s200/Leonard+Starr.jpg" height="156" width="200" /></a></div>
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<b><br />Above images – The legendary Leonard Starr</b></div>
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<b>LS: </b>"Ted Wolf? There really was a Ted Wolf? The first I ever heard of him was when I saw his name on the opening credits of the first show." (Leonard doesn't spend much time on the internet, just uses his PC for e-mail, checking the programs on his local classical music station, research for something he's working on etc. He was surprised when I told him there was a lengthy site about "On Stage". I'd be surprised if he ever checked it out.).<br />
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<b>Me: </b>So you never met him?<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Tobin "Ted" Wolf - the creator of Thundercats</b></td></tr>
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<b>LS:</b> I thought it might be a manufactured name, maybe for copyright reasons, like… what was it… yes, "Alan Smithee", a pseudonym movie directors used when they felt their work was tampered with or for whatever reason didn't want their actual names on the credits."<br />
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<b>Me: </b>So…wait. Let's go back to the beginning. How did you get into "Thundercats"?<br />
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<b>LS:</b> Oh… Jules Bass (of Rankin/Bass) called me one day, said something had come in that he'd like me to take a look at, but that they were in a bit of a time crunch. Could I come in the next day? As it happened, there was an event at the Illustrators (The "Society of Illustrators" in New York) that night, and we'd be coming in for it. Great. If I could drop by the office first he'd wait for me.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Jules Bass and A. Rankin</b></td></tr>
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So, sure, I dropped Betty (L's late wonderful wife) off at the club on the way, and got to R/B just before six. Everyone was gone of course, just Jules there, and he had an easel set up with posters, about a half dozen of them, with fully rendered drawings. At least two were of Catpeople, a Lion man I remember, maybe a Panther man, at least one Reptile man, a rendering of what would later become the Thundercar or maybe the Thundertank, and …I don't really remember what else except for the Thundercats logo with that terrific lettering, rendered in color as all the posters were. (These were probably the photocopies I saw in Leonard's studio) I think that striking logo was as instrumental in the show's success as anything else. In essence, what was happening was that they were brought this material, there was a good chance of getting a show based on it on the air, but they didn't know what the hell to do with it. R/B's long experience in animation had been entirely in Saturday morning shows and specials and those, like "The Jackson Five", "The Osmonds", would have two musical numbers per half hour show, whatever plot there was pretty much connective tissue to fill what remained of the 25 minutes without commercials.<br />
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<b><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">The drawing's Leonard Starr were working on when </span>James Gauthier visited the studio</b></div>
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This project would be for direct syndication, five days a week from the outset. It would require a basic setup of situation and characters that were capable of extension, very much like the way a continuity comic strip works, my ballpark. Did I have any thoughts on what was there, Jules wanted to know. What came to me immediately was Egypt, because of their ancient animal Gods, jackal, cat, etc. It could also bring in mummies, tombs, things that twigged me when I was a kid. The Tcats might be survivors of a dying planet etc. Could be a way to go, Jules said. Could I do a treatment? But quickly, there was some kind of time pressure. So I said I'd give it a shot, did it the next day, just a few pages, pretty much a précis of what the first show would turn out to be, the imminent destruction of Thundera, their Exodus and so on.<br />
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Jules had wanted a team so I added the other Tcats, their specific weapons, Snarf for comedy relief, named them, also the bad guys, Slythe, Monkian, Jackalman, etc, called them Mutants because it was a word that resonated with kids as bad guys… like the Tcats weren't mutants, one critic later wanted to know?… Mumm-Ra the Immortal…no, the Everliving because "Immortal" had a benevolent sound to it, anyway, as the overarching evil that awaited them on Third Earth, which was what remained of Earth after two nuclear holocausts. I sent it in before the PO closed, and heard from Jules the next day, saying they liked it so much they were even going to pay me for it and could I come in the next day. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Slythe, Monkian and Jackalman – the fundament villains of the Thundercats</b></td></tr>
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I did, and when I got there Jules had had a Deal Memo prepared, specifying a certain sum for agreeing to the Memo, another for completion of a "Bible" which is a basic format for a series of 65 half hour shows for other writers to base their scripts on, another sum in the event of commencement of production, a price for each following script, a specific percentage of any merchandising revenues, all else to be further defined in, quote, "a more formal and complete contract now in preparation", and so on. The merchandising percentage was okay, but merchandising is iffy. I was more interested in residuals, like the downward sliding scale on the contracts of the previous shows I'd done for them, so much for the first run, less and less for the second, third, etc. showings, so that if the Tcats ran at all, there would be additional revenue.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><b>Mumm-Ra the Everliving</b></span></td></tr>
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Jules said we'd work that out when we did the formal contract. Oh- and there were consulting fees, as I'd asked him if he'd like me to ride shotgun on the scripts. Oh, God yes! he'd said. It all seemed okay, I'd done some specials that Arthur Rankin had asked me to write and they'd all gone well, no money problems, so I signed it. For openers could I give them a two-hour Tcat special, one that could also be shown as four half hour and/or one hour shows? Sure, so I rearranged my schedule, put in a couple of really heavy days and brought it in. Wait…my memory is a bit hazy here…I don't remember if I did the Bible or the show first … Maybe the show because we didn't know where we were with this yet. The script went in pretty much unchanged, except for some vital additions by Jules. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9nzSnASg-w" target="_blank">He had Thunder…Thunder…THUNDER precede Thundercats HO!</a>, the mummy Mumm-Ra transform into the monster Mumm-Ra and for the Sword of Omens to grow and flash when Lion-O did the call. The holocausts were cut because that might scare kids… Oh- he also changed Lion-L as I had it because of a possible conflict with the toy train people, to Lion-O. Um…Ah- he also thought there should be some juvenile Tcats, hence Wilykat and Wilykit, and…that was about it. Jules cast the actors to record the script, got a composer to do that first rate score… I think Jules himself did the lyrics… and off it went to Japan for animation. It doesn't seem now as if it was very long before the film came back. An assistant ran it for me the next time I went in, and it looked great. <br />
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The Japanese had done a terrific job designing the characters, the animation itself equal to or better than anything else around, the only error a voice identifying "a tiny blue planet" that had been colored green. More important to me was that my credit should have been "developed by" in addition to "head writer". Asked Jules about it, he said they had to do it that way. Why? He shrugged as if he didn't really know himself, it was out of his hands. Okay - I wasn't envisioning a further career in animation, I had my own gig, and so the credit didn't really matter.<br />
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<b>Me: </b>And the show went on right after that?<br />
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<b>LS: </b>Soon anyway, though if it was shown in my area I wasn't told about it, but Dik Browne (the late great Dik Browne - Hi & Lois, Hagar) called me from Sarasota, the family had seen it, liked it a lot, but - it had been shown at 8.00 PM. Wasn't that a bad time slot for an animated kid's show? Was it ever! The kiss of death! I figured that was that, but a day or two later Dik called again. The weekly ratings had been published in their local paper, Tcats among them, and the ratings were excellent! The numbers must have been pretty much the same wherever else it had played, because Jules called me to say it was a GO and I guess it was at this point that I wrote the Bible. I also decided that a map of Third Earth would be helpful to the subsequent writers so I designed that as well…and…I think I started right in working on scripts. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Map of Third Earth - designed by Leonard Starr</b></td></tr>
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Three scripts a week would have to be recorded by the actors in New York and sent to Japan, so we had to start finding writers, not easy, because most of the experienced animation writers were in California, plus, I discovered later, their price per script was roughly twice what R/B paid. Anyway, somehow scripts started coming in and …(laughs) …I made a discovery! Writers hate to write! I shouldn't have been surprised because I'm one of them. Dorothy Parker said it for all our ilk, to wit, "I hate to write, but I like have written" Ah yes - it's that blank sheet of paper. Hemingway called it "the White Bull". It was almost as if some of the scripts were written the night before deadline. I'd send them back for rewrite at first but then time would run out and we'd be hung up, so I ultimately rewrote them myself, getting to see dawn from the wrong end a lot, but hey- I'm a comic artist so it was by no means the first time. Jules must have handled some of the editing because there was no way I could have could have done it all on my own.<br />
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<b>Me:</b> So it was essentially you and Jules getting the scripts out?<br />
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<b>LS:</b> I guess so, but it was just as well that we didn't have that schedule killer - Leeway! Not that it didn't get scary. I remember Jules' calling me one Saturday with a problem, adding "I'm getting too old for this ****!". Just generally, it seems to me now that I was on the phone half the day with Jules or writers or the really first rate production staff. Stan was finding it disruptive, so I finally had to take another studio down the hall to handle it all.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Bolle" target="_blank">Frank Bolle</a></td></tr>
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<b>Me:</b> I remember. You had Frank (<a href="http://www.frankbollestudio.com/" target="_blank">Frank Bolle</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winnie_Winkle" target="_blank">Winnie Winkle</a>, Apt. 3G, etc. one of L's oldest and closest friends since their high school days) help you on "Annie" at one point.<br />
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<b>LS: </b>Yes, he penciled a sequence from my roughs and had to push his own killer schedule around to do it. Well -that's Frank.<br />
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<b>Me: </b>Yes, I met him through you and now he's recently done the illustrations in the book I wrote with Ed Martin, "The Last Chance".<br />
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<b>LS:</b> Oh, right. Hope it's doing well, Jim. Uh…Anyway, we got through the first 65 shows, it was a hit, we were tired but exhilarated, and then another, I think…40 shows were ordered, but now we were in a groove so it was going more easily.<br />
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<b>Me:</b> You were on it for more than a year, weren't you?<br />
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<b>LS:</b> Oh, sure, and here comes the fun part. After about two years I asked Jules about residuals again. "Oh, we can't give residuals on a cheap show like this." Oh? Well, has that "formal contract in preparation" been prepared yet? "Look,"says Jules, "If you want to sue us, sue us. It'll cost you a lot of money and you'll lose." Huh. He jumps right from "how about the contract" to "Sue us"? Oboy. There's a Mexican curse that goes, "May your life be filled with lawyers", and here it was, lawyer time. So I took my sad story to my local attorney, and he set me up with one of those lawyer factories in New York, five floors or so on Madison Avenue. It turned out that the guy assigned to my case, I forget his name, had represented R/B in a suit against Joe Levine (Joseph E. Levine, the producer that had bought up those shlock Italian muscle movies, "Hercules" et al, had them dubbed into English and made a mint. He later, crazily enough, also produced "The Graduate") and won it for R/B. Well, great, I figured. They know each other, they'd had a good experience, they'll talk it out, come to some kind of satisfactory resolution, and that will be that.<br />
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Ho ho. He set up a meeting with Jules, and called later that day. How did it go? He said I asked Jules, 'What about this paper, the Deal Memo?'. Jules said, "I don't know." Oh? "What shall I tell my client"? Jules said, "I don't know." So. There it was. There was nothing for it but to sue. Papers were served, all that, lawyer stuff.<br />
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In the event, the suit didn't get further than the deposition. R/B's lawyer started out by saying that Stan Weston, had told him that, no question, I was almost totally responsible for the show in its present shape. Stan Weston? He was a guy who had a company called "Leisure Concepts". He'd shown up at the R/B offices once, maybe twice after the show was a hit, happy as hell with the way things were going, complements to me… nice charismatic guy. How did his name come into the suit? If he had any connection to the show it wasn't mentioned. Did Tcats come to R/B via "Leisure Concepts"? Well, who cares. It was a promising beginning, but the promise quickly fizzled. It turned out that a Deal Memo is a binding contract, news to me, despite having signed many a contract in my life. It being my conceit that I could read a short sentence in English comprised of words I was familiar with, I didn't realize that "A formal and complete contract now in preparation" turned out to be one of those complex legal terms that translates as "Up yours." I did get the specified percentage of the merchandising, future plus the revenue that had been accumulating for… let's see… the date of the Deal Memo was March '84, the suit was in March '87 to give you the time frame… minus of course, a third to the lawyers.<br />
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<b>Me:</b> Bummer. You had to be furious?<br />
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<b>LS:</b> I guess so… but I mostly remember being disgusted, that such a fascinating, frustrating, exhausting, exhilarating, ultimately successful venture should have come to such a shabby end.<br />
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<b>Me:</b> This whole thing seems to have been entirely with Jules Bass. Boy, you must really hate him!<br />
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<b>LS:</b> (laughs) …Jim, Jim… These stories are Legion in that business. In the "How to be a Producer Handbook" a primary rule is that if you aren't hated, you're not doing it right! Still - Jules goofed. I was so sure I was in Friendlyville, that I would have gone into it with a verbal agreement and a handshake and he could have aced me out of every cent, so there you go - nobody's perfect.<br />
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<b>Me:</b> You haven't said anything about Arthur Rankin. Where was he in all this?<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Arthur Rankin</b></td></tr>
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<b>LS:</b> Arthur was barely around at all. I assumed that he was handling the animation end in Japan, and I guess he was, because one of the very few, I think maybe three, times he was there, he sat in at a writer's conference and said… actually I think the only thing he said during what was a long conference, was that the Japanese animators had requested that we scratch the word "hordes" out of our dictionaries. We were all guilty of loading the scripts up with characters, even me, who should have remembered that all those mob scenes we wrote would have to be drawn.<br />
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<b>Me: </b>It doesn't sound like he had much say about the creative end in all that time?<br />
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<b>LS:</b> Well… he may have had his hands full behind the scenes, who knows… but come to think of it all the other shows I'd done for Arthur seemed to be for him alone. Jules was barely around for those, so…anyway, Arthur is a very likable guy, nice quirky sense of humor… I knew him socially, was always pleased when he called me to do a script. It was a nice change from my regular routine, fun to see it animated. Always a pleasant experience.<br />
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<b>Me: </b>So you think the way it ended was all Jules' doing?<br />
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<b>LS:</b> Oh, how can I know. Maybe each had autonomous say on their individual projects, but - Arthur's name was on the door. I would have thought that he could resolve the whole sorry business with a phone call. There was no call.<br />
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<b>Me:</b> So that was that… Oh - to backtrack, what do you think now that you know there actually was a Ted Wolf?<br />
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<b>LS:</b> (Laughs) The actual Ted Wolf! Oh… what is there to think? You know…I just saw 'Mystic River' and the crux of this longish movie is a very short scene, almost a throwaway, where the daughter of Sean Penn's character comes into the back of their grocery store to tell him she's leaving for the day. Penn is at his desk, doing accounts or whatever, his back to her. She comes up behind him, puts her arms around him, kisses him on the forehead. Penn turns his head towards her, smiles, says "Have fun" or something, his mind still on his deskwork. With just that, absolutely no shmaltz, you feel this… profound bond between them. Childless myself, I envied it, as I sometimes have of my lifelong friends and their kids, feeling that I'd really missed something, something, oh... primal…<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tobin Ted Wolf</td></tr>
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<b>Me: </b>That kind of relationship isn't always the rule…<br />
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<b>LS:</b> Oh! Tell me about it! There were some real horror stories among them, made me feel I was well out of it, but oddly, and happily, they all, with one tragic exception, shaped up. In their forties now, pushing fifty some of them, they've become responsible citizens, married with kids of their own, just as square as the rest of us. The relationship between Ted Wolf and his daughter seems to be one of the best ones though. One wants to be part of that gemutlich setting around the dining table. Ted Wolf's bio shows him to be an estimable guy, he clearly came up with the concept, received royalties for it, which you'll have noticed, they don't hand out willy-nilly. His daughter should never have occasion to be less proud of him. 'Created by Ted Wolf' will be the opening credit on 'Thundercats' as long as it's being shown. His is part one of the story, mine is part two. Part three is that it's still being enjoyed, so all in all… a happy ending.<br />
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Transcribing the tape, I saw that I had answers to questions I didn't know I had, and since there's still so much interest in Thundercats, I thought it should be in with the Thundercat stuff on the Internet. I called Leonard to see if he'd object to that. He said, "Umm…what the hell. Why not."<br />
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<i>All text above is an interview with Leonard Starr by <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Last-Chance-James-Gauthier/dp/0595279139" target="_blank">James Gauthier</a>. The interview was found at <a href="http://cheezey.org/">Cheezey.org</a> (I have added pictures and links.).</i><br />
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<i><br /></i>Gustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-20673422047532019582012-05-13T18:11:00.000-07:002015-01-09T07:28:52.748-08:00These were days of peace and prosperityI can't say that I love the new Thundercats...<br />
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">...because it would be to take the easy way out.</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">Since the Fall of 2011, when I first got the opportunity to experience the reboot of this classic 80's show, I have sensed an impact of high level pop cultural art that I haven't felt in a long time. </span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">Growing up in the 80's, being exposed to the immortal cartoons such as He-Man, Transformers and the original Thundercats show, I knew what symbiosis of action and drama that grants the younger generation a solid adventure. However, as this season took off, nothing could prepare me for what was about to come. This animation quickly became something that was no longer about cats with super abilities and badass looks – but about characters with flaws and dreams. </span></div>
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thundercats" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><br /><img alt="" border="0" src="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQS8vxoGC3DLl-i9PJ_KmHY9jA2aOFRQUFiaXjWmV4BUJK3JLNy" height="137" title="Thundercats [1985]" width="200" /></a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/He-Man_and_the_Masters_of_the_Universe" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRCl_MccHUurLiOOL-81ykMjA-McnxOBvmxW-ftN_G4dPJkngkiMQ" height="167" title="He-Man and the Masters of the Universe [1983]" width="200" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Transformers_(TV_series)" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTAzBaPI8X0UXBeM_vaamncapsiiB00RPNwcUlveaP7VJ4KkU92" height="149" title="The Transformers [1984]" width="200" /></a></div>
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Ok, so they are shadowed by the <a href="http://cinemassacre.com/2011/07/22/thundercats-review/" target="_blank">old episodes</a> which are glowing like diamonds on our nostalgia sky. But being exposed to the epic words "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDCmOUuhaLQ" target="_blank">These were days of peace and prosperity</a>" from the pilot episode, I was deeply affected by the story and the universe. I felt like it came from creators who had worked on the concept until it was done – and done right.<br />
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<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Qd_IsxgAf8" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTnuuoIdTWjVIIBIlbCgoaamEK1sfgFgiAN7IGPjCoNF-No5jZTVZw_govn2xpIlYATNsq35opPix68bxMfCgJyjPD0cmXZwfJKn6818OGrNTvfzNH5N7Vbp_qfC4KyV-Qbp9OG8uvnLNd/s640/Screen+shot+2012-05-16+at+14.53.55.png" height="418" width="640" /></a></div>
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I listened to <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0jddQKRr-o" target="_blank">Wilykit's flute</a> as she was playing on the ruins of what once were the kingdom of Thundera [<b>Episode 3 - </b><b style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">"Ramlak Rising"</b>] and I could sense a long lost feeling that spoke to me. Perhaps it was the overall fairytale theme of a father’s death, a young king and orphans with nothing but their wits and charm? Combine this with the jealousy of a step-brother and the betrayal from the king’s guard and it made Shakespeare's "Hamlet" feel like a old family picnic.</div>
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<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0jddQKRr-o" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;" target="_blank"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvL2ZCQxhqFKglaO-8SdkGKXuxiyoz59DTSb6R8_7QYoJDA1VaPZzzi3WlaKNzruu5Q5b120Db2Um-Ylit50FGaAg4gzJqCHFsdNfhXlR_U29nfNxqRe6cPV-Kzh8Aw0s8ChhYIQ9WTcLd/s640/Screen+shot+2012-05-11+at+19.30.39.png" height="416" title="Wilykit plays the flute in [Episode 2 - Ramlak Rising]" width="640" /></a></div>
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But to me, there was something deeper beneath the surface, something about the challenge of growing up with a purpose in life that isn't always chosen. It generates a present unsureness while at the same time, it helps you realize who you want to become. The characters in Thundercats are as complicated as they are simple and that's what makes them real.<br />
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There are still four episodes left of Season One and I might update this list to a top-10 after the summer. But for now – here are my Top-5 favorite Thundercats 2011 moments from Season 1:<br />
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<b>5. Episode 8 - "The Duelist and the Drifter"</b></div>
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Lion-O's encounter with the drifter just blew me away like the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fn3mnjP6cQw" target="_blank">drifter himself</a>. This episode was a lesson in learning that first impression never counts. It also pointed out that there is always a deeper underlying intelligence to the simplest things. Also, I really dig all the cool swords in this epiosde...<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fn3mnjP6cQw" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvYcGGHbviAlLWY5Del-cZRY9M-2poiebKEb-Jc2BFZEMZvrt6V-iymn8LCpTwjIgRoPyK2WkcI3U5bUfOhpX04Cvu4dRXxaFXUssXXFrcrjTNHvqKvfl4JXyiGQosiEhK5Wbg0lVr7ZAJ/s640/Screen+shot+2012-04-24+at+15.48.52.png" height="352" title="The Drifter" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Drifter</td></tr>
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-CwQr7Ezlw" target="_blank">Full episode</a> (if it hasn't been taken down yet...)</div>
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<b style="text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">4. </span>Episode 14 - "New alliances"</b><br />
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The execution moment of Monkian hanging on the cliff<span style="text-align: left;"> will always be a</span> brutal moment in the cartoon universe, however, it also serves as a reminder of our savage history from times long ago. The scene doesn't end the way you expect, instead it brings out the scariest introduction of one of the main villains.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2111108/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh25OkRgPBqTkpffPN7E4Xcs-FB4lTG8Ylqk4fF0dZ6LTxzNmCaD10K1RCSkbXuboZ4hyphenhyphenMrMSnkbjoXfG-gxJDSQtWlbVyW9ZXRSMoCLUdUHL0WA3fGMaQL9P8Eew_bMsiSKkaDBntfa5a0/s640/Screen+shot+2012-04-24+at+12.20.35.png" height="388" title="Monkian execution in Episode 14 - "New Alliances"" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Monkian gets introduced...</td></tr>
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fwO0ga8PSY" target="_blank">Link to full episode</a> (if it hasn't been taken down yet...)<b><br /></b></div>
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<b><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">3. </span><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">Episode 18 "Survival of the fittest"</span></b></div>
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A special episode in which the life and upbringing of Wilykit and Wilykat was shown. The sudden loss of their father affects the life on the farm as well as the family. My favorite moment is the scene at night by the window, when Wilykat and Wilykit chooses to run away with the vision of coming back which riches and hope. There is something very strong and brave about this part. Sometimes when we zoom out and look at our situation with realistic and senseful eyes, it will give us determination needed to go through with a tough decision.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2332383/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidzl82dR224ObE2POX0ZUC8BLrwtB8kpVs9TiipVtIZ635584PKmS241rhiks0OwL05mOiT-tGwMGMPdbSPtzJMdAkqXDLmgWdgxxfJZ5540BXZH8mYobymQd-8Cbf1_xJEypByXFJmRwF/s640/Screen+shot+2012-05-11+at+15.40.50.png" height="364" title="Wilykit and Wilykat in Episode 18 "Survival of the fittest"" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wilykat and Wilykit running away</td></tr>
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKkJDH6jc38" target="_blank">Link to the full episode</a> (if it hasn't been taken down yet...)</div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"><b>2. Episode 20 "</b></span><b>Curse of Ratilla</b><b style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">"</b></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">These two episodes </span><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">really set the perfect example on how an epic quest should be presented. I</span><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">ndiana Jones meets Lord of the rings meets </span><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">"Don't taunt the curse". This piece includes b</span>lood, slaves, an exciting build-up mixed with superb one-liners, revenge, mercy, fear and desire. <span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">Storming dialogue, chimeric flashbacks and... yeah, I could go on. </span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">What I really like about episode 20 is that it doesn't say that the "bad guys" are bad by simply saying, "they are bad". Because, just like real life, there is no clear evil – just different interest and trying to survive a long the values that you were brought up with. It is also epic to see a young Jaga kickass. *SPOILER* My favorite moment is</span><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"> the passionate</span><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"> kiss during the collapse of the cave, but the epic</span><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"> battle among the ruins of the fallen rat-kingdom comes close as second.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHRSYnhG7v0" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi33CHv18SXFB56U1UUFlcaMME-_RaMvkfgoS5jjy8jMzU68j4vB9PF5pI_GTXx-UciTmW_OjC7Gkf1uM5xOt14ukqP5CAjOt_HPPC8y-R_89hcUkKa-kL6NccR_GaLwod3A4ML9R2qrA7D/s640/Screen+shot+2012-05-11+at+17.40.54.png" height="364" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The ThunderCats discover that the Thunderian slaves are being forced to excavate the <br />
Sword of Plun-Darr for Ratar-O and his Rats.</td></tr>
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<b><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">1. </span><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">Episode 4 "Song of the Petalars"</span></b></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">Never have I seen a cartoon episode get me so emotional. Some scenes in this episode are on the same level as when <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_ULg4RSy5Y" target="_blank">Optimus Prime died in</a> "Transformers The Movie" (1986). </span><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">Emrick's <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ntn3E2Mkk0s" target="_blank">quotes</a> to live by are beyond tearful... I wish I could explain how philosophical this story is, but I suggest you watch the entire</span><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"> episode from the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYk8fViny0Q" target="_blank">beginning.</a></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FV_QGlChAtc" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOD0K-BKhAOiYlh8pX_gBvoc4cGdB7cwkn6UAl0EGCgZarJb0siDFgyLvTcuy6MXPPQlN6SYIh5o7LsayD9H1m0SGA5szXELn3uRz7kSRN-vGEhWPkUalb2BCxuSeH__y563Q9jzT7awip/s640/Screen+shot+2012-05-11+at+15.28.43.png" height="355" title="The petalars are moving in Episode 4 - Song of the Petalars" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FV_QGlChAtc" target="_blank"> Episode 4 "Song of the Petalars" - the best Thundercats episode</a></td></tr>
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<span id="goog_1492176540"></span><span id="goog_1492176541"></span><a href="http://www.blogger.com/"></a></div>
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While completing this list, I finished watching <b>Episode 21 – "Birth of the Blades"</b> which was quite close to excellent. It featured some wild flashbacks with Lion-O and Mumbra combined with a bunch of stunning one-liners and overall great dialogue. It is really cool that multi-talented <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0295115/" target="_blank">Will Friedle</a> wrote this episode a long with doing the voice of Lion-O. It really makes this show feel even more realistic knowing that there actually is a "real Lion-O" speaking.<br />
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Will Friedle is not the only writer for this show deserves a great deal of cred. Three of the Episodes on the list comes from the talented writer <a href="http://www.jmdematteis.com/" target="_blank">JM DeMatteis</a>. He has a way with story telling that isn't afraid to grab a hold of your heart and this is one of the most important ingredients to any kids show. I am also really excited for <b>Episode 24 – "The Soul Sever"</b> by the incredible storyteller <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4412876/" target="_blank">Brandon Easton</a>. He has been very successful with his comic book <a href="http://shadowlawonline.com/" target="_blank">Shadowlaw</a> and I think this episode will be something quite spectacular.<br />
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In overall, nothing gives me a greater pride than to know that the younger generation watching "Thundercats" today, will be able to look back on this show as grown-ups with that certain crystal-clear brightness in their eyes. As I am writing this in may of 2012, I know that 25 years from now, some grown-up man or woman will find this text and agree with me, because the new Thundercats reboot really is out of this world.<br />
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Gustaf Lingmark is a freelance writer and his favorite cartoon show "Thundercats" airs Saturdays, 9:30 a.m. ET/PT on Cartoon NetworkGustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-65858425289447644882012-03-20T11:53:00.008-07:002013-04-01T03:32:20.191-07:00Green Mad WhaleI'm helping my roommate write a game called "Green Mad Whale". I didn't have much time so I used an old idea I wrote a couple of years ago about a whale-catcher in Nantucket, trying to save his best friend; the green, mad whale. The game is supposed to be done in four weeks so there is not much time, but I'll do my best. <br />
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<a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B_mXkyg7yLc3TTVnbXJJcTNTX0E/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiequBIgc5oToZnNEX3gCHTMMqa9lED8Fkv7Uvb4SiFFoobQ8AkzRT0qeobb3QmKGU9Yz0AQbBOAPOqBgePfwo3guhawwyibzA1v4S09Fn-7aHjevC1AF13eg_iAtJvBEb0BLvuGLKXXeY7/s320/Screen+shot+2012-03-20+at+11.50.59.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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I got a lot of inspiration from the book "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Sea-Tragedy-Whaleship-Essex/dp/0141001828">The heart of the sea</a>" that is the true story behind the book "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Moby-Dick-Thrift-Editions-Herman-Melville/dp/0486432157/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1332269896&sr=1-1">Moby Dick</a>" by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herman_Melville">Herman Melville</a>. The reality is even scarier han the original as there actually was a whale that attacked and sank the 238 ton whale-ship "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Essex_(whaleship)">Essex</a>", outside the pacific in 1820. The men ended up in lifeboats and drifted for months at sea - surviving by starting to eat each other. One of the eyewitnesses to this remarkable event was the 14-year old captains boy <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Nickerson">Thomas Nickerson</a>. His unedited manuscript wasn't found until 1960 on an attic and so much of the book is based on his words. Read it, you won't regret it.<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/In-Heart-Sea-Tragedy-Whaleship/dp/0141001828/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1332270370&sr=1-1" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41h5yVs2dDL._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-arrow-click,TopRight,35,-76_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg" /></a></div>
Gustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-6333520729133240192012-01-10T18:58:00.000-08:002012-06-08T14:07:53.564-07:00Four Hours In My LaiCame across this quote from the My Lai massacre while doing research for the Vietnam War:<br />
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"And yet, this company, sitting out here isolated in this one place, didn’t see it that way. I'm sure they didn't. What people think of you back home don't matter. This group of people that they were with was all that matters. It was the whole world. What they thought was right - was right and what they thought was wrong - was wrong. Courage was seen as stupidity, cowardness was cunning and awareness; and cruelty and brutality was sometimes seen as heroic. That’s the way things began and started to change and that’s what it eventually turned into."<br />
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<u><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYzb9DH7YAE" target="_blank">Four Hours In My Lai (Clip 1 of 7)</a></u>Gustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-80554794201725515182011-11-17T06:33:00.001-08:002012-06-07T11:32:37.438-07:00Ocean daysAirplanes where roaring by above us in already polluted air like we were sea creatures on the bottom of a muddy ocean with big, metal submarines travelling up from the gutter just to inhale another gasp of bright sunlight before diving back into what would be another year of hoping that next year will be better and perhaps even one of the best.<br />
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As if we could caress the soft wave crushing down on our favourite memory, it being the everlasting metaphore of a beach of love, passion and fearless breathing. Waking up with the releaving thought that there were no big changes today, no master plans in process, no boring edge where the good times had to stop and the spinning ferris wheel had a sign with open hours.<br />
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Just perfection in shape and aim as we were a billiard ball rolling across a green, green perfect life only to explode into a vertical pyramide of others just like us. No loss, no longing, just the realisation that many years later we would look back on this time and say:<br />
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"I knew that as i was having them, that these ocean days were some of the best anyone could ask for and as roily and dreggy they seemed at times; the water i swallowed was as fresh and clear as it had come from frozen stars that humans wouldn't travel to within a 1000 years. Even then they would move across this sea ground, only to try and get deeper down into what would be a splendid beauty of fire from the inner glow of the very planet we all live and smile on."Gustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-89710541773513097992010-09-06T02:26:00.001-07:002012-03-15T11:40:26.275-07:00Att döda en vuxen (5 år senare)<span style="font-style: italic;">I mitten av september 2005 misshandlades en 47-årig familjefar till döds på Fittjaskolans skolgård. Mannen överfölls av ett gäng ungdomar i 15- till 20-årsåldern som sparkade, slog och knivhögg mannen, som avled senare på sjukhuset. Flera personer blev vittnen till dödsmisshandeln.</span><br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Att döda en vuxen</span><br />
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Det är en solig dag, en sån där dag när alla tittar upp mot himlen för att se om det inte är något konstigt med solen just idag. Den lyser så mycket att en 4-årig pojke som står i en park, frågar sin mamma om inte solen har kommit lite närmare jorden idag. Mamman ler och säger åt pojken att han ska leka. Men pojken står kvar och håller sin mamma i handen och tittar upp mot solen och ser inte hur en man kommer gående genom parken.<br />
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Fåglarna kvittrar och löven blänker i <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHHNcHNcKO6sBeTV519_kn_uXNGnFXJr528fDney2Axir7zE1gM8hrn0h_U-YWzd9J04PLMC24FEh7TtI69DVJOMQzgtpWMALBRGZfS8drJMlZj1KcUjnx79SkfkAMCdkoemUNANZ5AA6S/s1600/solen.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5522309600168244482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHHNcHNcKO6sBeTV519_kn_uXNGnFXJr528fDney2Axir7zE1gM8hrn0h_U-YWzd9J04PLMC24FEh7TtI69DVJOMQzgtpWMALBRGZfS8drJMlZj1KcUjnx79SkfkAMCdkoemUNANZ5AA6S/s400/solen.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 341px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 400px;" /></a>solskenet och mannen andas friskt luft från en frisk kropp och han har ingen tung väska med sig för han har precis varit på arbetsintervju. Det är en glad och lycklig man. Han tänker på livet, världen och framtiden. Han tittar på sina händer, som trots att han bara är 32 år, har rört vid så mycket.<br />
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Han tänker på sin arbetsintervju som gick så bra och på sin flickvän som han ska bjuda på restaurang ikväll och på att solen som skiner så mycket. Han stannar vid en parkbänk och sätter sig en stund.<br />
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Och mannen är lycklig, för han vet att han ska till sin lägenhet, men att han just nu har mycket tid över för än är det långt till kvällen och därför har han varit och köpt en CD-skiva. Han sätter sig ner och tittar på omslaget och märker inte kvinnan som sätter sig ner bredvid honom. Hon har en röd blues och svarta byxor och hon gungar en lika röd barnvagn samtidigt som hon håller ena handen på den knappt synbara magen.<br />
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Och gamla människor går förbi med käpp och hatt, någon löser korsord i gräset och det är en sån där varm och fantastisk sommardag. En sån där dag som gör att människor tittar upp mot himlen och undrar ifall solen inte har kommit lite närmare jorden just idag.<br />
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Vid sandlådan leker några barn. En 1-årig pojke med blå keps och röda gummistövlar, skrattar och viftar med en gul boll. Han står vid kanten av sandlådan där en annan 1-årig och en 2-åring nu redan gräver med små plastspadar. De känner inte varandra, men barn leker så lätt och när 1-åringen viftar så tappar han sin gula boll. Den rullar iväg rakt mot mannen på bänken som är så glad och lycklig och som tittar på sin CD-skiva.<br />
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Kniven som ska gå in i hans kropp finns ännu inte, utan istället pumpar där lycka och liv. Pojkens fötter som ska utdela hårda sparkar mot hans huvud är nu så små, så små och de röda gummistövlarna lyser i solskenet när pojken springer mot mannen för att hämta sin boll.<br />
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För pojken är lycklig och den blå kepsen på hans huvud är lika blå som en 4-årings ögon som blygt står och tittar på när den 1-åriga pojken springer. 4-åringen håller sin mamma hårt i handen och hans hand är inte knuten av hat utan av kärlek och hans ögon är nyfikna på mannen som tar upp den gula bollen och räcker den till 1-åringen som försiktigt tar emot den. Han tittar på mannen och mannen tittar på honom och han ler.<br />
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Han ler för att han är lycklig och glad och 1-åringen är liten och hans boll är gul och ingen av dem vet att nästa gång de ses så skriker pojken och slår mannen i ansiktet så att ben och tänder krossas och pojken kommer att ha blod på sina sneakers och mannen kommer att skydda sig med samma händer som nu ger pojken den gula bollen. Pojken tar den och springer leende tillbaka till sandlådan där den andra 1-åringen gräver med bara händerna. Och de är inte händer av hat som nu gräver allt vad de kan utan det är händer av lycka.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgezLmEiNeiSRp0UXHLqwovijdfY5gdTVfpLwvCfvfZ_jbFTWPa1k6N1_Ehba4VOEeIrC6MYE51mdiein0sxtQK1m6I9vj7z_s_q9mjrhyphenhyphenKvDGexFHcTm63GbO-diY7d30FIB0KB9YJpsQ4/s1600/images.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgezLmEiNeiSRp0UXHLqwovijdfY5gdTVfpLwvCfvfZ_jbFTWPa1k6N1_Ehba4VOEeIrC6MYE51mdiein0sxtQK1m6I9vj7z_s_q9mjrhyphenhyphenKvDGexFHcTm63GbO-diY7d30FIB0KB9YJpsQ4/s1600/images.jpeg" /></a></div>För sandkakor ska byggas och alla ska se dem och säga att pojken är duktig och han bygger så fint och pojken vill ha mer beröm så han bygger mer och händerna som ska slå så hårt och ha så mycket blod på sig har nu bara små korn av sand och solen är så varm och blodet är varmt, men ingenting är så varmt som den sand som pojken nu gräver i.<br />
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Nu tittar mannen upp. Han ser pojkarna i sandlådan och han ler åt 2-åringen som går runt de båda 1-åringarna och mannen tittar åt sidan där mamman sitter med sin barnvagn.<br />
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Hon vet att hon har ett barn på insidan och hon ser att mannen ler och mannen rodnar lite när hon tittar på honom för han och hans flickvän har inga barn, men de är förlovade och mannen tänker att han själva gärna skulle vilja ha barn. Kvinnan ser att mannen rodnar och hon ler.<br />
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Mannen ställer sig upp och går genom parken och ska gena över skolan, bara några meter från där han kommer att ligga så stilla, så stilla. Men nu är han lycklig och tänker på sin flickvän och sitt nya jobb och på CD-skivan som han har köpt. Mamman tittar efter mannen när han går och lägger händerna på sin mage där liv växer.<br />
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Mamman vet ännu inte att hon kommer att titta efter mannen igen, men den här gången är det i en rättssal och mannen finns bara på bild. De kommer inte längre ihåg sommardagen när de alla en gång fanns på samma ställe. Där solen sken så att människor tittade upp och undrade om den hade kommit närmare jorden.<br />
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16-åringen har nu tagit av sig sin keps och han sitter nu istället med en tröja med huvan uppfälld. 19-åringen tittar inte nyfiket på någon utan tittar ner i golvet. Istället för en spade av röd plast så håller den 17-årig pojken en mobil som han snurrar mellan fingrarna. En 15-årig pojke kommer inte ihåg någon boll, för han fanns inte men han vet att han skulle göra vad som helst för att se den rulla längs marken i en solig park för att kunna ändra det som han nu har gjort.<br />
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Domaren och försvarsadvokaten säger ingenting. De lyssnar på polisen som redogör och pratar och han berättar om mannens skador och hur de uppkom och varför han dog. Plötsligt stannar polisen upp. Han letar bland sina papper. Kanske vill han hitta pappret som berättar om mannen som var så lycklig när han gick genom parken en vacker sommardag. En dag då alla tittade mot himlen för att se om solen hade kommit närmare jorden som den 19-åriga pojken som nu sitter mitt emot honom tyckte att den gjorde. Men han hittar inte pappret och domaren nickar och kanske finns det inte ett sådant papper.<br />
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Men utanför fönstret så går det en ung man och i sin Ipod spelar han hög musik. Han har precis varit på arbetsintervju på ett IT-företag och nu ska han hem och träffa sin flickvän och han genar genom parken i förorten där han bor. Vid den sena hösten så leker några barn vid sandlådan och mannen har en frisk kropp och han stannar till vid bänken och funderar på om han ska hem och hinna städa. Imorgon ska han fylla 33 år och han vill att det ska vara fint när hans gäster kommer.<br />
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Plötsligt bland löven så rör hans ena fot mot en gammal boll. Bollen är gul och sliten. Mannen tar upp bollen och tittar på den, sen rullar han iväg bollen med foten. När bollen rullar längst marken ser den ut som en liten sol och den solen, den är så nära jorden som den någonsin kommer att vara.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifTGO3uM5YypfH7iHLeWk39JGmWaC92iQ-lfy598HQPUpX27YL9EYp49Upve8r7swHgc8O0rX71djwLcmYldGDs23m9DZHelfiAW279ox9R6y_Y0Ed1FUqIyDM72FwpQMFuuOHdTyz85tw/s1600/gul.gif"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5522312702211168194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifTGO3uM5YypfH7iHLeWk39JGmWaC92iQ-lfy598HQPUpX27YL9EYp49Upve8r7swHgc8O0rX71djwLcmYldGDs23m9DZHelfiAW279ox9R6y_Y0Ed1FUqIyDM72FwpQMFuuOHdTyz85tw/s400/gul.gif" style="cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 326px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 350px;" /></a></div>Gustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-45971466576286213362010-08-20T05:01:00.000-07:002011-10-30T18:07:22.167-07:00The killing zone<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUXvFGUnIQVfqghOraKtQ-KxXGXlvvDOcymKxPYwNS6sJuzF0rPMtOTCaUlDs5AbVwZELpAo6P-br9btpNDsROihzJ5PrDSe_hqish4Ec33D0DAXYJchU2WuQD_cRkDtE-7t2dO-47sfJi/s1600/mylife.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 268px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUXvFGUnIQVfqghOraKtQ-KxXGXlvvDOcymKxPYwNS6sJuzF0rPMtOTCaUlDs5AbVwZELpAo6P-br9btpNDsROihzJ5PrDSe_hqish4Ec33D0DAXYJchU2WuQD_cRkDtE-7t2dO-47sfJi/s400/mylife.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5507461726171147394" border="0" /></a>I'm reading a book about the Vietnam War in order to do research for a screenplay. It's weird to think of the book in fictional terms for one second and then suddenly wake up to the reality that the story is actually a report of what happened that day. The words and frustration from unexpected events in the book that are so honest and raw that I find myself just starring at the pages sometimes.<br /><br />The text is full of all kinds of activity but it's hard to ignore the horror, the violence, the death, the non-caring, the sadness, the pointless schedule and the search for something that most of the time – isn't there.<br /><br />Except for all the gruesome killing in which I can't even<br />comprehend I get stuck on the events that happened to single indivudals. Things such as the pluton finding a young Vietnamese male assuming he is a "dink" only because he is "young". They bring him along, arms tied behind his back. Next, they find an old man in his hooch, which they bring a long as he's got these strange maps at his little desk. They have them walk across the fields while people in the village stare at them. After a couple of hours they reach a base camp. All the sudden, an Officer approaches them. He walks straight up to the men and starts beating them with his fists claiming them responsible for an attack that happened the other night. The men curl themselves into the best position they can as the beating goes on. Later it turns out they were innocent, the old man just being an accountant and the young man a farmer.<br /><br />In another chapter they find a graveyard and gets an old woman and a younger girl to dig out one of the graves to look for weapon. Instead they find the body in which of course the woman and the girl freaks out. The soldiers decide to uncover the bandages to make sure the body isn't an American in which they can confirm afterwards - he wasn't. Afterwards they force the woman and the girl to bury the body again.<br /><br />The unnecessary harassment is an ongoing theme. The orders are clear to set examples to make the villagers feel who is in charge. In one chapter they are shooting into a village, harming a small girl in whom the officer, seeing all the blood, goes "What about her? They should have stayed away". Next they shoot an old woman in the jaw not knowing what to do, they just let her run away into the jungle. They watch as an allied Vietnam soldier sinks the boat of one of the fisherman to set an example – leaving the fisherman on his knees crying.<br /><br />There were <a href="http://www.salon.com/life/feature/1999/11/11/women/index.html?CP=SAL&DN=110">women</a> serving in the Vietnam as well. Most people never consider this. They also had the posttraumatic stress but noone allowed them to take it that serious.<br /><br />Sometimes I'm not sure writing a war movie will make this world a better place, I just want it to show reality and be like a museum of the things I wish we would never do again.Gustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-87231369344524035152010-01-21T05:04:00.000-08:002011-10-30T17:58:05.818-07:00A non conference subject<div>We are having a business conference in a castle outside stockholm</div><div>I look around and I see ironed shirts, trimmed hair cuts and black skirts</div><div>Words of future, strategy and money are presented with controlled<br />expressions</div><div><br /></div><div>Suddenly - a young boy goes by outside the window</div><div>Dungeons and dragons sticking out of his backpack</div><div>Uncombed hair dancing in the wind</div><div><div>Life, hope, imagination, free as bird he is</div></div><div><br /></div><div>A bird with white sneakers<br />Scraping newley raked gravel<br />He looks down<br /><br /><div><div>The silver line around him speaks</div><div>It says "i dont dream - i am dream"</div></div></div>White clouds go by miles above his head<div><br /></div><div>Or is it chimney smoke</div><div>From that magical house with the red brick wall</div><div>That Roald Dahl house </div><div>Oh so high the white, tall windows</div><div><br /></div><div>He is moving outside my inside angel</div><div>You dont see what he sees from in here</div><div>How he dresses the road</div><div>How he dresses the road in sparks and imagination</div><div><br /></div><div>Is he coming in here?</div><div>Or is he going far, far away</div><div>Will i ever see that boy again...</div><div><br /></div><div>... will I ever be that boy again</div>Gustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-34089026190277166112009-09-13T06:18:00.000-07:002010-07-01T07:54:58.132-07:00"When a million people showed up on Revolution Avenue in downtown Tehran to protest the results of the June 12 presidential election, most of them wore sneakers, in case they had to run for their lives."Gustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3689631808958274829.post-15196913714745195312009-07-01T11:58:00.000-07:002012-05-22T11:07:34.171-07:00Blog introductionTo quote J. Krishnamurti (1895-1986) It's not important who I am. But I am in my 30's and I from Sweden (Scandinavia, Northern Europe). The main reason for writing this blog is an attempt to try and avoid my obsession with the years 1986-1989 and the political and pop cultural events that took place during that time. I will try to keep this in english but since Swedish is my main language I might have to add something about it. I would see myself as a text jockey more than a writer. A title I have invented to best describe that writing is never simple. Text is a word written by the thought - it changes as we all do.Gustafhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10530387854652870459noreply@blogger.com1