"Rolling Scene Scrape" is a documentary on skateboarding in Calgary, circa '86. The skating's not that amazing, but as a time portal to an era only slightly before my teen years, it's fantastic. (If only I was that cool back then...)
One hour and twenty-five (ish) minutes of circa-1983 MTV. All mullets guaranteed 100% non-ironic.
The Pope could not be reached for comment.
In response to Smashing Telly's Top 10 TV intros of all time (where "all time" mostly equals the '70s, apparently), I give you the ones he left out:
Barney Miller. Dear Seinfeld, this is what funk bass is supposed to sound like.
The Prisoner. Mysterious Cold War spy games, a Lotus 7 at full chat and of course the classic "I am not a number, I am a free man!" exchange. Also a favourite of Iron Maiden.
The Outer Limits. I heard a live act sample this intro at a rave once. It blew my mind, maaaaaan.
Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. The last great gasp of the "describe the show with the theme song's lyrics" school of thought. Mind you, I kind of hope they start doing that with new CSI franchises instead of just using random Who songs as-is: "He's a pinball wizard/ There has to be a twist/ A pinball wizard forensic scientiiiiist!"
Fill your pockets full of quarters, grab your two-litre bottle of Shasta and your all-Rush mixtape and beepbloopbeep on over to WFMU's all-Atari mp3 roundup. You won't be sorry you did.
Celebrate the early years of the definitive '80s college rock band (R.E.M., naturally) with an all-star jam on "It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)" at Athens, Georgia's 40 Watt club (where the boys had their earliest gigs.) Note that, while it is great, it does not start with birds, snakes or aeroplanes. Lenny Bruce, however, is not afraid.
PARIS, Sept. 3 (UPI) -- Passengers on a flight from France to Mauritius have filed suit against Air France after musician Bonnie Tyler performed a song at the request of the co-pilot.
The passengers, believed to be Belgian, complained to the airline after the Welsh singer performed part of her 1983 hit "Total Eclipse of the Heart" at the request of the co-pilot, who retired after the flight, The Mail on Sunday reported.
"I was asleep in First Class. The stewardess came and said the co-pilot was retiring. And they asked me would I sing to him. They were having a bit of a party," Tyler said.
The complaining passengers reportedly claimed they were traumatized by the experience and had feared for their safety during the celebration. The complaint eventually escalated into a legal dispute.
An Air France official said: "The claim against Air France, which it completely rejects, is that the celebrations got more and more unruly and came to a climax when Bonnie sang.
"Air France is saying that any suggestion there was anything more than a few slaps on the back for the co-pilot is nonsense, and it completely rejects the claims that the passengers were at any sort of risk."
