Strollerderby : superman

Superman Comic Sells For Over 300k

Brett Singer — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 16:00:00 GMT

Action Comics #1, featuring the first appearance of Superman, sold for $317,200. It was first published in 1938, with a cover price of 10 cents. The owner bought it in 1950 for 35 cents. Amazingly, the issue is still in mint condition, hence the high price it brought at auction. There are only 100 copies of Action Comics #1 in existence. Many of the original issues were probably thrown away by somebody's mom. Oops.

The buyer was John Dolmayan, drummer for System of a Down. He said he bought it "for a client." (That's the kind of thing guys tell their wives when they spend this kind of cash on a comic book. I kid. Sort of.) Dolmayan has a huge comics collection and is also a dealer.

When I was about 10 years old, I was in a comic book store (Dragon's Den on Central Avenue in Yonkers) and saw a copy of Incredible Hulk #181, which features the first appearance of Wolverine. (Note: technically Wolverine's first appearance is in Hulk #180, but he only appears in one panel and #181 is worth more to collectors. For a very nerdy discussion of this important topic, click here.) The price was 10 dollars. I decided that was too high and didn't bother. Today that comic book sells for between $1,000 and $2,000, depending on condition.

Save those comics, kids. Don't let mom throw them out. You never know - they could be worth big money some day. Heck, at this point, it beats the stock market, right?

Image/Source: Daily News

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"Satan" and 9 Other Bad (but real) Baby Names

Cole Gamble — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 17:00:00 GMT

As we recently learned with the New Zealand court case liberating the poorly named Tallulah Does the Hula to Hawaii from her cumbersome moniker, celebrities are not the only ones to dole out crappy names to their kids. Here are some awful names bestowed by civilians like you and me. And yes, they’re all real names.

Superman

Not a bad name, if you want to get beat up every day. This New Zealand couple (Again New Zealand, keep up the good work!) originally wanted the name 4Real, but NZ officials didn’t go for it. So Superman it was, arguably a more ridiculous name. Sadly I doubt this was the first time someone’s name was chosen purely out of spite.

Sh*thead

If you ever question how free we truly are in America, look no further then two parents naming their daughter Sh*thead. Now a grown woman, Sh*thead tries to mitigate the damage by insisting it’s pronounced Shi-TAYd. Nice try.

Nicholas Unless-Jesus-Christ-Had-Died-For-Thee-Thou-Hadst-Been-Damned Barbon

Apparently daddy was a holy roller.

Al Caholic

Somebody thought they were funny. But really, when you have the last name “Caholic” to work with, who could resist?

Roxanne Gravel

Get it? “rocks and gravel.” Cleverness kills a kid’s school career once again.

Felanie

A pregnant woman liked the name Melanie, but also like the idea of a name that starts with “F.” Viola! Felanie. It’s funny how you can’t see something so obvious until it’s too late.

Governor Bush

Seems a little short sighted now, doesn’t it?

Doctor Love

For once a novelty name might actually help a kid get a leg up in the world. Let’s hope he develops a passion for fur jackets and yellow fedoras.

Sloth Washton

Often people name their pets by characteristics they first notice about the animals. We named our first cat “Romy” because she liked to rome around a lot. Yes, newborns are a bit sluggish, but maybe Sloth’s parents should have waited a little longer before settling on that name. And this brings us to…

Satan

Talk about prejudging your child. I’ll admit, this is what I call my toddler all the time, but it’s just a nickname. Maybe the Australia couple who went with this had their hand forced because Australia was all out of the other names.

Heard any worse ones????

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The Dark Knight -- parents strongly cautioned (to go see it)

Brett Singer — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 19:00:00 GMT

Let's get one thing out of the way right now – you shouldn't bring your children. They might want to go, but unless they have a very high tolerance for a long movie (2 and half hours) and an abnormally high tolerance for what might be the most frightening performance ever (Heath Ledger's Joker), I'd get a sitter.

Now: this is some incredible movie. At first, I was a little bit apprehensive. Part of that feeling was the hype, which was so intense that it seemed impossible anything could live up to it. (Part of it was also that the movie didn't start until almost 1am because we had to sit through 7 commercials, none of which I remember at all – money well spent, advertisers. But I digress.) There are some slow spots, especially in the beginning, and I think the director, Christopher Nolan, could have cut 10 or 15 minutes of film and made it a tighter movie. But that's nitpicking, because there are several scenes, some just quick moments and some long, exciting action sequences, that will put your jaw on the floor.

The saddest thing about Heath Ledger's death is that his daughter will never know her father. But it's fair to say that if an actor had to go out with one performance, this is that performance. He's so good that I completely forgot I was watching an actor, which, for me, almost never happens. (It's worth pointing out that Gary Oldman as James Gordon, and Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox, do the same thing in smaller and less flashy roles.) He's frightening, but not the way a horror movie villain is frightening. It's not shock value, although there is some of that (there's a bit with a pencil that might be the best 5-second description of a character in the history of cinema.) Without giving anything away, The Joker is referred to as a "terrorist" a couple of times, but unlike the terrorists in our world, this one has no cause that he fights for. He's just… mad. Not angry-mad, just flat out crazy. And Ledger captures that in every possible way. You could teach an acting class using this movie – what he does physically, vocally, emotionally; it's all stunning to watch.

The rest of it is, for the most part, equally good. I don't care about the love story, but it's fine I suppose and does serve the story. Aaron Eckhart is a solid actor and he does a good job as Gotham City District Attorney Harvey Dent. Christian Bale is by far the best Batman yet, although Ledger is so good that he really takes over the movie. Michael Caine is a good Alfred Pennyworth, Maggie Gyllenhaal is fine as token love interest Rachel Dawes; she's more than that, I guess, but it's not her movie. Gary Oldman is amazing; as in "Batman Begins," he somehow manages to completely capture the essence of a fictional comic book character that isn't a superhero, meaning that, as an actor, he has fewer details available to work with. I can't explain it but he IS Jim Gordon.

The nits to pick if you want to go there: some of the dialog is hokey (although the lines written for Ledger are brilliant.) There are a few slow spots. At times the action sequences are a tad frenetic, here and there. But it really doesn't matter. You'll read a lot about the surprising depth of this movie, and this is true to an extent. "The Dark Knight" is incredibly entertaining and does have some thoughtful moments amid the comic-book chaos, but there's no need to over think them. I would say just relax and enjoy it, but it's not a relaxing experience. Ledger's Joker is uncomfortable to watch, but in a good way. I don't want to give anything away, so you'll have to see it for yourself (but, as I said, get your tickets early; even the 12:30am showing was completely sold out.)

Now, despite the fact that there isn't much in the way of blood, this is not a film that you should take your children to see. Obviously, you know your offspring better than I, so if you think they can handle it, that's your call. And of course older kids will be fine. I hesitate to suggest an age-range, but I recommend seeing it yourself first if you're not sure. Worst-case scenario – you get to see it twice. Believe me, that's not a bad thing.

image: Reuters

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Batman: get your tickets now

Brett Singer — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 20:42:00 GMT

So, being a guy who sees superhero movies, I wanted to see the new Batman movie. Today.

A friend wanted to come with me, so I couldn't pull my usual "go during the day when it's not busy" thing. So OK, let's see when its playing… What? Sold out? You gotta be kidding me.

Well, I'm not. If you're planning on seeing The Dark Knight this weekend, you'd better get your tickets in advance. This is unbelievably annoying. I tried at 2pm to get tickets to a 10:30pm showing, and it was already sold out. The reviews so far are over the top in their praise. Over at Rotten Tomatoes, a site that aggregates reviews from various sources, the rating is a whopping 94% positive (the only film with a higher rating is Wall-E.). If you go to the "top critics" section (print outlets and sites like salon.com), only a couple of the reviews are negative, which is extremely unusual for a comic book flick.

A lot of the interest in this film is because of Heath Ledger's death, but I've never seen anything like this. A movie that you can't get tickets to unless you go at midnight, which is what I'm doing? Come on. (And yes, I know I'm nuts.)

I'll let you know what I think of the film, and whether or not it's appropriate for children, later tonight. But for now, if you plan on going, order those tickets early, Bat-fans. Otherwise, you ain't getting in.

See you tonight -- different Bat-time, same Bat-channel...

image: Rotten Tomatoes

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Free Comic Book Day

Brett Singer — Fri, 02 May 2008 21:30:00 GMT

I love me some comic books, but they are way too expensive. (Not that this stops me from buying them, mind you.) And if they cost too much for me, they definitely cost too much for the average kid.

That's one of the reasons for Free Comic Book Day, which is tomorrow (Saturday, May 3rd). Stores all over the world give away free comics in the hopes of getting more kids interested in funny books. With the "Iron Man" movie opening this weekend, stores will probably be packed, but they usually have a lot of product to give away, so stop by your local shop and see what they've got. By the way, I do mean "all over the world" -- the website lists a store in Malaysia, among other faraway places.

Kid-friendly books include Tiny Titans, Sonic the Hedgehog and The Simpsons.

Age ranges vary, although personally I can say that Tiny Titans is a true all-ages title. It helps if you are into the Teen Titans cartoon and/or the original comics, but Robin riding in the back of the Batmobile asking Alfred if they can stop for ice cream is the level of humor we're talking about. (If you have no idea what that last sentence means, don't bother picking up this one, although your kid might like it.) A nice touch is that the website has PDF previews of most of the books so you can check them out beforehand if you like. Note that not every title being given away is necessarily for young readers. Also note that some stores are even giving away Star Wars and Iron Man toys! For the kids. Not for me. For the kids...

Giveaways vary by location, check freecomicbookday.com for details.

images: freecomicbookday.com

Nic Cage Explains Son Kal-El's Name

Alisyn — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 19:01:00 GMT

Unless you are a huge Nicolas Cage fan, or a baby names hound like I am, you may not have heard the news that 16 months ago, actor Nicolas Cage and his wife, Alice, named their newborn son Kal-El Coppola Cage. Kal-El was the name of the ficitional character Superman, on the planet Krypton.

For the first time since his son's birth, Cage has spoken about how - and why - his son's name was chosen.

"My wife wanted a unique name and originally I thought of the name Kyle and then she said, 'No, something more unusual but beautiful,'" he explained. "Then I remembered the old Superman comics... I wanted a name that stood for something good, was unique and American and that's all three. I just thought it was a beautiful name and it had kind of a magical ring to it."

Maybe little Kal-El will be celebrity-kid- friends with young Pirate Davis (dad is Jonathan Davis of Korn), Denim and Diezel Braxton Lewis (Toni Braxton is mom), and Pilot Inspektor Lee (dad is Jason Lee). Otherwise known as the "I Go By My Middle Name Club."

[via Starpulse]

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Nic Cage Explains Son Kal-El's Name