Blog O’ Obscurity

And while we’re on the topic of online quizzes. Here is the best online quiz absolutely ever.

Troy McClure Film or Actual Terrible Movie

“You may remember him from such hits as Christmas Ape and Christmas Ape Goes to Summer Camp, but how well do you remember Troy McClure’s other projects? Can you tell which of the following titles come from the filmography of Springfield’s favorite screen icon and which are the real-life dregs of IMDb?”

And no fair checking IMDb or any other database for the answers.

My personal score first time through the quiz was 11 of 15.

Popularity: 1%

And not just your general cartoon knowledge full of Spongebob and Pixar, but your true cartoon IQ, your 80’s cartoon IQ.

An 80’s Cartoons Quiz poses 15 questions from many of the most popular and awesome cartoons of all time. The Voltron question was pretty easy, and I’m a little embarrassed about being familiar enough with Care Bears and Rainbow Brite to make a good guess. (I had two sisters, okay!)

My score: 13 of 15. Beat that Sucka’s.

Popularity: 1%

The Muppets have always held a dear, dear place in my heart. Right next to, in fact, my Star Wars heart place. Once again the two have been joined for an amusing music video featuring Vader repeatedly singing, “MANAMANA.” It’s funnier than it sounds, and definitely better the second time watching it. Not as good the fourth time, but much funnier the fifth.

And yes, that was Spock. And yes, Artoo and Threepio do a great job as Statler and Waldorf. And no, I’m not ‘losing it’. And yes, the 14 second mark is the funniest thing ever.

Popularity: 1%

As a big fan of Bruce Campbell and all of his cheesy goodness, I heard about his new movie about a year ago. Well, time passed and their is finally a preview out for the new movie.

Bruce Campbell takes on his toughest role of all, himself.

A couple of small town kids and fans of His Bruceness track down the low budget star to recruit him against the evil force that threatens their town. Bruce agrees to come thinking that he is being recruited to star in yet another low budget film, only to find that the monster is real, and it’s up to him to save the day.

Can’t wait for this one.

Popularity: 3%

News update!

You no longer need a Delorian to travel through time. Coming soon to a store near you are replica flux capacitors that will allow you to turn any vehicle from a Yugo to a Gremlin into a 4th dimensional automobile. Bat wing doors and flying cars not required.

The only question remaining is where to mount it in your ride.

Popularity: 2%

Sometimes the coolest stuff just kind of falls into your lap.

My brother stopped by the other day to drop off something that he thought I might like. It was a clock. My first thought was, “Not another clock.” I think we managed to get a dozen clocks from different people when I got married. Maybe all my friends and family think I don’t know what time it is.

However, this was no ordinary clock. A coworker of my brother didn’t want it anymore, gave it to my brother, who passed it along to me. It’s  a giant gear that turns around a stationary hand. There are other gears that serve only ornamental purposes, but it is still one pretty cool clock.

Popularity: 3%

The western just ain’t what it used to be, the big-budget Hollywood musical has fallen to remakes of Broadway musicals, and I can’t remember the last time that a Frankenstein movie was made. However, one specific genre of movie that will always be made, remade, and done over and over again is the zombie movie. There are a number of classics in the genre from “Night of the Living Dead” to “Shaun of the Dead”, the premise works because everyone is familiar with the premise going into the film.

One of the classics that I’ve read a lot about but never had the chance to actually see was “Tombs of the Blind Dead”, but thanks to the local used bookstore, I now own my very own VHS copy in a giant over-sized clamshell box.

The movie starts in the undefined past with some pretty weird-looking monks tying a hysterical woman to an X. After ripping open her shirt, a few monks (we later learn they are Knights Templar) take turns riding past her on horseback and slicing her arms and torso to shreds. During that process, a few of the monks give strange looks to the camera, kind of like they were thinking, “You know, I was fine with the kidnapping and bodice-ripping, but this whole stabbing thing is going a little too far.”

Fast forward to the present (or the present of 1970’s Spain) where a young women gets angry at her boyfriend and jumps from a moving train to walk the Spanish countryside. It eventually gets dark (or at least day-for-night), and she finds herself alone in a creepy deserted castle. A bell rings, tombs open, and she is eventually chased down and chewed on by skeletons in robes.

Strangely enough, these undead Knights Templar are the best part of the movie. The plot, characters, and dialogue often make very little sense, but the design and execution of these undead creatures is the most effective part of the movie. The monsters are blind but rely on their keen hearing to track their prey. The fear that they inspire in their victims allow them to track even the most clever of characters by heartbeat alone.

So why is this considered a zombie movie. Well, the monks are undead (more or less), they look cool, and one character that they bite comes back to life and attacks the living. It’s thin, but you can make the connection.

Popularity: 3%

First of all: yes, that’s a vague reference to the scene in “Jurassic Park” right before the big game hunter gets eaten by the raptors. Second, this is a post about clever dogs, not clever dinosaurs.

There are no shortage of cool dog tricks out there in the world. Dogs have been taught to sit up, beg, roll over, shake, and even sing. But to find out if your dog is really smart or just imitating what it sees around him, you’ll need to get a Pooch IQ Kit for your dog.

The dog we had when I was a kid was definitely not a canine genius, but check out this pooch with an aversion to stinky shoes.

Popularity: 2%

Little did I know how un-democratic the Democratic party truly is.

At their convention this summer there will be 4,040 Democratic delegates voting to choose which member of their party will be on the 2008 presidential election. However, almost one out of five of those delegates will not have been chosen by any of the state primaries or caucuses. Instead they are various party members, congressmen, and other elected officials called superdelegates. These are assigned by the party to vote for whoever they want.

Hard to call the process Democratic when 20% of the votes don’t come from the people.

Popularity: 3%

Have you ever seen a Galileo thermometer? You probably have, they were the cool thing to give at Christmas a couple years back. I just love looking at them although I didn’t want to tell anyone I didn’t know how to read one. Last year someone gave me one and I finally figured it out, but I still think they are more interesting as a thing to look at than as a thermometer.

Popularity: 2%