Star Wars: The Radio Dramas

Photo Credit: Me

Well, I saw Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and it was great. If you are a fan of old school Star Wars, then you will love the new movie. But this posting isn't a review of the new movie. No. This is a posting of something I found. Something that I cannot believe I had never heard about.

I randomly Googled Star Wars, and I came across Star Wars: The Radio Drama. In the early 1980s, NPR did a radio dramatization of the entire trilogy. Here's the absolutely fascinating article how it came to be. As a radio nerd, I could not go on without finding the trilogy and buying it. As luck would have it, I found the complete box set on Amazon. It was bought moments later.

The box set arrived today, and I've begun listening to it. Let me tell you, if you are a Star Wars fan, you must find it, and listen to it. It is absolutely terrific. The sound design is beautiful. It also features the John Williams score, and terrific voice performances. Another really cool fact is there are original story-lines interwoven into the trilogy. It's an unique addition to the Star Wars saga.

Three Days Away from Star Wars: The Force Awakens

www.starwars.com

 

We are three days away from the new Star Wars movie. The Force Awakens opens December 18th, 2015. So close, yet so far. The promotion for the film is everywhere. In fact if you Google: "A Long Time Ago, In a Galaxy Far, Far Away, your Google results will appear as the Star Wars opening crawl.

I allowed myself to look at Twitter reactions to individuals whom have seen the movie thus far, and so far the results have been very positive. Friday cannot come fast enough.

35 Years Ago Today....

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December 8th is always a melancholy day for me. It's the anniversary of my musical hero's untimely death. December 8th, 1980 John Lennon was murdered while returning home from a recording session. It's still difficult for me at times to comprehend this fact that he is gone. As I am typing this posting, I'm listening to "Nobody Told Me" and "Borrowed Time", both recorded shortly before his death, and he sounds so full of life. Plus the music is phenomenal.

Earlier today I was speaking with one of my closest friends about this subject, and we both agreed that Lennon's songs recorded during the Double Fantasy sessions sound modern. Not just musically, but lyrically. Lennon was really struck something special when he was recording. Though it is a sad occasion, it does give one a reason to reflect on life, and not take a moment for granted.

More George Orwell Essays

Credit: www.amazon.com

Earlier this year, I read an excellent anthology of essays by the legendary writer George Orwell. The title of the anthology that I read was: Books Vs. Cigarettes. The collection contained Orwell's thoughts on literature, is there such of thing as having too many books, and second hand bookstores. It was my first time reading his essays, and I must say I really enjoyed it. Though I didn't always agree with his conclusions, I loved reading his logic behind his conclusions, and the volume got me thinking on a great many things.

So I while I was Christmas shopping over the Thanksgiving weekend, I found another volume of Orwell's essay writing entitled: All Art is Propaganda. It is a larger anthology of his essay writing, and it appears to cover a wide range of topics. But the item that really caught my attention was the cover. I love cover artwork. It's really an eye grabbing, and it aided me in my decision to buy the volume. So for now at least, Orwell is correct. Art is Propaganda. Art is what made me buy his critical essay, or what some may say, his propaganda. A little self fulfilling maybe...

I cannot wait to start reading it. 

Falling Behind On Blogging

I have once again fallen a little behind on my blogging as of late. Work and teaching have been quite the time consumer. Although I am very pleased to have been able to launch my podcast series this past month. That was something I've been meaning to do for awhile, and it feels good to be able to do it. Honestly, I feel like I've been experiencing a little bit of writers block when trying to come up with a topics to write about.

Luckily, since it is the end of the year, I'll be able to write my annual favorite records of the year posting. So there's one topic at least. What I should really do, is have a brainstorming session, and try to plan out my blogs over a period of time. Sometimes when I organize myself like that, I'm able to over come my writers block.

The Pilot Episode

Yesterday was the day. Yesterday I posted the first episode of my new podcast series entitled: "The Looking Glass". I'm really excited about this podcast. It's primary focus is personal interests and how individuals get into them.

The first episode, which is embedded below, explores the magic of Harry Houdini. My second episode, which I hope to finish in the next few days, will focus on how an individual found Nirvana.

Almost Done With My New Podcast Series

I think I'm almost done with the first episode of my new podcast series. It's called The Looking Glass, and it examines how individuals got into their hobbies and interests. The first episode is on magic and Harry Houdini.

it took me a while to find the right tone for the narration, and music. I think I found both. For narration, I was aiming for a very casual feel. For music, I wanted a lighthearted, almost dreamsical feel. Like how people see their hobbies in a very surreal way.

Just a few more finishing touches, I'll be ready to share it.