Mellencamp takes on the Jena Six

Great new song – and video – from John Mellencamp on the Jena Six in particular and racism in general. Looking forward to another new album from him.

Indulging the inner Star Wars nerd

A group of Star Wars/model plane enthusiasts built a 21-foot replica of an X-Wing and launched it. Gizmodo has video of the launch and subsequent blowing apart. What strikes me the most is how the real life disintegration so closely matches the movie.

Someone built a desk to resemble a Tie Fighter.  If they made these available at IKEA I think the world as we know it would ground to a halt.

The “Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination” exhibit has opened at Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry. I’m so there, just like I was when the “Power of Myth” exhibit was at the Field Museum.

Quick Takes 10/8/07

• Bill points out that the folks doing the 30 Days of Night game for Sony could have enlisted just one more proof reader before going live. Oops.
• There’s a music video for Bee Movie that’s going to debut on Nickelodeon this coming Monday, the 8th.
• Christopher Campbell at Cinematical revisits the topic of providing incentives for movie patrons.
• Anne Thompson has a great interview up with director Barbet Schroeder about his varied career in general and his latest documentary, Terror’s Advocate, in particular.
• The WSJ has a story about how aspiring filmmakers are building their madd skillz by creating short films using Legos.
• The film version of Love in the Time of Cholera will certainly get a boost by the original book being tapped by Oprah as her latest Book Club pick.
• The Bee Movie “mini-sodes” that will be airing on NBC are part of a growing move to short-form entertainment that doubles as advertising.

LOTD: 10/8/07

• IBM and Google are teaming to bring “cloud” processor clustering to college campuses. When reached for comment on cloud computing the average college sophomore thought we were referring to the haze that lingers in his dorm room long after Friday night has passed. (CT)
• Both Toyota and Burger King are operating under the opinion it’s better to create unique gaming content themselves than simply buy ad space in existing gaming titles. When reached for comment the average gamer told us to move, we were blocking the TV. (CT)
• It looks like Google won’t be building its own mobile phone but instead developing a full suite of software that operates on Linux-based mobile devices and supporting the service with advertising. When reached for comment the average cell phone user still just wanted to be able to play Bejeweled. (CT)
• Google is reported to be prepping a push to re-introduce its social network Orkut to U.S. audiences. When reached for comment the average social network user said they thought Orkut was the little floaty guy in the red hat and purple scarf from “He-Man.” (CT)