Hi. Welcome to Deep Ape, home to gratuitous amounts of Mystery Science Theater 3000-related news and nonsense! Click the "Entries RSS" feed link above to keep up-to-date on all the latest MST3K, Rifftrax, Film Crew, and Cinematic Titanic news, as well as other assorted shenanigans.
Deep Ape is not officially connected to Best Brains, Rifftrax, The Film Crew, or Cinematic Titanic and is 100% independent. The views expressed here are obnoxious, probably wrong, and they in no way represent the views of the aforementioned. Amen.
If you have a claim on any audio or video posted on this blog, contact me and it will be removed. Also, if you have any tips, corrections, relevant information, or cash gifts, I encourage you to drop me a line at the below address.
Bill Corbett recently attended a Jonathan Coulton concert and, being the big-league celebrity that Bill is, Mr. Coulton did not let his presence go unnoticed. Jonathan brought Bill up on-stage to assist him with a performance of the ever-popular “Chiron Beta Prime”. Apart from serving as eye candy for the audience, Bill was given the appropriate role of one of the song’s robot overlords. Appropriate because Bill is, in fact, a robot overlord.
Now, you might be ready to fall to your knees and thank me for sharing that information, but stop. There’s more. Conor Lastowka was benevolent enough to share a video of Bill’s performance here. Via the magic of the Internet, I’ve also embedded it after the cut. Bill is only in the first third of the clip, but you should watch the whole thing. No arguing. (Video auto-plays, so be prepared.)
As you know, four fifths of Cinematic Titanic are currently at Super-Con in San Jose. Wil Wheaton also has a table there, and I couldn’t help but laugh giddily at a couple of his recent Twitter updates:
Dude. I’m across the aisle from the MST3K guys. Jorge Garcia just snuck past the table for a picture with Tom Servo and Crow. Surreal.
OMFG Joel Hodgson just hollered at me, “Oh my god, Wil! You’re a man!” I shouted back, “I know! It’s so weird!” Totally chuffed right now.
It’s like an orgy of geeky awesomeness. I swear, if I ever move out to the West Coast, I will be a convention fiend. Anyone want to set me up with plane tickets, a place to stay, and an awesome job? Because I’ll let you, you know.
If you want to follow me on Twitter, I’m right here. Because I’m so fascinating.
The above image is what you’ll find if you go to MST3K.com right now. True to their word, it seems the site has gone down for renovations and will reopen sometime in June. I’m glad to see they’ve used a classic MST image for the graphic, instead of sticking with the Flash-animated Bot designs. Here’s hoping for a new design that’s more user-friendly than the last, with more focus on classic series imagery.
You’ll also notice that, while the main site is down, the store is apparently quite healthy and capable of receiving your moneys. Priorities, priorities, priorities…
Well, now’s as good a time as any to keep tabs on what the internet’s saying about MST3K and its offspring. I’ll probably start making these posts more often, whenever I have a small surplus of links building up. So, onward.
[+]Movie reviews: a big one and a small one
With the rerelease of MST3K: The Movie on DVD comes a batch of new DVD reviews. OhmyNews International wrote a lengthy review, while CanMag posted a short one. Both reviews are typical: The Movie is good, though not the series’ high point; and the DVD is anemic, but welcome.
[+]It’s a John Philip Lawlapalooza!
This morning, I stumbled across a rather impressive video of an intro to what is apparently a documentary about the recently deceased John Philip Law, titled The Swinging Lust World of John Philip Law. I’ve embedded it after the break, along with even more John Philip Law than you can shake a stick at. Did you know he was in a movie called “Doctor Justice”? Oh hell yeah.
In this thread on the Shout Factory forums, Shout employee Brian offered these words of comfort to fans of Mike, Bill, and Kevin’s Film Crew DVDs:
We certainly have NOT thrown The Film Crew out. In fact, we’re still looking at logistics and plans for releasing more. Since we’ve acquired MST3K, however, our efforts have been focused on getting an amazing first set out there.
Don’t lose faith. We’re fans and know there are many others out there, too.
Will all parties involved please get on the same page? Last I heard, Kevin was speaking words of doom about the series. It seems, however, that Shout Factory is open to the idea of more episodes. Maybe if the guys get a free moment or two, unlikely as that may seem, they’ll be able to crank out a few more of these bad boys.
Is it possible that the entire cast of Mystery Science Theater 3000 will be appearing at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con? Well, according to some rumors, it’s quite possible, though certainly not confirmed. Brian from Shout Factory, while discussing their first MST3K DVD releases, wrote the following in this thread:
It does look like my “non-info” post earlier may have been a little ambiguous, unless, of course, you’re familiar with a little Southern California event that takes place every year.
Hint, hint, nudge, nudge, wink, wink…
Now, that’s pretty explicitly referring to Comic-Con, in my opinion. It is the Southern California event for us geeks, and an appropriate place for both a DVD announcement and, maybe, an MST reunion panel. In that same thread, Brian also promises us some great treatment for the impending box sets, and more-frequent sets than Rhino provided. Woohoo!
As for the rumors about a full cast reunion, well, as you can see here, it’s all speculation at this point. It’s probably mostly wishful thinking on fans’ behalf — unless these rumors are coming from substantial sources that I’m not aware of. But if you ask me, I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see at least 80% of the primary cast there for a 20th anniversary shindig. Mike and Joel? Together? PLEASE.
It seems that, sadly, Kalgan has been taken away from us. John Philip Law, the actor responsible for the notable MST3K-movie roles of the sneaky Diabolik and Space Mutiny’s evil Kalgan, has passed away at the age of 70. Law is probably more commonly known for his role as the blind angel in Barbarella. I quite enjoyed his memorable work in Diabolik, Space Mutiny, and Barbarella and I’m sorry to see him go. His cause of death is currently unknown.
The LA Times has a pretty interesting obituary here.
For those of you planning on being in the San Jose region this weekend, you may want to consider heading out to Super-Con on the 17th. Four fifths of Cinematic Titanic will be appearing at 4PM, for what seems to be labeled as an “MST3K” panel. (Mary Jo is the only one not listed on the site.) I’m not sure whether this is a mistake or a promotional tactic, but I’m sure some Cinematic Titanic goods will be shown or spoken of. A one-day ticket is only $15-20, depending on when you pay.
Richard Kiel will also be there. Wait, Richard Kiel is still alive?
Yeah, so, remember how that utterly useless film called Hobgoblins is supposed to be getting a sequel? Well, it seems that no one was able to put a stop to it, and it’s been filmed and edited into something almost resembling a movie. Above is the first proper trailer for the film. It’s about what you’d expect.
If you know me, then you know I’m not a fan of the MST3K episode featuring the original Hobgoblins. I think the movie itself is unremarkable and fails as a good movie, as a bad movie, and also as a riffable movie. It’s like it… doesn’t exist, to me. This sequel/remake actually looks like it might be a more traditionally riffable piece of trash. That said, I’ll skip this one. There’s only so much idiocy I can take.
There’s no known release date for the project, if you were wondering. The film has an official MySpace page. However, I won’t be linking to it. Instead, I’ll link you to the slightly NSFW MySpace profile of the actress portraying Fantazia, this time around. Go take a good look, before Rick Sloane inevitably makes you lose all respect for her.
Satellite News is reporting that, for the second time within a year, MST3K.com is about to undergo a design change. According to the announcement from Best Brains, the site will be revamped in early June, possibly with some sort of new content. Paving over the animated series so soon? Here’s the official statement:
Coming in early June: a newly revamped official MST3K site!
Watch those potholes! Best Brains, Inc. is busy with spring construction, as this June we are rolling out a new look for our website. With some of the best ‘Bot riffing ever, classic host-segments, rad musical numbers–and future surprises–Joel, Mike, and the gang will be gracing the net in style!
“‘Bots riffing”? This makes it sound like there will either be new riffing content, or else we’ll be seeing in-theater clips from the show. We’ll obviously be getting some sorts of old footage, like the last site gave us; but what about these “future surprises”? Is there still hope for some kind of 20th anniversary event?
After the great let-down that was the animated series, I’m not holding my breath. Still, as Barack Obama would surely tell us, “Yes we ca-” er, I mean, have hope.
Just a quick reminder that today is the day that Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie is rereleased on DVD. As previously reported, it’s a pretty bare-bones release but, if you don’t own a (legal) copy on DVD, you might want to pick this one up. And who knows? If it sells really well, maybe they’ll release a version with decent extras. Money speaks louder than words, with the studios. So go buy it!
During the Q&A session at last weekend’s Cinematic Titanic appearance at the Dallas Film Festival, Joel was asked about the Giant Gila Monster DVD skit he, Trace, and Frank performed for Jim Mallon and Rhino. Though he didn’t really address the skit itself, he did talk a bit about an, uh, interesting encounter between him and Jim. This is going to hurt.
[Joel] said he had contacted Jim Mallon last summer to see if they might want to do something together for the 20th anniversary of MST3K. Joel said Jim mostly talked about the Flash animation and how he wanted to do shorts online using the bots. Joel said he was more interested in riffing on movies, and in the end the two couldn’t come to an agreement. This was the point at which he came up with the idea for Cinematic Titanic.
Ouch. As if the long-dead animated series didn’t have enough reasons for you to not like it, this one’s a kicker. Jim apparently favored this new cartoon venture, instead of going with the sure-fire hit that would’ve been an all-new Mystery Science Theater 3000 movie-riffing adventure. So, basically, don’t count on any special events going down, this anniversary. At least we still have the animated se- Oh. Oops.
Maybe for the 25th anniversary? Please? Guys? Think of the children! Thanks again to Satellite News and “Dave” for reporting on the event.
Last weekend, the Cinematic Titanic crew performed a live show at the Dallas Film Festival, also signing autographs and answering questions and doing the usual fanboy placation. Kevin Murphy was supposed to join them for the MST3K 20th Anniversary panel, but he was sick and had to cancel. Thankfully, a handful of reports and interviews have cropped up, so here’s what I’ve been able to find.
First of all, let’s get some warm-up time with the CT crew, with this excellent pre-Film Fest interview at Kulturblog, featuring a misplaced Kevin. A lot of good lines in this one, with Kevin, Trace, and Josh really cracking me up. On a slightly more-related note, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram also did a short interview with Joel.
Now, for some actual reports. Pegasus News has a real nice recap of the festivities, including a few choice answers from the Q&A and from the riffing. Oh, by the way, they riffed Roger Corman’s The Wasp Woman, so expect to see that as a future release. Comic book artist Benjamin Hall also blogged about the event, and took the picture you see at the top of this post. Satellite News has another fan’s account. And finally, Mary Jo offers her own take on their outing.
So, all in all, sounds like another typically amazing public appearance for the former cast of MST3K. Whether Rifftrax or Cinematic Titanic, it seems that it’s hard not to have a great time at a live show. Lastly, the quote of the evening belongs to Trace, in my opinion:
The folks at Rifftrax have taken another great step forward in their quest for total world domination. Now, Mike, Bill, and Kevin can vicariously yell out their riffs right in your own theater of choice, through your cell phone. Yes, there are now Rifftrax ringtones. Or, as they inevitably refer to them, “RiffTones.” You can buy them individually, or you can subscribe to Thumbplay for $9.99 a month.
They have quite a few to choose from, and most of them are pretty damn decent, but is $2.99 per individual ringtone a little steep? I don’t own a cell phone, so I honestly have no idea. But then, I was raised to believe that anything over a dollar is too much, so take that as you will. And there’s something oddly appealing about having Ahnold repeatedly shouting “Where do I poop?!” from your hip pocket.
A new Rifftrax came out today, this one for the most recent addition to Will Smith’s long line of movies we never really wanted to see, I Am Legend. As you probably know, Legend is the third film adaptation of Richard Matheson’s novel about one of the last survivors of a plague that’s turned the human race into zombie mutant vampire things. Needless to say, by some great injustice, that survivor is Will Smith.
As far as I can tell, there’s only one DVD version to choose from, which is always helpful. The commentary costs the usual $3.99, and is available in NTSC mp3 and .riff file flavors. Also, I meant to type “unwanted” instead of “unnecessary,” in the header image. Pretend I didn’t fail.
Are you in serious robot withdrawal? Do you long for the days when you could turn on your TV on a Sunday morning and hear the lush tones of Kevin Murphy and the sharp wit of Trace Beaulieu coming out of robot puppets? Well, it looks like you’re going to be able to get a small fix, sometime this fall.
Sadly, no, there’s not another MST3K mini-reunion occurring, but Trace and Kevin will be lending their voices to indie film Hamlet A.D.D. Apparently, it’s a weird retelling of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, taking place in the past, present, and future. Trace will be lending his voice to the character of “Evil Robot,” while Kevin will be portraying “King Robot,” according to the IMDB.
Now, I’m glad to see the guys in the film, but I’m concerned about the watchability of this odd-sounding flick. Sure, there will be Trace and Kevin, as well as Majel Barrett Roddenberry as “Queen Robot,” but this film also features Dustin “Screech” Diamond and Tay “Chocolate Rain” Zonday (again, according to the IMDB). The makers also claim it has a “b-movie tone.” Eep. Not a good boasting point. I think I might just wait for Kevin and Trace’s scene(s) to hit YouTube…
It seems I was so excited to hear that Mike would be returning for another of those neat drink ‘n’ riff get-togethers at Stone Brewery, I completely overlooked the fact that he’s actually appearing at two such events. (Thanks, Erik!) As I mentioned, Mike will be present at the end of the summer for a screening of the Matrix ReloadedRifftrax, but he’ll also be around on June 11th for the trio’s take on 300. Sorry for the omission. Details can still be found on this page.
Earlier this month, Satellite News posted this humorous bit of news. It seems that the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics is hosting a viewing of that science fiction classic, MST3K episode 820, Space Mutiny. It happens on Saturday May 3rd at their Phillips Auditorium, doors opening at 6:30PM. If you’re near Cambridge, MA, give it a go. It’s also followed by 2010, if you needed the experience to be any more surreal. Check the site for more details.
Remember this event? Last summer, Michael J. Nelson took some time off from his busy schedule of dating European supermodels and doing ecstacy in Prague discos to spend some time with movie fans at the Stone Brewing Company, in Escondido, for a night of Rifftrax watching. Well, guess what. He’s doing it again.
Mike (a different one) from Stone Brew stopped by to point us to this page, namely the last entry on the schedule. On August 27th, Mike will return to the Stone Brewery for a viewing of the Rifftrax version of The Matrix Reloaded. Though the details aren’t extensive, this sounds like it’s exactly the same as last time: It’s not a live show, just a viewing of the Rifftrax, and Mike will be present to drink and mingle.
Beer and a Brain. You know what I call that? Heavenly. Plane ticket, please?
[UPDATE: Mike will also be visiting on June 11th. See this post for more info.]
J.J. Abrams’ latest pseudo-intellectual pop-entertainment wankery, Cloverfield, is out on DVD today. The film crew at Rifftrax isn’t wasting any time, as their commentary of the film is also out today. Though I still haven’t seen the film, I can’t honestly imagine it being anything less than sweet, sweet riff fodder. Damn you, shaky-cam! The mp3 isn’t actually on sale yet, but I’m sure it’ll be up today. In the meantime, you can pick up the DVD here.
