MEDIA MEDITATION #4: FLIGHT OF THE STUMBLE BEE

Image Courtesy of www.NetworkedBlogs.com

Hello all you fellow stumblers out there, it's been a while since we last talked, but in that time the internet has certainly produced some finds worthy of notation.


PICS OF THE WEEK

Here are a few pictures i found this week on Stumble...

Image courtesy of www.beautifullife.info

Henri IV Dudognon Heritage Cognac Grande Champagne
 
  This swanky bottle of hooch is a Henry IV, a bottle of liquor so expensive you could put yourself through college... 13 times. I am in no way kidding, I did the math and trust me... I hate math. This Champagne comes in a crystal bottle dipped in 24K yellow gold and sterling platinum and is emblazoned with 6,500 certified brilliant-cut diamonds, all of which are master-crafted by well-known jeweler, Jose Davalos. After aging for 100 years, with an alcohol content of 41% Henri IV Dudognon Heritage bottle weighs approximately 8 kilograms and it is filled with 100 cl. of the precious liquor. The Henri IV Dudognon Heritage is priced at £1,000,000 per bottle or $1,578,309 and 84 cents for those of you dreadful Americans out there.

Why would anyone need such an expensive drink you ask? Well, the answer is quite simple really... the people who can afford to buy such a product think their  recycling bins deserve to nice things too.

I did some more math, you know, just for fun. And i found out that if you were to walk into a really upscale English Pub and request One "YEE OLDE SHOTE, MY GOOD CHAP!" it would cost you approximately $47,000. That's enough to put a down payment on your house.

Also on the list but not quite as extavagent are a few other liqours of the prestigous. You can take a full look at all the other things you can't afford to have here.

ONTO THE NEXT PICTURE!!!

Image courtesy of www.graphjam.com

There isn't a lot I can say about this picture other than, hells yeah. Have you ever watched MTV Cribs? Little Bow-Wow has a BMW nicer than I could afford if I was a Russian Czar. I mean, how ridiculous is it that there are actually artists claiming that the use of file sharing sites is taking food away from their kids? Get a grip people. When you can afford your own underwater pinball machine that matches your underwater bowling alley, you shouldn't complain about how many of your 3-minute songs I have illegally downloaded onto my iTunes.

Image Courtesy of www.cslacker.com

Although I was born and raised a Roman Catholic i can't help but chuckle when i look at this picture. I know, I know, shame on me,  blaspheme and all that. I am aware of the fact that I'm going to hell. And I Have been ever since I put pudding down that kid's pants in third grade but i figured that according to the Catholic dogma, we were all born with original sin anyways so i guess i wont be lacking in good company below deck. Maybe its not such a bad situation after all. I heard that Jack the Ripper is a hoot at cocktail parties.


VIDEO BREAK DOWN

This past month certainly yeileded some interesting finds in the video category check out these videos i found on the web...



Geez, and i thought i was talented because i could belch the alphabet. Keep on trucking big haus, that was indeed a nasty back-flip. Kind of makes me feel like i could be doing more with my life.... no wait, that feeling is gone, I'm fine now, probably just gas. Which leads me to my next video...





That was all sorts of gross. Girl, you need to re-evaluate your priorities because farting on knock off reality TV shows, while hilarious, ain't no way to live your life. Did that last judge say "You're in"? Wow, standards are seriously low in Canada. Can you imagine if any Kelly Clarkson let one rip in front of Ryan Seacrest? Chances are, Simon would say something along the lines of "WORST. FLATULENCE. EVER." I had a Clay Aiken joke that fit perfectly for that spot earlier, however, i feel it may be a little low-brow. Even for this blog.

FINALE

And finally i end this month's entertainment with a list. I give you: 30 Strange Vans I'd Be Tempted to Get Into.

Thanks Peoples,

In the words of the great David Della Rocco... CATCH YOU ON THE FLIP SIDE.

MEDIA MEDITATION #3: JACKASS OF ALL TRADES

 

Johnny Knoxville up to his old shenanigans again, assuming the role of an old man with a prosthetic leg. Image courtesy of Ugo.com

The release of the new Jackass movie has left us all buzzing, but I cannot help but wonder, is this the last we see of the Jackass crew? Although we do enjoy their annual antics of shopping cart debauchery and fecal matter mayhem, some of the Jackass crew did not seem too entirely thrilled with the events that took place in the movie. Which has left me wondering if they will attempt yet another sequel in the future...

Image courtesy of ugo.com

Scenes like the "prison break" seemed a little intense and the apprehension in most of the stars particiapating can be  clearly seen.


Check out this trailer for the movie, and decide if you would enjoy the experience of seeing human feces in 3D!




In a recent interview with collider.com, an interviewer asked co-stars Bam Margera and Jonny Knoxville what they thought of the new film. Here is some of the dialogue that took place:

Johnny, you went through some torturous stuff yourself in this film. What keeps you motivated to continue doing these things?

JOHNNY KNOXVILLE: I know that I almost bought it on that, but it’s fun. It’s me and my friends, doing something we created together and have been doing for 10 years. The cast and crew have all been together for all that time. You do something and it may be scary, but when you watch the footage afterwards, everyone’s laughing.


BAM MARGERA: The way that I look at it is that, when we film for eight months straight for a new Jackass movie, I know that I’m going to wind up with at least two broken bones. I don’t know when it’s going to happen, but you can’t contemplate how you’re going to fall and what’s going to happen. It’s easier to just get up there and do it.

Who comes up with most of the ideas for the stunts and how do you guys select which ones you’ll do? Do you have meetings about the ideas?

MARGERA: Sometimes it’s a mixture of everybody. If they come up with an idea, they submit it to Paramount, then we have a stack of ideas, and people look at them and figure out what they would like to do. If it’s involving a bull, it’ll be Knoxville because it definitely won’t be me. Most of the ideas are two pages long and really descriptive, and then there will be one that is one sentence that says, “Shit shoe: find a shoe, and then shit in it.”


KNOXVILLE: The cast and crew all come up with ideas. Sometimes they’re just crude pictures drawn on a napkin, and sometimes we’ll get together and pitch ideas. Bam likes to fax hilarious pictures, that’s how he submits most of his ideas, and they’re really funny.


MARGERA: It’s just easier to draw what I want to happen, rather than explain it.


KNOXVILLE: So, the ideas all come to the office and we compile them, and then we send them to Paramount, just to go through all the legal stuff. Paramount leaves us alone, so we vet the ideas and decide what to shoot or not. 
 


 To see more of the interview with the fabled pranksters, click here.

Ultimately, i would say that this movie rang true to everything we know about the old Jackass crew. Its ballsy, disgusting, and at some points, down-right hilarious, but hey... that's what life is all about, a few friends messing around with some really expensive 3D video equipment and A LOT of time on their hands. To see more scenes from the movie, visit the Jackass Website and select clips.




The jackass crew, close friends with the famed band Weezer, featured in a new song relased for the premire of Jackass 3D.

MIDTERM REFLECTIONS: ACADEMIC GRANDSLAM

I learned to identify the multiple techniques that the media industry uses to persuade its audience. Ex: By identifying an image meant to be a symbol in a commercial, I have effectively interpreted what the advertiser/company is trying to sell/tell me.

2.) What is the most important thing you have learned about yourself as a critical reader, a writer, and a thinker in this class so far?

As a Critical Reader: I have learned that I have an extremely short attention span and that I can't read anything as effectively as I used to because the Internet has destroyed/massaged my brain.

As a Writer: I have learned that media is the plural form of medium which is an extremely important fact to remember when one is writing... see what I did there?

As a Thinker: I have learned the power of media convergence in the 21st century. Using powerful tools like the search capabilities of the internet, we will be able to reach a new point in technological and social advancement the likes of which, the world has never seen. However, I think the tools that which we are so familiar with and that we take for granted, are now inhibiting us to advance because we are so concerned with posting status updates about how great Robert Pattinson hair looks in the new twilight movie. I think that maybe we all need to grow up a little and use the technology we have to our advantage, instead of just letting it hinder our potential as a species.

3.) What's one thing you would do differently this first half of the semester if you were to take this class again?

I would definitely memorize some of the power tools a little better. I always forget the 7 principles.

4.) What's one thing you would like me to do differently this first half of the semester if you were to take this class again?

I would like it if you were to go more in-depth and talk about our views on the class and the subjects you are teaching. I like discussion among my pears, especially when it leads to a difference of opinion.

5.) Please comment on the usefulness of the power tools, our course blog, your personal blog, our in-class quizzes, our films, and our book as learning tools.

Course Blog: Good idea, no wait... great idea. I'm really tired of teachers assigning regular homework like papers. Way to mix it up, I really didn’t mind doing HW for this class on the course blog because it was fairly hassle free and didn’t take up too much of my time. Lord knows, I am a busy man.

Personal Blog: Another awesome idea. I like the thought that we are encouraged to bring our own interests to the table and work them into our class work. Posting to the personal blog is actually an enjoyable assignment.

Quizzes: Seem a little intimidating at first, but you get used to them. It’s comforting to know that my grade in a class does not rely solely on quiz and test grades.

Films: I love watching movies in class and I wish we did it more this year. The video choices were very good but I would like to go over some more controversial topics and I think movies/film and video clips are a great way to do this. For example, I have a particular interest in North Korea. I find it fascinating as a country that restricts its media to such an extent. There are a few national geographic specials that are particularly intriguing. We should watch these...

Books: Great Book. It is actually an interesting read. Most textbooks are redundant, this one really isn't. A little pricey though, but then again, all books are.

Camp Champ Radio Spot: TEAM AWESOME STRIKES AGAIN!

SCRIPT

Come to Champlain!

Do you want a spectacular education? And a pony?

Well, you can find out which one of the two you can get by coming to Champlain!

Come to Champlain!

Champlain has a pretty campus and pretty people come here. Come here to be amongst people almost as pretty as you!

Come to Champlain!

Here are just a few successful stories of people who came to Champlain!

“I graduated from Champlain and instantly received a million dollars! You can too!”

Come to Champlain!

“At Champlain I met a celebrity! Celebrities go here!”

Come to Champlain!

Did you know Champlain grads are 13% more likely to survive a nuclear Holocaust?

Come to Champlain if you want to live!

President Warlord Finney demands you come to Champlain! He fights bears and catamounts!

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College doesn’t cost that much! Only ten thousand easy payments of $9.99! Sign up today and we’ll throw in a free Snuggie!

Come to Champlain!

Come to Champlain!

Come to Champlain!

Have we mentioned come to Champlain?!

Come to Champlain! Or the pony gets it!