The House Next Door

1. A bit of in-House linkage. Man on Wire director James Marsh has responded to both Godfrey Cheshire's opinion piece on the film and Lauren Wissot's interview with him and Man on Wire subject Philippe Petit. His observations are taken from several e-mail conversations with Lauren and reprinted (with Mr. Marsh's permission) over two posts in both articles' comments sections. Click either link above to read the original pieces in full. Click here to read Mr. Marsh's first response, here to read his second.

["I have just discovered the blog – I think it's a very welcome oasis in the current desert and I'm glad to contribute to the discussion. However, I don't want to get into a protracted debate about Man On Wire – I think it's right to keep some separation between critics and film makers and I also think it is unseemly to whine about perceived critical slights. So, whilst I had no objections to [Godfrey] Cheshire's comments, I just wanted to correct some of the false assumptions he made about the process of making the film."]

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2. Over at Signal Bleed, Josh Bell celebrates Discovery Channel's "Shark Week" by writing about a different shark film every day. Thus far: Introduction; Samuel Fuller's Shark; She Gods of Shark Reef; Deep Blue Sea; and Spring Break Shark Attack.

["There are a few wan attempts at humor, including an opening jab at Desperate Housewives, which I assume was on opposite this when it first premiered, but nothing connects. The camp factor is disappointingly low, and though the sharks look suitably fake, you barely ever get to see them. I will give credit to the one awesome shot in which some guy windsurfs right into the shark's mouth. Talk about your bad luck."]

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3. On the latest installment of Back by Midnight, host Aaron Aradillas talks with filmmaker John Badham about the 25th Anniversary Edition DVD of WarGames.

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4. "Cheech & Chong "light up" for new comedy tour": From Reuters.

["Two of the most famous pot smokers of the 1970s, Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong, unveiled plans on Wednesday for their first comedy tour in more than 25 years following their acrimonious split. "Cheech & Chong: Light Up America ..." will hit 22 cities in the United States starting with Philadelphia on September 12 and ending in Denver, Colorado, on December 20. In between they will play Los Angeles, Miami, Washington, D.C. and other places. "This is a moment that I've been looking forward to for many, many years because we have such a legacy and history together that we couldn't escape it, even if we tried," Chong told reporters at a news conference to announce the tour."]

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5. "Wash. governor forgets ID, can’t get into bar": Weird news from MSNBC.

["Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire is taking it as a compliment: She was turned away from a bar in the state capital because she couldn't prove she's of legal age to drink. The 61-year-old governor and her staff had served burgers at the annual Capital Lakefair last weekend and afterward went to a downtown Olympia bar called Hannah's to celebrate. Gregoire says the man checking identifications at the door told her she couldn't get in without ID, even when others pointed out she's Washington's governor. So she went home, but her husband, Mike, went in."]

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Quote of the Day:

"All my possessions for a moment of time."

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Image of the Day (click to enlarge): What's wrong with this picture? (Hattip: Maul of America)



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Clip of the Day: The Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince trailer.

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"Links for the Day": Each morning, the House editors post a series of weblinks that we think will spark discussion. Comments encouraged. Suggestions for links are also welcome. Please send to keithuhlich@gmail.com.