Progressive Cinematic Universe should have cross-over event

With Hollywood studios focused on creating cinematic universes (think Marvel and DC), I came up with an idea for a cinematic universe while watching commercials during sports this fall.
It started when I noticed that Progressive Insurance has more characters than Flo, Jaimie and the squad. There’s life coach Dr. Rick, who helps people from turning into their parents. Plus, there’s “the backups” like 49ers quarterback Josh Dobbs. There’s also a sticky-note monster.
They make up the Progressive Cinematic Universe. I’d like to see a crossover event of some or all of those characters. Yeah, I know, I’m weird.
But as I continued to watch college and pro football games and the MLB World Series, I noticed that every major insurance company had comedic commercials featuring their own characters.
State Farm has “Jake from State Farm.” Allstate has actor Dean Winters as Mayhem. Liberty Mutual has LiMu Emu and Doug. And of course, Geico has Martin the Geico gecko.
OK, so a multicompany crossover event isn’t going to happen. My mind wanders sometimes.

These music acts should be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2025

I don’t do predictions for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. I’ll leave that to the experts. Rather, I write about who I think should be included in the hall.
With the 2024 class installed last month, it’s time to focus on next year’s class.
Many of these names I’ve suggested before, but I’ll keep saying them until they’re in.
Newly eligible acts in 2025 include Pink and Linkin Park, according to Future Rock Legends. Neither are proper candidates for first-year induction, though I think both deserve to get in eventually.
Every year needs at least one rock goddess or diva superstar. But with the untenable backlog at the hall of fame, there are several that need to get in pronto. They are Mariah Carey, Gloria Estefan, Cyndi Lauper and Sade. (All but Estefan have been previously nominated.)
Carey even joked that her attorney got into the hall before she did.
And Lauper is now on a “farewell tour.” So the timing is right.
I’ve suggested all of those women before. Now I’ll add two more: Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera. Both have been eligible since 2023.
Spears recently made headlines with her best-selling memoir “The Woman in Me.”
I would love to see an all-divas induction ceremony. That would be incredible. I suggested recently that the rock hall hold two ceremonies – one for “modern era” acts and another for the “classic era.”
For the “classic era” induction ceremony, I’d like to see these acts get the nod: Billy Idol, INXS, Joy Division/New Order and Phil Collins.

Related articles:

Rock Hall adds more fossils to its collection (Nov. 3, 2024)

Rock Hall adds more fossils to its collection, needs more 'modern era' acts

The paleontologists at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame recently added several more fossils to their museum.
On Oct. 19, the Rock Hall added a bunch of ancient acts to its inductee list. Key members of some acts are deceased and others were too old to perform at the induction ceremony.
The Rock Hall has a tendency to choose older acts over newly eligible acts. The thinking is that you can’t induct so-and-so before some older act is enshrined.
I think the hall should have two inductions per year: one for the “modern era” and another for a “classic era.” This would be similar to how the Country Music Hall of Fame chooses inductees with its “modern era” and “veterans era” selections. The Baseball Hall of Fame has “contemporary” and “classic” eras for inductees.
This year, the Rock Hall inductees were Mary J Blige, Jimmy Buffett, Cher, Dave Matthews Band, Foreigner, Peter Frampton, Kool & the Gang, Alexis Korner, John Mayall, MC5, Ozzy Osbourne, Suzanne de Passe, Big Momma Thornton, A Tribe Called Quest, Dionne Warwick and Norman Whitfield.
Of those, only Mary J Blige and Dave Matthews Band could be considered “modern era” acts.
The rest would be considered “classic era” acts or early influences.
Of the 11 individual inductees, five are deceased. Of the groups, many had lost key members over the years or were simply too frail to perform at the ceremony.

Consider this: The R&R HOF snubbed @ForeignerMusic for so long that Mick couldn’t be there, the founding member. @jimmybuffett snubbed so long that he’s passed. @peterframpton so long that he had to sit and play. @OzzyOsbourne solo so long that he had to sit & couldn’t sing. And…

— Eddie Trunk (@EddieTrunk) October 21, 2024

So the induction ceremony consisted largely of tribute performances by “modern era” performers such as Kenny Chesney, Kelly Clarkson, Jennifer Hudson, Dua Lipa, Jelly Roll and Keith Urban.
The ceremony itself was a five-and-a-half hour-marathon. Vulture writer Devon Ivie called it “a really long ceremony with really long speeches.”
The solution for such a long show: break it up. One show for “classic era” and early influencer acts and a second show for “modern era” acts.
Once the Rock Hall deals with its ridiculously long backlog of eligible artists. It can go back to one show.

Photo: Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Museum plaza. (Rock & Roll Hall of Fame).

Why no porn parodies of the 2024 presidential election?

The adult entertainment industry used to like to parody political figures with X-rated videos. But porn producers seem to have lost their nerve to mock powerful figures.
There have been no political porn parodies this election season, even going back to the primaries.
Four years ago, there was just one political porn parody and it mocked Sen. Elizabeth Warren.
But there was a plethora of porn parodies during the 2016 race, lampooning both major party candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.
But this election cycle, the adult entertainment industry has not touched the presidential race with its content.
I asked Brian S. Gross of BSG Public Relations in Woodland Hills, Calif., why this might be. His clients include companies in the adult entertainment business.
“All I can do is speculate,” he said. “The industry is in a completely different place post-pandemic. The business has changed, and the industry produces a far less amount of parodies than it used to. There was little to no desire to create parodies around this election is another possible reason.”
Or maybe all that content produced for the 2016 election was not very popular with viewers.
Another reason could be possible negative consequences for the adult entertainment industry and/or sex workers if either Trump or Kamala Harris is elected.
Trump is believed to be aligned with the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025. And Harris is anti-sex work.

Related articles:

2020 presidential race gets its first porn parody (May 3, 2020)

Why are there no porn parodies yet of President Joe Biden and VP Kamala Harris? (April 19, 2021)

Top real-life targets for porn parodies and exploitation (March 30, 2024)

Photo: Trump 2020 campaign sign updated for 2024 in Chatham County, Georgia (photo by Jud McCranie via Creative Commons)

Sexy Halloween costumes in 2024 say ‘Beetlejuice’

This year’s sexy Halloween costumes from Yandy.com include a lot of getups inspired by the hit horror-comedy movie “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.”
Popular movies always feature prominently in Yandy’s Halloween costume lineup. Last year, the big theme was “Barbie” and in 2022, the big theme was “Top Gun.”
As usual, Yandy dances around trademarks with clever naming. Some costume names include “Beetle Bombshell Costume,” “Got the Juice Costume” and “Beetle Bride Costume.”

Photos: Yandy.com.

The Failed Promise of Digital Content: a recap, part 6

We were promised exhaustive libraries of digital content available anytime and anywhere, but those promises have come up short.
Since May 2009, I have written about the shortcomings of the internet and digital media when it comes to content –music, video, news articles, archived information, etc.
Here is an index of parts 76 to 100 of the series “The Failed Promise of Digital Content.”

Part 76: Poof! More disappearing websites
Part 77: Movies not available on DVD – Quentin Tarantino edition
Part 78: The Netflix DVD library is slowly losing movies
Part 79: Twitter needs to archive more than just accounts of deceased users
Part 80: The TSA has outlasted its critics
Part 81: Netflix DVDs: ‘We’re in the endgame now’
Part 82: Disappearing online content is like a David Copperfield act
Part 83: Many movies likely skipping DVD release as physical format fades
Part 84: Qwest was wrong; You can’t access every movie ever made online
Part 85: Vanishing online videos
Part 86: More ways videos disappear online: Content moderation, business deals
Part 87: The ephemeral internet: Disappearing journalism, personal photos and President Trump’s tweets
Part 88: Netflix is taking away the ability of subscribers to reorder their streaming lists
Part 89: Rotten Tomatoes is the best review aggregator, but it needs improving
Part 90: 15% of top movie musicals are not available online
Part 91: 15% of top film noir titles are not available online
Part 92: 7 movies recommended by Quentin Tarantino are not available online
Part 93: More notable movies not available online: filmmaker and critic picks
Part 94: Link rot problem: Why bother using weblinks anymore?
Part 95: The most-wanted movies that aren’t available online in any form, according to Reelgood
Part 96: The most-wanted TV series that aren’t available online in any form, according to Reelgood
Part 97: Missing Movies: Many movies are unavailable for streaming, rental or purchase
Part 98: Locating movies and TV shows online is becoming a major hassle
Part 99: The end of movies on disc is nigh
Part 100: Disappearing web services due to changes at X, aka Twitter

Photo: “Internet” photo by Flickr user Fisakov via Openverse.

The internet is awash in broken links

It’s an unfortunate truism that nothing is permanent on the internet. This is a shame for anyone who values information and entertainment on the web.
Websites regularly disappear along with their content. Sometimes publishers purge older content from their websites. This leads to a lot of “broken links” when web surfers click on a hyperlink to find information but get an error message instead.
A study by the Pew Research Center showed how bad the problem of “digital decay” is. Pew said a quarter of all webpages that existed at one point between 2013 and 2023 are no longer accessible.
The older the content is the worse the “link rot” problem is. Some 38% of webpages that existed in 2013 are not available today, Pew said in its May report.
The study also showed that 11% of all references linked on Wikipedia are no longer accessible.
The issue of disappearing content also applies to social media sites like X, formerly Twitter.
Meanwhile, an important repository of internet information, the nonprofit Internet Archive, is fighting copyright lawsuits that threaten its future.
It’s not a pretty picture.

Related articles:

When Media Outlets Shutter, Why Are the Websites Wiped, Too? (Slate; Feb. 24, 2024)

When Online Content Disappears (Pew Research; May 17, 2024)

The internet is full of broken links (Sherwood, May 22, 2024)

The Internet Archive’s Fight to Save Itself (Wired; Sept. 27, 2024)

Photos: Illustration produced by Dall-E 3 (top); Chart from Pew Research Center.

Who is behind the ‘Macaroni & Beef in Sauce Standard’?

I recently purchased a Stouffer’s Macaroni & Beef frozen meal. The box cover advertises “30% More Meat” with an asterisk. The asterisk leads to small print that says “Required by the Macaroni & Beef in Sauce Standard.” The what?
A standard that requires more protein in a dish sounds like a good thing. But what entity is behind this “standard.” Well, the box doesn’t say.
So, first, I searched the internet, of course. The only thing I could find that was even close to relevant was a March 14, 2023, commercial item description (CID) of “macaroni and beef in tomato sauce” from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The fact that we have CIDs for food items seems like an overreach by the administrative state. Requiring a detailed list of ingredients on the packaging is one thing. Banning certain unhealthy chemicals and ingredients in food also is good. And having general requirements about freshness of food items and things like that also are fine. But having to describe noodle types and other aspects of macaroni and beef in tomato sauce doesn’t sound necessary.
However, one thing that the CID for “macaroni and beef in tomato sauce” doesn’t have is a “sauce standard.”
All the document says is: “The sauce shall contain tomato puree or tomato paste. The sauce may contain diced tomatoes, onions, peppers, mushrooms, sweeteners, thickeners, salt, and spices, including garlic and other spices common to tomato-based sauce.”
It doesn’t say how much meat it needs.
So, next I contacted Stouffer’s, a unit of conglomerate Nestle. They never responded. So, the mystery continues.

The end of movie discs is troubling for cinema fans

The end days are fast approaching for movies on DVD and Blu-ray Disc. And I’m saddened by what that means for cinema fans like me.
Blu-ray Discs in particular are great for getting the best quality picture and audio. Plus, they come with extras like deleted scenes and making-of documentaries.
I recently watched “Lethal Weapon” (1987) as a pay-per-view movie from Amazon.com. It was an OK viewing experience but the video and sound quality weren’t the best.
I don’t mourn the loss of physical media and all the storage issues that brings. But there’s not an adequate digital alternative like there is for music.
Spotify has basically any album or song you want to listen to. And it’s all available for one low monthly subscription price.
With movies, you have to subscribe to multiple services to watch all the films that friends and critics recommend. And then there are the TV series. I currently subscribe to Netflix, Max, Disney+ and Apple TV+, as well as Kanopy from my public library. And I subscribe to cable TV for live news and sports. That’s a pretty expensive bill.
Signs of the decline of movies on disc are easy to see.
In October 2023, Netflix shut down its DVD-by-mail service.
That same month, consumer electronics retailer Best Buy announced that it would stop sales of DVDs and Blu-ray Discs by early 2024.
In April 2024, discount retailer Target announced that it planned to stop in-store sales of DVDs and Blu-ray Discs by 2025.
In July, the Redbox rental kiosk business shut down after its corporate parent Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment filed for Chapter 7 liquidation bankruptcy.
Movie lovers unfortunately will have to roll with the changes.

Photos: DVDs and Blu-ray Discs on sale at Target during holiday season 2023. (Patrick Seitz)

Song of Summer 2024: ‘I Had Some Help’; Breakout artist: Chappell Roan

As is customary for Labor Day weekend and the unofficial end of summer, it’s time to crown the song of summer. This year’s honoree, based on Billboard charts, is “I Had Some Help” by Post Malone and featuring Morgan Wallen.
It currently is the No. 1 song on Billboard’s Song of Summer chart and has been the top song for 13 weeks. The rowdy country party song debuted on May 10.
Featured artist Morgan Wallen had last year’s song of summer with “Last Night.”
An early contender for 2024 song of summer was Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso.” The hit pop tune premiered on April 11 but peaked too soon in the season.
Meanwhile, my choice for artist of summer 2024 is Chappell Roan. She exploded onto the scene from seemingly nowhere and has ruled the charts with songs like “Good Luck, Babe!” and “Hot To Go!”
Her set at the Lollapalooza music festival in Chicago on Aug. 1 drew a massive crowd, worthy of a headliner. (See articles by Yahoo Entertainment, WGN TV and Rolling Stone.)
Runners-up for artist of summer include Sabrina Carpenter and Charli XCX.
Taylor Swift dubbed the season the “Summer of Sabrina” in reference to the younger artist’s hit songs and sold-out tour. (See article by the Daily Mail.)
Meanwhile, Charli XCX’s “Brat” album had “an undeniable cultural moment,” Rolling Stone said. Vice President Kamala Harris even coopted the aesthetic for her presidential campaign. (See article by Today.)

Recent songs of summer

2018   “In My Feelings” by Drake
2019   “Old Town Road” by Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus
2020   “Rockstar” by DaBaby featuring Roddy Ricch
2021   “Good 4 U” by Olivia Rodrigo
2022   “As It Was” by Harry Styles
2023   “Last Night” by Morgan Wallen
2024   “I Had Some Help” by Post Malone and featuring Morgan Wallen

Music artist of summer

2018   Cardi B
2019   Billie Eilish
2020   Doja Cat
2021   Olivia Rodrigo
2022   Harry Styles
2023   Taylor Swift
2024   Chappell Roan

Other opinions on Song of Summer 2024:

8 Correct Answers to ‘What Was the Song of the Summer?’ (New York Times; Aug. 23, 2024)

‘Song of the summer’ may be dead, but 2024 was the summer of song (Midia Research; Aug. 22, 2024)

‘It invites the listener to join in’: How Sabrina Carpenter’s Espresso became the song of the summer (Aug. 21, 2024)

What’s 2024’s “song of the summer”? (Vox; July 29, 2024)

What’s the Song of the Summer? Let’s Do the Math (Rolling Stone; July 28, 2024)

Who will have the 2024 song of the summer? We offer some predictions (AP; June 18, 2024)

The Musical History Lesson Buried Beneath the Song of the Summer (Slate; June 4, 2024)

Mascot Hall of Fame closing its doors

One of the oddest halls of fame that you can visit is the Mascot Hall of Fame in Whiting, Indiana. But sadly the hall is closing its doors in September to make way for a development project by BP, the British multinational oil and gas company. The Mascot Hall of Fame will continue to exist online as a virtual hall.
The Mascot Hall of Fame celebrates famous North American sports mascots for professional and college teams like the Phillie Phanatic, Mr. Met, Benny the Bull, Bucky Badger and Nittany Lion.
The museum opened in December 2018 but faced sustainability challenges, relying heavily on partnerships, donations and public funding.
The Mascot Hall of Fame is holding a “Grand FURnale” event on Sept. 14.
The physical location billed itself as an interactive children’s museum. That limited its appeal, in my opinion. I would have been interested in visiting the Mascot Hall of Fame if it were more of a museum that broadly examined the history of mascots. That includes not just sports but consumer products and services.
The hall needs to consider that if it opens a new physical location somewhere else.

Related articles:

Beloved Mascot Hall of Fame to close in Whiting (WGN; July 24, 2024)

Mascot Hall of Fame in NW Indiana to close (Fox 59; July 22, 2024)

Halls of fame for rhythm and blues, gospel music and more still hoping for physical homes

The New Jersey Hall of Fame just opened a physical location for visitors to learn more about the Garden State’s most important citizens. But many other organizations are still trying to open brick-and-mortar hall-of-fame museums for their passions.
What follows is a few that have announced locations for their potential halls of fame.

National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame

In September 2022, the National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame Foundation held a groundbreaking ceremony in Marks, Miss. It hopes to build a “permanent brick-and-mortar state-of-the-art world-class complex” to house the R&B hall of fame, according to a press release.
But as of October 2023, when a Google Maps Street View car drove by the site, there had been no construction activity. There also haven’t been any progress reports published by the R&B hall or news agencies lately.
Since 2013, the National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame has inducted over 200 artists including James Brown, Aretha Franklin, Michael Jackson, Prince and Elvis Presley. But the hall remains virtual.

Gospel Music Hall of Fame

The Gospel Music Hall of Fame of Missouri hopes to turn the former Second Baptist Church in St. Louis. Mo., into a 40,000-square-foot museum, education, cultural and performing arts center. It looks to create Missouri’s first Gospel Music Hall of Fame Art Museum and Research Center. (See article by St. Louis Public Radio.)

College Baseball Hall of Fame

In January, the College Baseball Foundation announced plans to build the College Baseball Hall of Fame within the existing Museum at Prairiefire in Overland Park, Kan.
The foundation had previously considered building a museum on the campus of Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas.

Indiana Sports Hall of Fame

Organizers of the Indiana Sports Hall of Fame announced on July 4 that they had found a location for a future museum. The group has secured six acres at the Irvington Plaza shopping center on the east side of Indianapolis.
The group hopes to build a 60,000-square-foot building that will house the hall of fame as well as a banquet space, sports bar and outdoor activity area.
Indiana is already home to the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in New Castle, Ind., and Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame in Jasper, Ind. Plus, it has the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum in Indianapolis. The state previously had a physical museum for the Indiana Football Hall of Fame in Richmond, Ind., but it closed in 2021.

Mobile Sports Hall of Fame

The Mobile Sports Hall of Fame in Mobile, Ala., is looking to open an interactive museum in the lobby of the RSA Battle House Tower, according to AL.com. There is currently a mural in the lobby that depicts local sports greats like Hank Aaron and Satchel Paige.
Meanwhile, the city is building a Hall of Fame Walk with bronze statues of sports heroes outside the Mobile Convention Center. The area is called Heroes Plaza. That project is expected to be completed in late 2024 or early 2015, according to 1819 News and NBC 15 News.

Other physical halls of fame have been considered in recent years. They include a proposed UFC Hall of Fame and WWE Hall of Fame.

The newest U.S. halls of fame you can visit, starting with New Jersey

I’m intrigued by the number of halls of fame that you can visit spanning sports, entertainment, business and other endeavors. To date, I’ve documented over 500 halls of fame in North America.
What follows is a roundup of the newest physical halls of fame.

New Jersey Hall of Fame

On June 28, the New Jersey Hall of Fame’s Entertainment and Learning Center officially opened at the American Dream mall in East Rutherford, N.J.
The 10,000-square-foot facility honors New Jersey’s accomplishments in entertainment, sports, business and more. The center boasts state-of-the-art exhibits and highlights the accomplishments of more than 200 inductees.
(See articles by NJArts.net, NorthJersey.com and News 12 New Jersey.)

Maui Nui Hall of Fame

Maui County in Hawaii now has a Maui Nui Hall of Fame display at the Kahului Airport. The display honors 40 inductees who have made significant contributions to Hawaii sports, music and films from across the county. The exhibit opened in June.
(See articles by Maui Now, KHON 2, Hawaii Public Radio and VitaVerse News.)

World Golf Hall of Fame

The World Gold Hall of Fame relocated to a new facility in Pinehurst, N.C., on June 10. The museum is located in USGA’s Golf House Pinehurst. The World Golf Hall of Fame had been in St. Augustine, Fla., for a quarter century.
The Member Locker Room at the Hall of Fame features nearly 3,000 artifacts showcasing the most accomplished and influential figures in the game.

New Mexico Music Hall of Fame

The New Mexico Music Hall of Fame has an exhibit at the Route 66 Visitors Center in Albuquerque, N.M. The 21,000-square-foot visitor center includes a taproom, event space, museum and amphitheater. Organizers are doing a staggered rollout of operations at the new facility.

Photos: New Jersey Hall of Fame and World Golf Hall of Fame.

Animal attack movies are popular summer fare

Movie audiences love a fun animal attack movie. That explains the popularity of the recent Netflix movie “Under Paris” about sharks invading Paris.
In fact, “Under Paris” was so popular, a sequel is already in the works.
Up next is the shark thriller, “The Last Breath,” which is set for a limited theatrical release on July 26.
Earlier this year saw the release of the well-reviewed spider-themed horror movie, “Infested.”
Last year brought a bunch of animal attack movies. Topping the list was horror-comedy “Cocaine Bear.” The year also saw shark thriller “Deep Fear” and alligator attack movie “The Flood.”
Plus, the CW aired the miniseries “The Swarm” about ocean animals attacking humans.

Related articles:

Animal attack movies are a staple of summer cinema (Aug. 28, 2022)

The best animal attack movies of the past 20 years (Jan. 3, 2021)

Photos: Promotional art for “Under Paris,” “The Last Breath,” “Infested,” “The Flood” and “The Swarm.”

Crappy post-apocalyptic movies flood Amazon Prime Video

One of my contributions to the internet has been chronicling notable movies set in a post-apocalyptic world. And it’s not easy.
For starters, most lists of post-apocalyptic movies mix in movies about dystopian futures. And many lists add in movies that take place before or during apocalyptic events. I’ve tried to keep a clean list of movies showing people living a hardscrabble existence after apocalyptic events.
Another issue is dealing with the scores of low-budget, poorly made post-apocalyptic movies that have flooded the market, especially in recent years. You can see many of these flicks in the pay-per-view marketplace on Amazon Prime Video.
To date, I have documented 297 such crummy post-apocalyptic movies on Amazon, including 33 new titles listed below. These movies are not significant enough or good enough to put on my main list of notable post-apocalyptic movies.
But wait! There are other lesser post-apocalyptic movies to be found on Letterboxd. I’ve included 42 titles from Letterboxd below. Together with the Amazon titles, that’s 339 movies in the genre that aren’t significant enough for my main list.
By comparison, my list of notable post-apocalyptic movies has about 240 titles.

Latest lesser post-apocalyptic movies on Amazon Prime Video:

Rats: Night of Terror (1984, Italy) aka “Rats - Notte di terrore”
Savannah Electric (1985)
Deadly Reactor (1989)
Doom Runners (1997)
Against The Dark (2009)
Dark Nemesis (2011)
The FP (2011)
Day of Reckoning (2017)
Zombie Road (2018)
Lection (2019)
Impact Event (2020)
Strain 100 (2020)
The Long Dig (2020)
Among the Living (2022)
Forever’s End (2022)
Some Be (2022, Mexico)
The Inevitable (2022)
Tin Can (2022)
Walking Against the Rain (2022)
America Is Sinking (2023)
Arctic Armageddon (2023)
Darkness (2023)
Day Zero (2023, Philippines)
Dome House Six (2023)
End Times (2023)
Gangnam Zombie (2023, South Korea)
Ravage Nation (2023)
Remnants (2023)
Shelter (2023)
Solace (2023)
2029 (2024)
Once Upon a Time in the Wasteland (2024)
Planetquake (2024)

Lesser-known post-apocalyptic movies from Letterboxd:

The Lost Missile (1958)
In the Year 2889 (1969)
Battletruck (1982, New Zealand) aka “Warlords of the 21st Century”
2020 Texas Gladiators (1983, Italy) aka “Anno 2020 - I gladiatori del future”
Survival Zone (1983, South Africa)
W (1983, Philippines)
Sexmission (1984, Poland) aka “Seksmisja”
The Final Executioner (1984, Italy) aka “The Last Warrior” and “L'ultimo guerriero”
Z for Zachariah (1984, U.K.)
O-Bi, O-Ba: The End of Civilization (1985, Poland)
Survival Earth (1985, Canada)
Dead Man’s Letters (1986, Soviet Union)
Hands of Steel (1986, Italy) aka “Vendetta dal future”
Osa (1986)
Interzone (1987, Italy) aka “Lobos guerreros”
Morning Patrol (1987, Greece)
Spirits of the Air, Gremlins of the Clouds (1987, Australia)
Survivor (1987, South Africa)
Terminus (1987, France and West Germany)
Empire of Ash (1988, Canada)
Escape from Safehaven (1988)
Hard Knuckle (1988, Australia)
Mutant War (1988)
Bunker Palace Hotel (1989, France)
Warlords (1989)
Legend of the Roller Blade Seven (1993)
Return of the Roller Blade Seven (1993)
The Last Border (1993, Finland, Sweden, Germany)
Warlords 3000 (1993) aka “Dark Vengeance”
Sentinel 2099 (1995)
Dragon Head (2003, Japan)
Casshern (2004, Japan)
Puzzlehead (2005)
The Dark Hour (2006, Spain) aka “La hora fría”
20 Years After (2008)
One Hundred Mornings (2009, Ireland)
Arctic Blast (2010, Australia, Canada)
World’s End (2010) aka “Downstream”
Extinction: The G.M.O. Chronicles (2011, Germany)
The Forbidden Dimensions (2013)
Die Gstettensaga: The Rise of Echsenfriedl (2014, Austria)
In My Room (2018, Germany, Italy)

Related articles:

More low-budget, post-apocalyptic movies showing up on Amazon (March 12, 2023)

The complete post-apocalyptic movie list (Updated June 23, 2024)

Photos: Movie posters for “End Times” (2023), “America Is Sinking” (2023) and “Strain 100” (2020)

K-pop filling a gap for boy bands and girl groups

I recently attended a concert with my daughter for Korean boy band Tomorrow X Together at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. A good number of K-pop acts have been touring the U.S. in recent years including girl groups Aespa, Blackpink, (G)I-dle and Itzy and boy bands Monsta X, NCT Dream and TXT.
What’s behind the rise in the popularity of K-pop groups?
My guess is that K-pop is filling an unmet demand among young people for single-sex music and dance groups because the U.S. and Europe aren’t producing them now.
Such acts used to be plentiful in the U.S. and U.K. There were boy bands Backstreet Boys, Boyz II Men, NSync, New Kids on the Block and One Direction. And there were girl groups like Destiny’s Child, En Vogue, Fifth Harmony, Pussycat Dolls and the Spice Girls.
So until the West produces the next wave of such musical groups, expect K-pop to dominate the category.

Photo: TXT promotional poster.

The world’s longest right-turn lane

Road improvements near my home in Vienna, Virginia, added a ridiculously long right-turn lane. That got me asking the question: What’s the world’s longest right-turn lane? Or at least the longest in the United States.
After a Google search gave poor results, I decided this was a great question for AI chatbots to answer. After all, these artificial intelligence tools are supposed to be able to scour massive databases to come up with simple answers to queries.
The right-turn lane from eastbound Leesburg Pike between Baron Cameron Avenue and Delta Glen Court in Reston and Vienna, Va., is 0.6 miles long, according to Google Maps.
To find the world’s longest right-turn lane, I first tried Microsoft Bing Copilot, which uses OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
Unfortunately my queries produced conflicting answers from Bing Copilot.
“The title of the world’s longest right turn lane goes to Interstate 285 (I-285) in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Specifically, it’s the right turn lane from westbound I-285 onto northbound Interstate 75 (I-75),” Bing Copilot said. “This seemingly endless right turn lane stretches for an impressive 2.4 miles (3.9 kilometers)!”
That doesn’t sound like a turn lane. It’s more like a highway lane that just ends and tells drivers to merge left or take the exit. That could make the turn-lane distinction hard to quantify.
However, in a follow-up query, Bing Copilot had a different answer for the same location.
“The right turn lane from westbound Interstate 285 (I-285) onto northbound Interstate 75 (I-75) in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, is approximately 0.8 miles (1.3 kilometers) in length. This lengthy turn lane was part of the I-285/Peachtree Boulevard Interchange Improvements project. The project aimed to enhance traffic flow, reduce bottlenecks, and improve operational efficiency for drivers making this critical right turn,” Bing Copilot said.
So it’s either 0.8 miles or 2.4 miles long. Come on, Microsoft, choose a lane!
Next, I went to Microsoft’s source, ChatGPT. But it gave a wordy nonanswer:

Determining the absolute longest right turn lane in the world would be challenging, as it would require detailed research and measurement of various roadways worldwide. However, some cities, particularly those with extensive road networks and high traffic volume, may have exceptionally long right turn lanes.
For example, cities like Los Angeles, California, or Houston, Texas, known for their sprawling urban landscapes and extensive highway systems, might have notably long right turn lanes in certain locations. However, without specific data or studies on the exact length of each right turn lane globally, it's difficult to definitively identify the single longest one.
In such cases, road authorities or transportation departments in respective regions might have records or data on the longest right turn lanes within their jurisdictions.

Then, I asked Google Bard to tell me the world’s longest right-turn lane. It said lack of records on the subject would make it difficult to get a correct answer.
“That being said, there are discussions online about a long right turn lane near Ikea in Taastrup, Denmark, clocking in at around 900 meters (3,000 feet),” Bard said. That turn lane is about 0.57 miles long.
Bard said its source was a Reddit discussion thread titled “My town has an extremely long turn lane” on r/mildlyinteresting.
I then asked Bard for the longest right-turn lane in the U.S., but it didn’t have an answer.
Finally, I asked AI Chat from DeepAI to tell me the longest right-turn lane in the U.S.
“The longest right turn lane in the United States is located in Houston, Texas. It is approximately 2.6 miles long and stretches along the West Loop Southbound (Interstate 610) exit to Woodway Drive,” AI Chat said.
AI Chat said it got the information from a Houston Chronicle article titled “Houston’s longest right turn lane gets a facelift.”
So, there you have it, no definitive answer on the longest right-hand turn lane. Thanks for nothing, AI.

Photo: Google map of Leesburg Pike in Vienna, Va.

Rock Hall voters stick it to the music snobs

The 2024 inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame were announced on April 21 and there were the usual complaints about the selections.
This year’s honorees include performers Mary J. Blige, Cher, Dave Matthews Band, Foreigner, Peter Frampton, Kool & The Gang, Ozzy Osbourne, and A Tribe Called Quest. The hall also added eight additional honorees in musical excellence and other categories, including Jimmy Buffett and Dionne Warwick.
Music pundits groused that some inductees weren’t good enough for the honor or weren’t “rock and roll.”
Much of the vitriol was directed at Foreigner, a group popular with the masses but not music critics.
AudioPhix writer Lee Vowell said the 2024 Rock Hall inductees were “marred by one undeserving band.” He called Foreigner a commercial sellout.
Author and pop music critic Robert Hilburn said, “I’m comfortable (in) saying this year’s (list of inductees) must be the weakest ever.”
Past inductees have received similar criticisms to those for Foreigner. To name a few: Bon Jovi, Journey, Rush and Kiss.
The Rock Hall voters likely vote with their heart as much as their brain. That makes them more populist than the elitist music critics. For some critics, commercial success is a negative for music acts.
The eight Rock Hall performer inductees were selected by hall voters from 15 nominees. When you include the special categories, the hall is inducting 16 persons or groups this year.
Radio and TV personality Eddie Trunk carped that the special categories allow the hall to “circumvent voting” and induct anyone they want. But I have no major problem with that. It lets the hall honor influential and important acts that don’t get the respect they deserve from voters.
Trunk added, “It’s reduced the voting to almost being irrelevant since they can basically back door in any one they want in that doesn’t earn the votes.”
The honorees will be officially enshrined on Oct. 19 during a ceremony in Cleveland, Ohio, which is home to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.

Related articles:

Rock Hall’s 2024 Hits, and Misses (Populism; April 24, 2024)

Crowning the Idols: Thoughts on the RRHOF Class of 2024 (Iconic Rock Talk Show; April 24, 2024)

Crash into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2024 (So It Goes; April 22, 2024)

Rock Fans Share Vocal Reactions to 2024 Rock Hall Snubs (Loudwire; April 22, 2024)

Post-apocalyptic TV shows get refresh with ‘Fallout’

While it’s been slim pickings for post-apocalyptic movies, TV series in the genre have been plentiful.
Current series getting new seasons include “Invasion” (Apple TV+), “Silo” (Apple TV+), “Twisted Metal” (Peacock) and “The Last of Us” (Max). There also are at least two “Walking Dead” franchise series developing new episodes (“Dead City” and “Daryl Dixon”). Plus, “Snowpiercer” has jumped to AMC from TNT for its fourth and final season.
Today saw the premiere of “Fallout” on Amazon Prime Video. The adaptation of the popular video game series released all eight episodes at once. The series is set 219 years after the outbreak of nuclear war sent Americans underground into fallout shelters called Vaults.
Last week, Netflix premiered the South Korean series “Parasyte: The Grey.” The alien-invasion horror series is more pre-apocalyptic, but the outlook looks pretty grim.
But with the era of peak TV at an end, the plentiful genre offerings could be slowing down.
The number of scripted TV seasons being ordered in the U.S. has nearly halved since 2019, according to Ampere Analysis. However, international TV production could pick up the slack, Deadline reported.

Big-budget post-apocalyptic movies returning to cinemas this summer

After a several-year drought, post-apocalyptic movies from major studios are coming to the silver screen this summer. They come in the form of sequels and spin-offs – a tried-and-true formula.
First up is “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” on May 10. It’s the fourth installment in the rebooted series after “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” (2011), “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” (2014) and “War for the Planet of the Apes” (2017). The filmmakers are hoping to start a new trilogy of films with “Kingdom.”
Next is “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” on May 24. It’s a spin-off prequel to “Mad Max: Fury Road” (2015). It is the fifth movie in the franchise.
Finally, “A Quiet Place: Day One” opens on June 28. It’s the third film in the series and serves as a prequel to “A Quiet Place” (2018) and “A Quiet Place Part 2” (2020).
Over the past year or so, Netflix has helped keep the genre alive with movies such as “Bird Box Barcelona” (Spain), “Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead” (Japan), “Leave the World Behind” and “Badland Hunters” (South Korea).

See also: The complete post-apocalyptic movie list.

My picks for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction this year

While I’m not a member of the voting body for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, I’m a music fan who cares about who gets inducted into the hall.
Like other fans I vote in the online poll to participate in the fan ballot. But I realize that doesn’t have much influence over who actually gets enshrined in the hall. Nevertheless, I feel compelled to vote each year.
This year, my seven selections are Mariah Carey, Foreigner, Peter Frampton, Ozzy Osbourne, Sinéad O’Connor, Sade and Kool & the Gang. They are among the 15 nominees announced on Feb. 10.
I think my choices offer a good mix of rockers and pop music stars. My selections also lean more heavily on older acts in hopes of clearing out some of the backlog of worthy artists.
Three of my selections were on my list of “Who should be inducted next into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?” that I posted last November. They are: Mariah Carey, Foreigner and Sade.
This year’s inductees will be announced in late April. They will be officially enshrined at a ceremony in Cleveland this fall.

Related articles:

2024 Nominees Announced (Rock & Roll Hall of Fame; Feb. 10, 2024)

Mary J. Blige, Mariah Carey, Cher, Sade, Oasis and Ozzy Osbourne among Rock Hall nominees for ’24 (Associated Press; Feb. 10, 2024)

Cher, Mariah Carey, Sinéad O’Connor, and Lenny Kravitz lead Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominations (Entertainment Weekly; Feb. 10, 2024)

2024 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Nominees: Induction Odds From Least to Most Likely (Billboard; Feb. 10, 2024)

Which Foreigner Members Are Nominated for the Rock Hall? (Ultimate Classic Rock; Feb. 11, 2024)

Oh, By the Way, Here Are Our Nominees: The 2024 Rock Hall Ballot (Iconic Rock Talk Show; Feb. 12, 2024)

Quick Thoughts on the 2024 Rock Hall Ballot (Future Rock Legends; Feb. 13, 2024)

What is rock ’n’ roll? Hall of fame ballot fuels debate (Axios Cleveland; Feb. 21, 2024)

Let’s rank the 2024 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nominees (Axios Cleveland; Feb. 26, 2024)

Liam Gallagher Slams Fellow Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Nominees as He Claims He’s ‘Done More’ for the Genre (People; Feb. 27, 2024)

CES 2024 news in review: AI, spatial computing, robots and more

The following is a roundup of my coverage of the CES 2024 technology trade show in Las Vegas.

Arm elbows into new arenas as chip designer takes on AI, auto, cloud, other markets. (Jan. 26, 2024)

Powerfoyle becoming “Intel Inside” for light-powered gadgets. (Jan. 19, 2024)

Robot barista looks to fill labor shortage. Say hello to Adam. (Jan. 19, 2024)

Apple isn’t the only player in spatial computing. Rivals populated CES 2024. (Jan. 17, 2024)

Garmin targeting niche markets in smartwatches for women, kids. (Jan. 12, 2024)

Dolby cranks up volume of licensing deals in autos, TVs, PCs. (Jan. 12, 2024)

Qualcomm in catbird seat for edge AI shift, CEO says. (Jan. 11, 2024)

Smart TV platform battle rages at CES 2024. Amazon, Roku make waves. (Jan. 11, 2024)

Automotive chipmakers squeezed by “accordion effect.” (Jan. 10, 2024)

L’Oreal adds glamour to CES 2024 with beauty tech gadgets. (Jan. 9, 2024)

Dell, HP join Intel push for AI PCs. Microsoft Copilot called “marquee” feature. (Jan. 9, 2024)

Nvidia steps up generative AI game with new chips. (Jan. 8, 2024)

AMD rounds out AI PC chip lineup with new desktop processors. (Jan. 8, 2024)

Consumers set to upgrade pandemic-era tech purchases. (Jan. 8, 2024)

“AI is the story of the show”: What to expect from CES 2024. (Jan. 6, 2024)

Photos: CES 2024 outside the West Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center (Patrick Seitz); LG Electronics WebOS tunnel at CES 2024 (LG)

Celebrities at CES 2024: Robert Downey Jr., Eva Longoria, Will.i.am and more

Celebrities turned up at CES 2024 on the show floor, at conference events and for after-hours concerts.
Actor Robert Downey Jr. spoke at a conference panel at the C Space Studio.
Actress and model Eva Longoria, a L’Oreal brand ambassador, appeared at the L’Oreal keynote presentation.
Rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer Will.i.am came out to promote his sound system for Mercedes-Benz.
Media personality Paris Hilton also spoke at CES 2024.
South Korean rapper G-Dragon toured the CES exhibit floor and visited mostly Korean companies, including LG, Samsung and SK Group.
Businesswoman and media personality Martha Stewart took to the kitchen stage at Samsung’s CES booth to craft her “Martha-tini” and smashed potatoes using the company’s SmartThings technology.
Top-name music acts were featured at corporate evening events at CES 2024.
Green Day rocked the Virgin Theater for Harman, a unit of Samsung.
Wu-Tang Clan performed at Voltaire at the Venetian for Yahoo. (See article by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.)
Nelly rapped for a club party at the Allegiant Stadium for TCL.
Ludacris rapped at the Jewel Nightclub at Aria for Amazon Ads.
Finally, Weezer performed a concert for iHeartMedia and MediaLink.

Photos: Eva Longoria (top) and Will.i.am. (CES)

The devil works hard, but the RDJBrazil's team works harder!

📸 Adicionamos +10 fotos em HQ de Robert Downey Jr. no #CES2024, renomada feira tecnológica que teve sua noite de abertura ontem (9), em Las Vegas.

— Robert Downey Jr. BR (@RDJBrazil) January 10, 2024

Mercedes-Benz, CES 2024’te https://t.co/s7HfcNpq0C ortaklığıyla da dikkat çektihttps://t.co/9qgu4WAFa7 pic.twitter.com/0EwXb0Cbos

— LOG (@logdergisi) January 16, 2024

The @MercedesBenz Sound Drive feature is hard to conceptualize but I can confirm, once experienced, you understand it and want it. Thanks @iamwill for the ride 🔥 #CES2024 https://t.co/AZY9rtZSxY pic.twitter.com/SVla62vaTi

— WHAT'S INSIDE? (@whatsinside) January 10, 2024

Paris Hilton at “The Transformation Experience” panel at 2024 International CES#ParisHilton @ParisHilton pic.twitter.com/xmHqZftPqd

— Celebs Style Daily (@cdhq2) January 19, 2024

I’m about to take a selfie with Paris and she says, “I invented the selfie, let me take it.” @ParisHilton #CES2024 pic.twitter.com/FdbDshpiT5

— Shelly Palmer (@shellypalmer) January 11, 2024

[NEWS]

Multiple new articles are reporting on G-DRAGONs visit to CES and the Samsung and LG booths.

ALL TOGETHER WITH G-DRAGON#GDRAGONxCES2024 #CES2024 @IBGDRGN pic.twitter.com/q9LKsByO4m

— G-DRAGON INTERNATIONAL (@gdragonintl) January 9, 2024

"Kpop singers, have limited roles beyond becoming ads models or attracting investments when collab with companies. #GDRAGON is showcasing a different side at #CES2024, a broader involvement or a unique contribution beyond the usual roles assoc with celebs in business collabs."✔️ pic.twitter.com/mCi20fEws7

— G-Dragon is the manual (@WhiteTamar1) January 11, 2024

K-pop star G-Dragon visits exhibition booths at CES 2024https://t.co/6Q8klFy6wU

— The Korea Times (@koreatimescokr) January 10, 2024

It’s #CES2024 👍 It’s @MarthaStewart 👌 It’s our CES special guest Martha Stewart! 🫶 Tune in now to watch her livestream and share how she uses SmartThings and AI to make magic in the kitchen and beyond! https://t.co/c5R3T7i3dT

— Samsung US (@SamsungUS) January 10, 2024

Martha Stewart at ces! Samsung booth! pic.twitter.com/n4XIMwUn7S

— Ants_Amazing (@Ants_Amazing_) January 9, 2024

Huge shout out to @ChrisHarihar and the @Yahoo team. @WuTangClan is forever.

Great event…. 👏👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/DgWn2dsAzm

— AdTechGod 🍪 (@AdtechGod) January 11, 2024

The boys who sing Bev-er-ly Hills are in Sin City to kick off #CES and us Gen Xers are kinda loving it. #Weezer pic.twitter.com/eJnB6zIrdt

— Cynthia Littleton (@Variety_Cynthia) January 10, 2024

Thank you #CES2024 for bringing us @Weezer pic.twitter.com/EHVK3rN85U

— Ximena Hartsock (@ximenahartsock) January 10, 2024

Great concert by Green Day on Wednesday night at the Virgin Theater in Las Vegas, sponsored by JBL, a premium audio brand owned by Samsung's Harman. #CES2024 pic.twitter.com/zdFnuNzaT5

— Patrick Seitz (@PatrickSeitz) January 12, 2024

Rapper Nelly rocking the mic at #CES2024 TCL party at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. pic.twitter.com/Ui7cEs12ep

— Patrick Seitz (@IBD_PSeitz) January 10, 2024