Will Hines Dot Net

Corrupt Mayors’ Super Bowl. Whenever you get Anthony Atamanuik saying “some naked take-off-their-clothes ladies” you’re at least partly right. Written by Erik Tanouye. Filmed and edited by me. Directed by both of us. Starring Eddie Dunn, Anthony Atamanuik and Birch Harms.

Other news:

• Halfway through DC Pierson’s book The Boy Who Couldn’t Sleep And Didn’t Have To and I super dig it.
• Got two more videos shot and trying to get them edited
• Would like to never have to shave again. Advice?
• Tried Google Chrome; found that it doesn’t seem to handle GMail well on the Mac.
• Am abandoning these bullet points.

I’ve been posting a lot of photos of myself and Ben Rameaka and other UCBTers in weird costumes to my Facebook account. People ask me: what’s with the photos? Answer: we are performing in a documentary about the origins of fantasy/rotisserie baseball which some people are making for ESPN.

We are recreating moments in the story — each one as a different genre. So the first ever draft is shown as the founding fathers, and another moment is a 80s cop interrogation scene, and a lot of scenes took place on an actual baseball field. The result is that we get to wear a lot of ridiculous costumes and that we have been on set all day for six or so long days scattered across the last week and are all a bit crazy. Meeting a lot of fun people. There’s a generous smattering of UCBT actors in this mess: Nate Dern, Jonathan Fernandez, Davram Stiefler, Justin Tyler. We all sit around and alienate the other people with Maude / Harold night analysis.

I believe it is scheduled to broadcast early next year. Let us all get together and watch it, okay?

One of the locations was the grave / memorial of Henry Chadwick, the grandfather of baseball statistics. His grave (actually it’s his wife’s grave, but it doubles as memorial for him — wonder how she feels about that) — is surrounded by a mini-baseball diamond. There’s an old timey glove, ball and catcher’s mask on his stone. It’s crazy, but I guess if you’re the first guy to document RBIs and stolen bases for the New York Knickerbockers in 1860 that’s what you get.

When I am buried, will they put two chairs on my grave and a notebook that has things scrawled like “Commit! Find the game!” and a fake mustache? I could think of worse things.

Todd Sentz sent me this hilarious video called “Jake E. Lee Shreds” — it took me a bit to get it, but then I couldn’t stop laughing. The clapping by Ozzy is genius.

[youtube Eqtk6kKTlDM nolink]

Also, this video of Michael Conley’s dribbling warmup is awesome in a completely non-ironic way (via Kottke.org).

[youtube DNT00hIXjLs nolink]

Unrelated opinions you did not ask about, which you likely won’t agree with, and that I am not qualified to offer.

1. College athletes should be paid. Yes, their tuition and room/board is part of that but it’s not enough by a long shot. At UConn last year, tuitition/room/board for out-of-state students was $30 thousand. The basketball program grossed almost $8 million, and that’s not counting money from merchandise. It infuriates me that the coaches, athletic directors and recruiters can make hundreds of thousands of dollars in salary and sometimes endorsements but the athletes — the vast majority of which will not go to the pros — walk away with just 30 grand in non-cash.

2. Serial killers / mass-murderers should never have their names published. You can still report the whole story of their lives — just leave out the person’s name. This is similar to how the media treats the identity of rape victims — the police and courts know the victim’s name, but it’s left out of all news coverage. The Virginia Tech killer would be known as “The Virginia Tech killer,” and no one would know his name. When you commit a heinous act of violence — you become a non-person. These guys are motivated at least partly by fame and by suppressing their name we help keep that from them. John Lennon deserves to be famous. The guy who killed him does not.

3. Artists should be allowed to use corporate logos in their work without restriction. No, I don’t know how you’d ascertain what “art” is. But if corporations can use their logo in advertisements that manipulate my opinion in their favor, someone should be allowed to use it to manipulate opinions against them. Balance!

4. A four-pitch walk gets two bases. All pitchers must face at least one batter. No designated hitter. Pete Rose should be allowed in the Hall of Fame, but they should be allowed to use the word “scumbag” on his plaque.