T-shirt #115: Chicago Cubs Est.1876

Listening to Baseball on the radio -
Damn, 720 WGN has a good signal!

T-shirt #115: Chicago Cubs Est.1876

I love listening to Baseball on the radio.

This is one of the central truths of my love for Baseball. It is presented in its most classic form on the radio. I grew up listening to the Detroit Tigers on the radio, the sonorous voice of Ernie Harwell crackling across my AM band, hand-sized transistor late into the night.

I have already blogged about my beloved Detroit Tigers seven times (see categories index) and I am not done yet with my Tigers shirts. More to come.

Wearing my "dressy" Cubs shirt and
my 1914 Vintage "Cubby" hat

And I have more to write about Ernie and that handheld transistor with the fake leather case next to my pillow at bed time.

As a kid who loved Baseball, it should be no surprise that I collected Baseball cards. In fact, I did not like bubble gum, and I was a bit annoyed at how the gum would discolor (if not melt and stick to) one card, often the card that I most wanted to collect.






As a lover and collector of Baseball cards, I bought many of my packs on the summer vacations of my youth in Traverse City at a little liquor store at the top of a hill between Traverse and Long Lake.

The store is still there.

I wrote about this and other nostalgic childhood activities in T-Shirt #85: Up North.

As a boy loving Baseball, it seemed a travesty to love only one team when there were so many to choose from. My fandom really started to kick in at the age of eight (1970) when Major League Baseball fielded twenty-four teams. I loved the Detroit Tigers, and I kept hoping they would win another World Series since I was not a huge Baseball fan and much younger (six years old) when they won in 1968, though I had read all about the games and the team was still intact in many ways in 1970.


But I wanted another favorite team. The next closest city to Kalamazoo (other than Detroit) is Chicago.

I could not like the Chicago White Sox as they were division rivals to the Tigers. So I decided to like the Chicago Cubs. After all, they had a cool name. They were the young team, the babies, the Cubs to the football Bears, which I thought was cute. I liked the team colors (red, white, and blue), and they had many cool players as I saw in many of my 1970 season Baseball cards, such as Ernie Banks, Randy Hundley, Billy Williams, Fergie Jenkins, Milt Pappas, Joe Pepitone, and guys with neat names who I had many Baseball cards for but who did not play much, like Boots Day and Roe Skidmore.

I may not be the Number One Cubs fan ever, but I am going to write about one.

Most of all, I loved Ron Santo. He started his Baseball career before I was born (in 1960) and by the time I was an ardent fan, Ron Santo was in the twilight of his Baseball playing career. But I loved him. He played the way I liked people to play: with everything he had in him. He liked to jump and click his heels as he took the field. And the stats on the backs of his Baseball cards showed that not only could he field (five time consecutive Gold Glove winner), but he could HIT, leading the league in walks four times, in OBP twice, and even once in triples (my favorite hit in Baseball). He hit over 300 home runs in his career, a feat only one other third baseman ever managed (Eddie Mathews).

Santo was dynamite. For sure, he would be elected to the Hall of Fame when he first appeared on the ballot after his 1974 retirement. But then, nothing. By the time, Santo was eligible for the Hall of Fame ballot (1980), I was filled with teenaged hormones and had quite forgotten how much I loved Baseball. I had moved on to performing magic, doing theater, playing role playing games, and hanging out with friends, none of whom liked sports. And then came college and girls. Since things like Baseball were the province of the "popular" kids, I eschewed all things sports from about 1976-1984, when the winning seasons of both the Detroit Tigers and the Chicago Cubs promised a possible World Series between my two favorite clubs, a legacy that was narrowly missed when the San Diego Padres edged the Cubs in the five-game NLCS three games to two, taking the decisive Game Five 6-3 with Cubs ace Rick Sutcliffe taking the heart-breaking loss.

By 1984, when I re-discovered my love for the Chicago Cubs, I also discovered the joys of cable television and the strong signal of WGN Radio that I could pick up much better in Kalamazoo than in Richland. And soon, I discovered that I did not always have to tune into WGN from Chicago because a local radio station would broadcast the Cubs games, such as WQSN 1360 AM. Though some days, especially in Richland, the WGN signal was stronger than the local broadcast's signal.

After graduating from college, cable television was finally available in my "rural" area of Richland, and I began to watch many Chicago Cubs games that were televised on WGN television. I was excited about a new rookie who joined the team with Ryne Sandberg, Andre Dawson, and Rick Sutcliffe who debuted in 1988: Mark Grace. Others soon followed, such as Shawon Dunston, Greg Maddux, and Jerome Walton. Eventually, the team featured one of its most dynamic players: Sammy Sosa.

I was an avid listener/watcher. I liked Harry Caray (the TV announcer), but in 1990, third base Cubs legend Ron Santo joined Pat Hughes on WGN radio and I was hooked. Ron and Pat were hilarious. As much as I loved Ernie Harwell and Paul Carey, Pat and Ron were more engaging and more entertaining. I became a more fervent advocate for Ron's election in the Hall of Fame as both a player and a broadcaster. His candidacy seemed even more important when I learned that he had played his entire career with diabetes, which he kept secret. Though he revealed his diabetes in 1971 on "Ron Santo Day," I was not aware of it until it was openly discussed in the many Cubs radio broadcasts to which I listened.

I would listen in the car throughout the state of Michigan as WGN's signal is so strong that it covers most of Michigan. And while taking my own vacations in Traverse City as an adult, I would often go out to my car, which could pick up the WGN radio signal easily from its parking spot on the Old Mission Peninsula.

It became clear to me that Ron Santo was cheated out of his rightful place in the Hall of Fame. Much to Ron's chagrin, Pat Hughes would openly and vocally tout Ron's merits for the Hall of Fame based on his excellence as a player. (I also think Ron deserves election as a broadcaster.)

In the mid-1990s, I discovered Bill James and the greater world of statistical analysis in Baseball beyond looking at Batting Average and Earned Run Average. Bill James ranks Santo sixth on the the all-time greatest third basemen in history with only Home Run Baker, Wade Boggs, Eddie Mathews, George Brett, and Mike Schmidt ahead of him. Bill James writes an excellent entry in his Historical Baseball Abstract about Santo's merits for the Hall of Fame. It's quite a funny section as he leads it off with a letter from a disgruntled TV viewer who heard James advocate for Santo's candidacy and claim that there are fewer third baseman in the Hall than players at any other position. The viewer took this the wrong way thinking we should elect all these second-rate players to bring up the number of third sackers. Rather, James had meant that Santo should be elected because, among the small number of third basemen in the Hall, he was a better player than many of them. James specifically names George Kell (a Detroit Tiger) who he ranked 30th all time among third basemen and Fred Lindstrom, who he ranked 43rd, who are both in the Hall of Fame, and Santo is not.

I enjoyed listening to Ron Santo's brilliant comedy as a radio host, his vast knowledge of Baseball, and his absolute, unequivocal love of all things Chicago Cub for 20 years, until Diabetes finally caught up with him, and he died in 2010 at the age of 70. Ron Santo had lost both of his lower legs, which were amputated below the knee, one in 2001 and the other in 2002, due to his Diabetes. And by the end, he also struggled with Bladder Cancer.

Santo should have been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in his lifetime. Santo's Hall of Fame election came in 2011 for the Class of 2012. He received 15 of a possible 16 votes by the Golden Era Committee, which formed in 2011, and elected Santo as its first act. The Golden Era Committee features such players as Al Kaline, Hank Aaron, Brooks Robinson (7th on James' list right after Santo), and Billy Williams, who made an impassioned plea for Santo's induction.

Another accolade described here also should have happened in his lifetime, but he was taken too soon: "On Wednesday, August 10, 2011, Ron Santo was memorialized and "immortalized" at Wrigley Field with the presentation of a statue in his likeness. The statue is a portrayal of a young Ron Santo playing defense at third base, leaning to his right while throwing a ball" ("Ron Santo," Wikipedia, 2013).

I still listen to Pat Hughes and his new partner Keith Moreland, who are quite good, but nowhere near as wonderful as Pat and Ron with all their running jokes as well as Ron's elation when the Cubs did something exciting and his abject despondency or even anger when things did not go the Cubs' way.

SOME GOOD LINKS

RON SANTO BASEBALL ALMANAC

RON SANTO - BASEBALL REFERENCE

RON SANTO WIKI

RON SANTO DIES

PAT HUGHES' EULOGY FOR RON SANTO

This is what I am talking about in the videos that follow... great Pat and Ron stuff. There's several if you search on You Tube. Here's three. The first is a good assortment of clips (five minutes). The second is a single hilarious episode (short - 2:34), and the last is a good short memory (41 seconds).

Classic Ron Santo and Pat Hughes

Ron Santo - "They Oughta Shoot Him"

Favorite Ron Santo Moment

We all miss you, Ron. Thank you for all the great Baseball times.

- chris tower - 1307.14 - 18:59

T-shirt 114 - Detroit Pistons Championship 2004

T-shirt 114 - Detroit Pistons: The Return of Chauncey Billups

From a purely fan point of view, I am excited that the Detroit Pistons have signed Chauncey Billups. I wanted to see Chauncey retire as a Piston as much as he apparently, given his comments to the media, wanted to retire as a Piston. He considers himself a lifetime Piston.

Chauncey Billups will mentor young guards Brandon Knight and Kentavious Caldwell-Powell. Chauncey may start, but he will rotate with the other guards. He will give the Pistons a smart ball handler who is capable of running the offense and shooting clutch three-point shots. No one expects him to back down defenders in the lane or barrel into traffic to draw fouls like he did in 2004 and 2005. With Will Bynum and Rodney Stuckey also in the mix, the Pistons have a strong back court and believe that with further mentoring that Brandon Knight will be the successful point guard everyone expects him to be.

When I saw this news, I decided it was a good time to feature my Detroit Pistons 2004 Championship T-shirt.


Right now, I am running about a week ahead on the blog, trying to sketch out the entries, write some text, add pictures, do research, as I have found that waiting until the day I plan to post is not a workable method. When things are going right, I have the day's entry written by at least the day before. But every time I get ahead, the advance work is eaten up, and I find myself writing an entry the morning of posting (like now). Even though I am scheduling and sketching ahead, I have found that it is easy enough to insert and re-number, and so I am going to try to use breaking news like the Billups signing to give my blog less narcissism and more relevance.

I like the signing of Chauncey Billups. He showed some spark last season with the LA Clippers when he returned from his injury, and he has a solid basketball mind. Like Ben Wallace, if bringing him back means that he can retire as a Piston, I also think this is an excellent choice.

In other news, the Pistons signed Rasheed Wallace for the coaching staff, which may also have an important impact on the team and its young players.

The Billups signing comes shortly after the Pistons signed strong forward Josh Smith, who had been playing with the Atlanta Hawks.

I like the idea of a starting five of Billups, Knight, Monroe, Drummond, and Smith. This is a powerful group.

These recent moves should vindicate Joe Dumars whose track record over the last few years, after trading Billups for Allen Iverson, has not been stellar. The Ben Gordon/Charlie Villanueva signing went bust. The acquisition of Corey Maggette had no impact at all on the team. And though Dumars has drafted well in recent years, the Detroit Pistons have not played well and have been absent from the playoffs since Billups left.


CHAUNCEY BILLUPS SIGNS WITH PISTONS NEWS ARTICLES & COMMENTARY

YAHOO

FREEP

DETROIT JOCK CITY

PISTON POWERED

DETROIT BAD BOYS

Sadly, KIM ENGLISH has been let go.


A little bit about the shirt: Though I was a huge fan of the Bad Boys of 1989 and 1990, I think watching the 2004 team was a much more emotional experience. In 2005, I had trouble sleeping during the Finals, and after Game Seven's loss, I was beside myself with anguish and grief. This is the moment that I realized I was a little too invested in sports and needed some perspective in my life. Though, really, I think I was projecting other anxiety and emotional turmoil onto the sports, or at least that's what I have figured out in self-analysis since then.

I have already blogged about the Pistons in T-shirt #65 and T-shirt #29, and I still have other Pistons shirts (and shorts) to feature in the future. Stay tuned Pistons fans.

The Pistons won in 2004 when I was visiting my friend Tom in Seattle, and so I was watching the games in the afternoon because of the time difference. But prior to that victory, I had watched nearly every regular and post-season game and attended several at the Palace. The Detroit Pistons are my heart, and the 2004 championship may have meant more to me than the Bad Boys era trophies, especially since the team was disrespected by the majority sports commentators, especially on ESPN. The buzz was that the Lakers were not playing up to par. One commentator tried to put a stop to that nonsense and proclaimed that the Pistons were just BEATING the Lakers with superior play in every aspect of the game.

Chauncey Billups was the MVP of the 2004 Finals. He will always be the MVP in my book.

Welcome back Mr. Big Shot!

- chris tower - 1307.13 - 8:28

T-shirt #113: David Byrne & St. Vincent

T-shirt #113: David Byrne & St. Vincent - Michigan Theater Ann Arbor July 8, 2013

Concerts are great fun. I love going to concerts. I had been looking forward to this one for months. I debated buying a shirt. I actually wanted one of the women's cuts, which featured a better design.

Usually, though there are rare exceptions, concerts increase the enjoyment of the music by an exponential factor. However, sometimes, as my friend Erik Pye was quick to point out, the studio-recorded music becomes somewhat disappointing because it does not sound like the live music.

In this case, my enjoyment of Love This Giant by David Byrne and St. Vincent, which was already high, has increased because of the concert.

Today I present the resources for you, dear reader, to explore this great art if you wish.

Though the concert was not the best I have ever seen, it was very good. I have some great shows and so it's tough to break the top ten of my concerts. But I do encourage everyone to go see David Byrne and St. Vincent if you get the chance.

Given that the title of David Byrne and St. Vincent's album comes from Walt Whitman's "Song of Myself," and many lyrics were drawn from Whitman, which inspired me to look at the poem again, so I was tempted to dedicate myself to weekly explorations of the poem's 51 stanzas. I am not starting this today, but this idea is on one of the mind stove's burners and it's simmering.

At the concert, David Byrne dedicated "Outside of Space and Time" to the Higgs-Boson Particle.

David Byrne & St. Vincent - Outside of Space and Time 

- Live @ Orpheum in Boston

I have no good pictures from the Ann Arbor show, but Annie (St. Vincent) Kelly has dyed her hair blonde.

photos by Amanda Hatfield and Chris La Putt @ BrooklynVegan.com

Batman headphones
courtesy of Ivan Simons

GREAT LINKS!



LOVE THIS GIANT SITE

VICE ARTICLE - St. Vincent isn't interested in vacation"

BROOKLYN VEGAN REVIEW - SHOW at Williamsburg Park
- Great review!! Tons of amazing pictures. Some videos. Awesome.

LOVE THIS GIANT WIKI

ST. VINCENT WIKI

DAVID BYRNE WIKI

SET LIST FROM Ann Arbor show 1307.08

GUARDIAN INTERVIEW: "Most People Assume this is an art project"

PITCHFORK INTERVIEW



 REVIEW FOR THE CONCERT AT THE MICHIGAN THEATRE ANN ARBOR 1307.08

SET LIST FOR CONCERT AT THE MICHIGAN THEATRE ANN ARBOR 1307.08

photos by Amanda Hatfield and
Chris La Putt @ BrooklynVegan.com

MY TWO FAVORITE SONGS FROM LOVE THIS GIANT

• "Ice Age"
• "Outside of Space and Time"

Sneaking in as a new favorite: "I am an Ape"

Honorable mention: "Lazarus"

TOP TEN FAVORITE TALKING HEADS SONGS

1. "This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody)"
2. "The Great Curve"
3. "I Zimbra"
4. "No Compassion"
5. "Road to Nowhere"
6. "Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On)"
7. "Life During Wartime"
8. "Don't Worry about the Government"
9. "Burning Down the House"
10. "Seen and Not Seen"

David Byrne & St. Vincent - Marrow

Now, the usual weekly thing. The comic book stack. Not much to report except that some of the books I am usually caught up on have fallen into the backlog (such as Nightwing and Buffy) simply because I do not have enough time to read everything right now. And one title, Ultimates, has come back into the current fold as I read my backlog of the comic, though I am questioning why I still buy it. But the biggest news of the week is the Paul Chadwick book!! Yay!

I do want to point out the mix of DC and Marvel comics in the top 6-7 comics in the stack.

WEEKLY COMIC BOOK STACK

COMICS FOR JULY 10TH

The Walking Dead #112

Superman Unchained #2

Young Avengers #007

Justice League #22

Daredevil #028

Batman #22

The Superior Spider-Man #013

Uncanny X-Men #008

Hawkeye #012

Batgirl #22

The Fearless Defenders #6

America's Got Powers #6 of 7

Wolverine #006

Indestructible Hulk #010

Secret Avengers #006

The Ultimates #27

Great Pacific #8

Sheltered #1 (Recommended by Andrew at Fanfare)

Ten Grand #2 (as I noticed I did not have it when I bought #3)

BACKLOG

Nightwing #22

World's Finest - Huntress and Power Girl - #14

Astro City #2

Avengers Arena #012

Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Season 9 - #23

SPECIAL PURCHASE

Harlan Ellison's 7 Against Chaos illustrated by Paul Chadwick and Ken Steacy

photos by Amanda Hatfield and Chris La Putt @ BrooklynVegan.com

My heart stopped when this song started at the concert.

"Love me until my heart stops, love me until I'm dead."

David Byrne & St. Vincent - This Must Be The Place HD Live

Maybe I have a little crush on Annie Kelly (St. Vincent)?

photos by Amanda Hatfield and Chris La Putt @ BrooklynVegan.com

- chris tower - 1307.12 - 11:03

T-shirt #112: Rorschach

Me having dinner at Sava's in Ann Arbor

T-shirt #112: Rorschach - Going to David Byrne and St. Vincent

What does the Rorschach ink blot test or the Rorschach character from the Watchmen comic book have to do with David Byrne and St. Vincent's tour to promote the album Love this Giant?

I do have a connection, but it's going to take some text to make it.

I have been wanting to get more pictures of myself in T-shirts that are not taken in my office, living room, or bedroom.

How many photos have my office door and the Deadman toy in the background?

Faced with the question of what T-shirt to wear to the concert, this shirt was in my closet as I planned to feature it in the blog soon, which is part of the process, moving shirts from auxiliary closets to the main closet.


So this T-shirt was hanging there, and it seemed like as good a choice as any other. And then I made a connection. More to come on the connection.

Me foolishly shopping for more books that I think
I need in the Dawn Treader Book Shoppe in Ann Arbor

The shirt is meant to recall the classic character of Rorschach found in Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' The Watchmen published by DC Comics in 1986 and 1987.

When I looked in the closet, I saw this shirt and thought, why not?

Mainly, I made my decision because I was not sure I wanted to write more rhetoric about The Watchmen, not because I do not love it, because I do, but I am thinking about how subject matter may be incidental. Do I always have to feature the subject of the shirt with my blog writing? Do I always have to explore the subject of the shirt in great depth? The Watchmen is one of the greatest comic books/graphic novels ever written. Especially since the movie came out, it is one of the most often read graphic novels in the history of comics. In fact, Time Magazine ranked it as one of the 100 best novels ever written.

My point is that it's a little boring to always write about the thing on my shirt.

Rorschach is a cool character, and The Watchmen is a great novel. You should just read it. Nothing I can write will have a greater effect on you than the book itself.

Before the concert, Marquee in the background

So, when I saw this shirt in my closet, I realized that I may not be able to write anything that really adds significantly to the discussion about The Watchmen. I liked the idea of wearing it to the concert because it's white, and I tend to wear white shirts in the summer. Also, the Rorschach shirt reminded me of identity because the Rorschach Test assesses a person's personality characteristics and emotional functioning or, in part, a person's identity.

So, why not? Why not wear the Rorschach T-shirt.

Read The Watchmen, if you have not already. If you have read it, maybe you should read it again. I may read it again. It's worth reading often. But I am dedicated here to what is going on in the pictures.

On Monday, July 8th, I went to see David Byrne and St. Vincent at the Michigan Theatre in Ann Arbor on their tour to promote their album called Love This Giant.

David Byrne and St. Vincent
Performing "Naive Melody"

The name of the album comes from "The Song of Myself" by Walt Whitman:

"I behold the picturesque giant and love him, and I do not stop there, I go with the team also." - from Stanza 13.

Here's the full poem.

THE SONG OF MYSELF BY WALT WHITMAN

Rorschach makes me think of identity and self and Whitman's "Song of Myself" is the quintessential, romantic, transcendental poem to self. Everything is connected.

I bought the album when it came out last year and loved it immediately. Originally, I bought tickets to bring my wife, Liesel, to the show, but when she had to work and could not re-arrange her schedule, I asked my friend Erik Pye (not pictured) to accompany me as I knew he was also a lover of the album.

St. Vincent solo: "Cruel"?

After a quick and easy drive to Ann Arbor, and parking in the Liberty Street ramp against my better judgement, we had dinner at Sava's. A good evening always starts with a good dinner. And thus the first photo: I am happily at dinner.

I had the Paella and a Pilsner Urquell, my favorite beer, which they had on tap. We shared a bowl of mussels in coconut curry sauce.

SAVA'S - Ann Arbor - 216 S. State Street.

After a delightful repast, we were off to the Dawn Treader Book Shoppe to do a little searching for used books. I even had a list. Unfortunately, I could not find used copies of the Zelazny and Gene Wolfe classics recently recommended to me. The second picture shows me deep in the SF-Fantasy-Horror section with Seven of Nine peering over my shoulder. This is the same place where my wife took a photo of me a couple of years ago and labeled it "Chris in his natural element."

We had coffee and queued up to enter the theatre. Going green, I had no tickets. I had to share my credit card and ID, and the tickets were printed with a nifty little contraption with a shoulder strap by the usher. Please note the third picture as I am about to enter the concert.

I am not one for tons of concert pictures or videos, but I did snap two. Lastly, Erik tried a picture of me after the concert with the performers names on the marquee in the background. You can barely make out my dark shape in the foreground in this final picture to the right of this text.

Today's blog entry culminates in the purchase of a new T-shirt and the two St. Vincent solo albums that I did not own.

Though I am not going to give a full review of the concert, and though I plan to feature more on these artists and their album in tomorrow's entry (featuring the new T-shirt), I do want to share a few thoughts before closing.

Erik and I were discussing how we never go to a concert and are treated to the headliners coming out and doing their show promptly and without an opening act. I was just stating how much I would like to experience such a show, when out came Byrne and St. Vincent and their huge brass band and did their show. No opening act.

One of the things I enjoy most about concerts is the outpouring of love the flows back and forth from audience to performers. I have seen many concerts and been a part of many audiences. This show featured a really great audience and a massive flood of love, which cascaded from the crowd to the stage and back again. There were many shouts of "I love you" for both David Byrne and St. Vincent, though the majority of people at the show were there to see Byrne because of their love of Talking Heads. It's powerful to be part of that love, like standing in the ocean as the waves swirl around and surround you.

PLEASE NOTE: As we were told with the band's live album: "The Name of this band is Talking Heads." NOT The Talking Heads.

I loved the show and the whole experience. My love co-mingled with the love of the audience as we shared this wonderful experience. It is times like this one when I have hope and faith for humanity. I feel connected to a greater force, a force of pure goodness and love, and I let the art flow over me, and I sing along.

"I celebrate myself, and sing myself,
And what I assume you shall assume,
For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you."
- Whitman  - "Song of Myself"

"The threat of natural disaster promises an emotional epiphany; urban apocalypse gives way to a garden party." 

- D.Byrne&St.Vincent

- chris tower - 1307.11 - 9:29

T-shirt #111: Atom Ant

T-shirt #111: Up and at 'em, Atom Ant

This T-shirt thing is not a new interest, obviously. If I had not been buying and receiving T-shirts as gifts for years, I would not be in a position to wonder if I have 365 or more shirts.

Today's blog will present various related thoughts and ideas via blurbs and snippets: the proverbial sound bite. Though now, as I edit, I notice that the text looks like more paragraphs than bites. I am so Baroque.

This Atom Ant shirt was a gift from Liesel and the kids for Christmas 2011.

When I was making my gift wish list (yes, I make lists), I examined various T-shirt web sites and discovered that one could now buy T-shirts featuring many of my favorite cartoon characters, such as the Jetsons and Atom Ant.

In trying to decide among the various Atom Ant shirts, I chose this one because it is not the classic pose like some of the other images shown in today's entry. Look down at the one by the Wiki quote.

I liked the look of "surprise" and maybe fear on Atom Ant's face in this image. This is definitely a "what the fuck" look or an "oh shit" look, though Atom Ant would never say either statement.

I remember watching a lot of Atom Ant during my childhood, but in researching for today's entry, I learned that there were only two seasons and a total of 26 episodes produced by Hanna-Barbera and broadcast on NBC between 1965-1968. It seems to me that I saw a lot more Atom Ant and for more years than those years.


I made a top ten favorite list of Hanna-Barbera in
T-shirt #101 for the Jetsons. Atom Ant ranked #3 on that list but maybe I did that simply because I knew I was going to feature this shirt.

Here in the photo to the left, you can see up close the toy I own (as seen in the photo above).

Lots of Atom Ant videos are available for viewing on You Tube.

Some of the You Tube  like "Atom Ant Meets Karate" are very racist in depictions of Asians and Latinos.

Atom Ant Meets Karate Video clip - STEREOTYPE ALERT

"Atom Ant is a cartoon ant and superhero, created by Hanna-Barbera in 1965. His name may have been derived from adamant, which gives indication towards his great strength, exceeding "250 times his own weight". The name and character might also be a gentle parody of the Charlton Comics character, Captain Atom. Atom costarred in The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show (sharing top billing with Secret Squirrel). In syndication, Atom Ant aired alongside Precious Pupp and The Hillbilly Bears.

"Atom Ant (voiced by the late Howard Morris then by Don Messick in later episodes) operated out of an anthill in the countryside, where he possessed such things as a mainframe computer and exercise equipment. His powers mostly consisted of the ability to fly, super speed, and incredible strength.

"He was often contacted by the police, who sent him out on assignment. Some of these missions parodied those of Batman. The police force was constantly shown to be underfunded and inept, as they relied on Atom Ant to do all their police work. The only two police officers were the chief and deputy chief. The department only possessed one rusted patrol car. Atom Ant fights various villains including recurring ones like Ferocious Flea (voiced by Don Messick) and mad scientist Professor Von Gimmick" ("Atom Ant," Wikipedia, 2013).

#WarnerArchive #WarnerBros #AtomAnt
Theme Song with Lyrics | Atom Ant | Warner Archive
Aug 5, 2016



Warner Archive
Atom Ant (1965) #WarnerArchive #WarnerBros #AtomAnt
Atom Ant theme song.

Lyrics below:
Up and at 'em it's Atom Ant

He's strength, he's might,
He's speed, he's fight
He's Atom Ant, that tiny ant, and his atomic power

Has what it takes and always makes
The vilest villain cower
He's rough, he's tough,
And bad guys yell enough
When he is up and at 'em
Atom Ant.


Directed By Joseph Barbera, William Hanna
Starring Ted Cassidy, Henry Corden, Don Messick

Atom Ant | Up and Atom | Boomerang Official

Apr 23, 2019

Boomerang Official

Who remembers this tiny but mighty cartoon bug?

Atom Ant's catch phrase is "Up and at 'em, Atom Ant." My shirt reminds me that I need to keep egging myself along to accomplish things with this "go get 'em" -type attitude.

There are lots of things to do in each day. Like, I have to go to the store to buy food so that the wife and the children do not starve. (Though Liesel also goes to the store much more often than she would like. Neither of us like how often we are at the grocery store.)

I often rock the T-shirt as I shop.

"Up and at 'em, Atom Ant."

Things to do. Things to do.

I also dedicated an early shirt to my work attitude: T-shirt #6: Discipline.

I have also mentioned work in
T-shirt #36: Kraftwerk and the concept of Grading Robot.

I have been enjoying a work break but next week I will have to bring Grading Robot up to full power again: "Up and at 'em, Atom Ant!!"

The work matrix

So, back to work. Here's my weekly to-do list (image above). A friend of mine suggested to-do lists to help with my organization and juggling as many as nine classes. After a few weeks of writing daily lists, I noticed that many items were repeated, and I was wasting time writing them over and over again.
So I gave birth to the weekly matrix to-do list. I modify the file each week based on what I have to do.

For instance, last week was not so busy, and so, in the matrix, the far right column, which is the majority of the demanding and time consuming work-work was shorter and contained fewer tasks.

One more week in which Grading Robot is operating at a quarter power and speed. It all ramps back up for the month-long sprint starting next week.


This is the central command station of the home office. I added the second monitor earlier this year, and I have found many uses for it.

The dark blob nestled inside the desk pod is the Herman Miller Aeron chair I bought last year, which has made all the hours of sitting so much more bearable.

Is it all too messy?

In the image on the right, you can see the left side of the office. The art finally hit the walls back in March at the last big work break like the one I am enjoying now.

Note the hats, toys, and yesterday's T-shirt (lower left corner) draped on the standing work station with the laptop underneath.

On the TV, you will find the Mystery Machine, Underdog, Robby the Robot, and Doctor Strange, who is perched on a baseball.
These all may make appearances in future blog entries. I am nothing, if not a show off.



The office is due for an over haul. This is one of the projects for this work break like that so many others has not been accomplished yet. Messy? Oh, yes. But it's a work space that constantly shifts. And actual work is accomplished in the space. The mess is definitely proportionally related to the amount of time I am spending maintaining it and keeping it cleared.

You can see part of Aquaman in the top center of the photo (hmmm, future blog prop?). Previews, with which I order comics from Fanfare, is sitting waiting to be conquered, and that issue of Comic Creator I have been buzzing about it under the phone: KIRBY'S KINGDOM.

- chris tower - 1307.10 - 9:16

PS: Today's is my step-daughter Piper's birthday. This does not seem related to Atom Ant in any way but I wanted to mention it.

T-shirt #110: Smallville Athletics

T-shirt #110: Smallville Athletics or Ten Reasons I loved Superman: The Man of Steel

I saw Superman: The Man of Steel on Sunday July 7th.

After seeing the film, I was contemplating buying a Superman shirt so I could write about the film until I remembered that though I may not own a traditional blue, red, and yellow shirt, I do have some more Superman-themed clothing, such as this fine garment in the same vein of the faux athletics style as featured in T-shirt #108 for the Powers Division. I claimed that I owned more of these, didn't I? I had not intended to post another one so soon, though.

My friend and fellow blogger Charles Skaggs lent Superman: The Man of Steel his "Charlesish" review of the film the day it came out. Find it at this link: DAMN GOOD MOVIES. I barely made it to Iron Man 3 before it left town. Still, I feel ahead of the game in catching the Superman film three weeks after its debut. Oh, for those days when I used to catch films on the day they came out!

Charles in his Charlesish-way ranks Superman: The Man of Steel fourth on his all time superhero movies list behind Superman (1978), The Dark Knight (2008), and The Avengers (2012). I cannot agree. Not only is the original Superman II (1981) film better than Superman (1978), but Superman: The Man of Steel is better than all five of the previous films (not counting pre-1970s fare) put together and well shaken (not stirred). (Yes, I like to mix pop culture metaphors.)

SPOILER ALERT!!
If you do not wish to learn things about the film, stop reading now.

TEN REASONS TO LOVE Superman: The Man of Steel

1. JOR-EL KICKS ASS! No wimpy Jor-El who stands by, arms at his side, as cold as the set looks, pleading the case of Krypton to some big floating heads. Yes, Brando was great. I doubted that Russell Crowe could be as good. Aided by a great script and a better dramatic sequence on the home planet, Crowe was better. We see Jor-El stand up for his principles. We see Jor-El escape Zod's coup before he is taken prisoner in the council chambers. Jor-El shows off how buff and athletic he is as he dives into the Genesis Chamber and takes the Codex. Then, back at his observatory home, he beats the crap out of Zod, humiliating the general, until the evil and quite psychotic Zod sucker stabs Jor-El. Though Jor-El dies, he has bought time for Lara to launch the rocket that will take Kal-El to earth. This whole sequence plays out MUCH BETTER than the original 1978 film with plenty of action; Jor-El is no slouch when it comes to combat (and neither is his son as we see later on).

2. KRYPTON IS COOL! Gone are the crusty, Styrofoam-looking, ice sculptures of the 1978 movie. And though the floating heads and Phantom Zone projector were the coolest part of Old Krypton, this upgrade re-envisions both beautifully as well as giving the planet a retro-fit and much needed face lift. Krypton is great because of its mix of technology and futuristic gizmos as well as beasts with ancient lineage, one of which Jor-El rides through a combat zone! The Kryptonian world and technology (mainly used by Zod and company) finally seem to get Krypton and Kryptonians right.

3. A NATURAL BIRTH: Comic book fans of all the different remediated Superman origins over the years (principally the 1980s work of John Byrne) are acquainted with the uber-sciencey, sexless, suited-up Kryptonians of Kal-El's homeworld. We all know that Kal-El is special because he was a natural birth, but here the creative team (Goyer, Nolan, and Snyder) actually SHOW the live birth with the wonderful Ayelet Zurer (Lara-El) screaming her head off as she gives birth because, apparently, for all their technology the Kryptonians did not solve the dilemma of painful, vaginal birth (or maybe Lara did not want to seek a solution). All in all, regardless of the reasoning, the sequence is VERY COOL.

4. CHILDHOOD TOLD IN FLASHBACK: Often in Superman movies (at least the first one) viewers have to sit through all the Krypton stuff followed by Clark Kent's growing up years in Smallville. Goyer, Nolan, and Snyder realize that most people know the story of the childhood in Kansas, and so after the Krypton sequence, Superman: The Man of Steel  jumps right into the action as Clark (Kal-El) is a grown man trying to figure out who he is and how he should help people. We are treated to a series of heroic deeds, in which Clark works anonymously and backs down from direct confrontation (such as in a bar scene in which a beer is dumped on his head). The key elements of his childhood are told via flashback mixed throughout the movie, culminating in how Jonathan Kent sacrifices himself to preserve Clark's secret identity and powers. This sequencing is possibly the smartest, wisest, and best choice for the film and one of the reasons it is so successful.

5. FLYING SAVED FOR RIGHT MOMENT: We watch Clark wander the world seeking his identity and his role, and most importantly, seeking the answer to the question:  "if I am from the stars, then where am I from?" There is sufficient build up to Clark finding answers in an 18,000 year old Kryptonian scout ship (future Fortress of Solitude), which runs the AI in the command key Jor-El placed in the capsule that brought Kal-El to earth. A hologram of his father gives him his suit, bearing the El crest. We learn that the El crest, which looks like an English "S," means "hope," which is very appropriate for the film's message. Donning the special suit, (which seems as indestructible as he is), Clark tests his last untried power: flight. The sequence provides the act one-act two climax that the film needs.

6. AMAZING BATTLES (NOT TOO MUCH CGI): When I walked out of the theater, I said the film was "fucking awesome." My wife, who kept confusing the film's title as "Batman," thought there were too many fight scenes. Ivan, Olivia, and I joked with Liesel that saying a superhero film has too many fight scenes or scenes of fighting that go on for too long is like going to a slasher film and complaining that too many people get killed. Though she may have a point that the film could have been five or ten minutes shorter with a little less battle (which could be added to the DVD releases), the CGI is not so completely crazy with spinning and bobbing cameras that you can ACTUALLY SEE WHAT IS GOING ON, unlike a lot of CGI fests.

7. CASTING: All around great casting. Laurence Fishburne as Perry White. Antje Traue as Faora (the comparable character from Superman II is Ursa), Christopher Meloni as Colonel Hardy, Richard Schiff as Dr. Emil Hamilton (who is a core character in the Superman mythology but may have already been killed off), and I already mentioned the Els, Jor and Lara. But the best two casting choices are Michael Shannon as General Zod and Henry Cavill as Clark Kent/Superman. Superb!

8. THE KENTS - SUPERMAN'S HEARTACHE: I was a bit leery of Kevin Costner as Jonathan Kent, but he delivers an impeccable performance. And Diane Lane, who is a gifted actress, delivers a warm and beautiful version of Martha Kent. But most importantly, there are key scenes with Clark and his father leading up to Jonathan Kent sacrificing himself to a mammoth tornado so that his son can keep his super powers a secret. It's a brilliant scene and gives Clark the extra tragic past he needs to round out his character and make him less cardboard.

9. KILLING ZOD: Further rounding occurs for Clark Kent/Superman when he is faced with an impossible decision at the end of the film. Either he keeps to his "no killing" policy or he lets humans be killed by Zod's heat vision. In a nod to the classic Superman #22 by John Byrne, Kal-El chooses to snap Zod's neck and thus executing him.

10. "ON MY TERMS." The film ends with Clark assuming his bespectacled identity at the Daily Planet. Right before that final scene, he drops a crushed surveillance drone at the feet of the General Swanwick (Harry Lennix) and tells him and the whole human race that if he is to help, it "has to be on my terms." Excellent!

PS: Battlestar Galactica fans alert! Alessandro Juliana (Felix Gaeta) makes an appearance. This is also amusing since he played Dr. Emil Hamilton in Smallville, the TV show.

FEW MINOR NEGATIVES



LOIS LANE: Nothing against Amy Adams, but she is not Lois.

Here I will quote Charles Skaggs: "Amy Adams was an interesting choice for Lois, especially since her previous Superman experience was portraying fat-sucking vampire Jodi Melville in the first season of Smallville.  Her introduction into the film is strong, with a great line about "comparing dicks" when she's confronted by self-important military officers.  It's a shame we don't get to see much of Lois being a reporter in the movie's second half, but there's an interesting dynamic to explore with her already being aware of Clark's dual identity" ("Man of Steel review, DAMN GOOD MOVIES, 2013).

My take? As delightful as Adams is, she is NOT Lois Lane any more than Margot Kidder or Kate Bosworth, as much as each of them is cool in her own right. It's an issue with physicality. THIS art image from John Byrne's Superman is LOIS LANE. This follows with the same reasoning as to why KIRSTEN DUNST is not MARY JANE WATSON. Dunst is just as talented as Adams. Neither is right for the role. I am a type casting Nazi when it comes to characters in superhero movies. Though, I must admit, I LOVED Erica Durance as Lois Lane and Krisin Kreuk as Lana Lang in Smallville even though they are physically speakign against type, so I am not a total Nazi. Still, Lois is a brunette. Period.

WHY CAN'T THEY LEAVE KRYPTON?

I just don't get it.

We are told that the Kryptonians colonized the galaxy (or a neighboring galaxy?) for 100,000 years, AND YET, with all their technology, all their advances, and with their planetary core collapsing, why can't they leave Krypton? This is never well explained. There are some vague and abstract statements like "everyone on Krypton is already dead" and something about their fates being tied to the planet, but there is no good reason why more of them (or all of them) could not evacuate the planet. The explanation seems to be: they didn't leave, so they cannot leave.

Um

yeah,

right.

WHAT'S WITH THE "RICH" ATMOSPHERE?? The comic books have NEVER mentioned that our atmosphere had ANYTHING to do with Superman's super powers. It was all due to the sun. He's a big solar battery. This element seems to be added so loss of special breathing apparatus can give the other Kryptonians instant powers that confuse them. SIGH.

WHERE'S THE SCOUT SHIP? During the big and long epic battle sequences as Kal-El is trying to stop the World Engine from terra-forming the planet and wiping out the human race, we see the 18,000 year old Kryptonian scout ship take off from its landing spot in the arctic and ... (unless I missed it) ...
DO NOTHING.

Huh?

NO APOLOGY FOR ALL THE DESTRUCTION: Given that Superman is trying to win the trust and approval of the human race, a little apology for all the destruction and likely the massive casualties in Metropolis as a result of the huge battle (though we do not see any, surely, they happened) would have been nice. It only takes a minute to be polite and considerate. It fits with Clark Kent's upbringing. Manners matter.
Not that Kal-El was at fault for the massive destruction, but certainly there would have been less of it had he not been FIGHTING OTHER KRYPTONIANS. Just sayin'.

NO JIMMY - NEXT FILM? I am cool with there being no Jimmy Olsen in this film BECAUSE that means that we could be treated to MORE JACK KIRBY THEMED MATERIAL for which his estate is not compensated at all. Project Cadmus? The Forever People? New Gods? The Fourth World? Prelude to Darkseid being the Big Bad in the Justice League movie?

This prospect could be summarized in two words: "fucking awesome."

Damn. I loved this film so much that I may have to go see the 3D IMAX show.

- chris tower - 1307.09 - 9:47

T-shirt #109: KUDL 2011

T-shirt #109: KUDL 2011

I shared KUDL team for 2011 with co-captain Jeremiah Newhouse (and yes, no hyperbole, one of the best and nicest guys I have ever met). It was our second team together and much better than our original 2006 team, as in we actually won some games; the 2006 team did not, though it had a great cast of characters.

We did not win the league in 2011. We did not advance to the finals. But we had a good season. 2011 was our only year as a league for which the tournament was rained out. The finals were completed on Monday two days later and were won by Stu Gulliver's team.

This is our Asian bear. Kung Fu or Ninja bear?

It's a nifty logo, and I felt special that we managed to snag black, which is always a popular color.

I am all about the action photos.

Me catching at a recent pick up game.
Yes, jumping is necessary to execute the catch properly.

There I am again admiring my throw. Terrible thing to do.
And yet, that is my friend Ed Kenny in the foreground
in the "Pickles" shirt. I don't believe he managed to block that
sizzling forehand.

Back hand this time. Not good form.
I am not getting enough reach.
Then again, no one was marking me.

I am following through with my weekly KUDL or Ultimate shirt day.

I am not making it to KUDL tonight as I am off to Ann Arbor to see David Byrne and St. Vincent in concert at the venerable Michigan Theatre on Liberty across the street from Borders.

As before, photos are courtesy of Lindsay Phillips. Thanks Lindsay!!




Ed Kenny is one of the founders of KUDL that grew out of our car pool to South Bend. At a recent KUDL draft, he proclaimed that the thing he likes best about KUDL is that it is here in Kalamazoo and does not require an hour's drive.

We all liked the car pool because we had great conversations. But we also like not having to drive so far to play Ultimate.



Others in that original car pool include Ryan Kircher, Matt Frayer, Dave Heimberg, and Natalie Dale.

I am wearing an X hat I found in a box. It is meant to commemorate Malcolm X though most people, knowing me, will think it's for the X-Men.

Damn, I look fat.

It's amazing that I still think of myself as the ultra skinny young man of my 20s even though I weigh about 40-50 pounds more and am 30 years older.

 Satchel wants to play, too.

Satchel enjoyed her time at pick up. First time on the stake and tether. Puppy is happy to be outside but would rather run free.

NOTE: See the toy truck in the pocket of the chair? Some child left that truck in my chair many years ago. I have kept it there all this time. It is the "Cool Patrol" truck, which was the name of our championship 2010 team. I panic a little if the truck falls out or I do not see it. I am careful so as not to lose it now.

- chris tower - 1307.08 - 8:17