Today is 4/20, the unofficial day to celebrate cannabis culture. In honor, please enjoy the classic 1936 exploitation film Reefer Madness. From a brief history of the film by Kevin Murphy and Dan Studney:

Reefer Madness began its cinematic life as a 1936 cautionary film entitled Tell Your Children. It was financed by a small church group, and was intended to scare the living bejeezus out of every parent who viewed it. Soon after the film was shot, however, it was purchased by the notorious exploitation film maestro Dwain Esper (Narcotic, Marihuana, Maniac), who took the liberty of cutting in salacious insert shots and slapping on the sexier title of Reefer Madness, before distributing it on the exploitation circuit. Esper was an absolutely notorious figure who would do things like stealing unattended prints of studio films out of projection booths and film exchanges, and then physically drive them from small town exhibitor to small town exhibitor until the authorities caught up with him. A delightful, poignant and detailed portrayal of this lunatic opportunist is featured in exploiteer Dave Friedman's autobiography, A Youth in Babylon, which is a book every cult movie or pop culture enthusiast ought to read.

After a brief run, the film lay forgotten for several decades. There was no concept of after market in those days, especially for films that existed outside the confines of the studio system, and were therefore considered "forbidden fruit." For this reason, neither Esper nor the original filmmakers bothered to copyright the movie, and it eventually fell into the public domain.

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/20/celebrate-4-20-by-watching-the.html

Faced with forced isolation, creative musicians are pushing the limits of telepresence tech to play together, apart. In the video above, my favorite roots rockers The Americans cover Tom Waits' "Hold On" from three different locations connected only by iPhone. The result is magnificent.

Below, The Americans' soulful take on Guitar Slim's 1954 breakthrough R&B hit "The Things I Used To Do." See more clips on their Facebook page.

Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/20/watch-the-americans-play-tom-w.html

Bruce Lee's 1970s films have entered the realm of cinematic fine art. The Criterion Collection is releasing a Bruce Lee seven-disc Blu-Ray box set appropriately titled "His Greatest Hits." Included are The Big Boss (1971), Fist of Fury (1972), The Way of the Dragon (1972), Enter the Dragon (1973), and Game of Death (1978). Never take your eyes off your opponent, even when you're bowing. Here's what's included in Bruce Lee: His Greatest Hits:

4K digital restorations of The Big Boss, Fist of Fury, Game of Death, and The Way of the Dragon, with uncompressed original monaural soundtracks; New 2K digital restoration of the rarely-seen 99-minute 1973 theatrical version of Enter the Dragon, with uncompressed original monaural soundtrack; 2K digital restoration of the 102-minute “special-edition” version of Enter the Dragon; Alternate audio soundtracks for the films, including original English-dubbed tracks and a 5.1 surround soundtrack for the special-edition version of Enter the Dragon; Six audio commentaries: on The Big Boss by Bruce Lee expert Brandon Bentley; on The Big Boss, Fist of Fury, Game of Death, and The Way of the Dragon by Hong Kong–film expert Mike Leeder; and on the special-edition version of Enter the Dragon by producer Paul Heller; High-definition presentation of Game of Death II, the 1981 sequel to Game of Death; Game of Death Redux, a new presentation of Lee’s original Game of Death footage, produced by Alan Canvan; New interviews on all five films with Lee biographer Matthew Polly; New interview with producer Andre Morgan about Golden Harvest, the company behind Hong Kong’s top martial-arts stars, including Lee; New program about English-language dubbing with voice performers Michael Kaye (the English-speaking voice of Lee’s Chen Zhen in Fist of Fury) and Vaughan Savidge; New interview with author Grady Hendrix about the “Bruceploitation” subgenre that followed Lee’s death, and a selection of Bruceploitation trailers; Blood and Steel, a 2004 documentary about the making of Enter the Dragon; Multiple programs and documentaries about Lee’s life and philosophies, including Bruce Lee: The Man and the Legend (1973) and Bruce Lee: In His Own Words (1998); Interviews with Linda Lee Cadwell, Lee’s widow, and many of Lee’s collaborators and admirers, including actors Jon T.

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/20/bruce-lee-his-greatest-hits.html

On the YouTube description of the latest episode of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: "As COVID-19 continues to dominate the news cycle, John Oliver looks at the various sources of misinformation about the disease - from televangelists and the right wing media, to President Trump himself."

If you want to see something really scary, scroll to 3:30 in the video. (That's Kenneth Copeland by the way, who is worth $300 million and owns a $260,000 Maserati). Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/20/john-oliver-on-how-right-wing.html

In March 1978, the wonderful Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA) presented a screening of Eraserhead followed by a Q&A with director David Lynch. BAMPFA just recently digitized the cassette and shared it for all to enjoy. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/20/listen-to-this-qa-with-david.html

On his Pluralistic blog, Cory Doctorow reports that the Zoom teleconferencing system purportedly uses artificial intelligence to detect naked people to block the video. He says "I think that Zoom is probably bullshitting about using machine learning to catch nudity." That makes sense, because how can you detect the content of a video stream if, as Zoom promises, the signal is encrypted end-to-end? Cory also looks at the reasons why pornography always seems to be one of the early use cases in any new technology:

The thing is, when a new communications technology comes along, the people who have the most incentive to figure out how to use it are the people for whom the existing technology channels are not working.

...

It's also why everyone else whose communications are disfavored, surveilled or blocked adopt technology.

It's what political radicals, kids, religious extremists, terrorists, conspiracists, and criminals all have in common: using the established communications channels is expensive for them, so it's worth expending the effort to master the new ones.

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/20/zoom-says-its-using-artifici.html

In Stockton, California, KCRA's Melinda Meza did a live TV segment about hairstyling on location in her home bathroom. Special guest star: her naked partner in the shower. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/20/newscaster-does-a-live-segment.html

To be clear: I have absolutely no sympathy for the selfish so-called "protestors" who are being irresponsibly cheered on by the President to "re-open the economy" and endanger millions of American lives. While I can understand economic stresses and concerns about an overreaching government, I simply cannot abide by a movement that was literally organized by nihilistic white nationalists bankrolled by greedy right-wing donors who want other people to die in order to boost a bunch of inherently hollow economic statistics that cannot hold any meaning without human life.

That being said, the Raleigh Police response to the "ReOpen North Carolina" protest was also painfully ridiculous.

The protestors are in violation of the Governor’s Executive Order and have been asked to leave. #ReopenNC pic.twitter.com/AIEetS42NE

 Raleigh Police (@raleighpolice) April 14, 2020

Protesting is a non-essential activity.

 Raleigh Police (@raleighpolice) April 14, 2020

"Protesting is a non-essential activity." That's what the police said.

Humans are complex beings, and we are capable of holding more than two thoughts in our minds at once. That's how I'm able to recognize that these protestors were, at best, the unwitting patsies of a bigoted death cult — while also acknowledging that a police department deeming protest as "non-essential" is, at best, dumb, and at worst, utterly horrifying.

Even if one is to agree that these protestors should have been arrested, this is a terrible way to justify that action. They could have just as easily written this off retroactively as reckless endangerment, or simply left it as a public safety violation. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/20/protesting-is-a-non-essential.html

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/20/lockdown-protestor-to-man-in-n.html

It should come as no surprise, but it turns out food delivery and delivery services are among the silver lining success stories of our homebound pandemic lifestyle. 

Researchers at Civic Science found that 22 percent of U.S. adults had food delivered last week, a sharp rise from 19 percent just the week before. And while younger and more affluent customers have traditionally been the biggest users of home delivery services, new figures show more parents are jumping on-board the convenience of local restaurant fare without the hassle. And it never hurts to support financially impacted local businesses during this time either.

With all that in mind, we want to keep you fed while you pump dollars into your local community by giving you $1,000 worth of DoorDash home delivery in the $1,000 DoorDash Gift Card Giveaway.

Of course, you already know DoorDash, who can immediately zip meals and other treats from dozens of your local restaurant favorites right to your door. Well, we want to give you $1,000 of DoorDash fun money to eat up right. 

Heck, even for a family of four, $1,000 in DoorDash deliveries can supply tasty dinners for a month. DoorDash even lets you set up all your own delivery preferences, so if you’d rather the driver just drop off your meal and ring the bell to minimize interaction, you can. 

All you need to do to make this $1,000 of culinary highlights yours is to sign up. No purchase needed. Putting your name on the basic entry form and hitting send is all you’ve gotta do.  Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/19/enter-now-for-your-chance-to-w-2.html

I really enjoyed this episode of Coffee or Suicide with my friend Maureen Herman. She was the bassist for Babes in Toyland, and is a writer and a frequent contributor to Boing Boing. In this episode, she "talks about the need for access to mental health care services, her experiences with addiction and trauma, and why she never called herself a riot grrrl." Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/19/podcast-interview-maureen-herm.html

On April 19, 1943, Swiss chemist Albert Hoffman ingested 240 micrograms of lysergic acid diethylamide, a curious compound he had synthesized for possible use as a respiratory and circulatory stimulant. An hour later, Hoffman wrote one sentence in his journal: "Beginning dizziness, feeling of anxiety, visual distortions, symptoms of paralysis, desire to laugh." As he rode his bicycle home, the effects intensified. Eventually though, the fear gave way to wonder.

"Little by little I could begin to enjoy the unprecedented colors and plays of shapes that persisted behind my closed eyes," Hoffman wrote. "Kaleidoscopic, fantastic images surged in on me, alternating, variegated, opening and then closing themselves in circles and spirals, exploding in colored fountains, rearranging and hybridizing themselves in constant flux..."

April 19 is now celebrated as Bicycle Day to commemorate the first intentional acid trip, a hallucinogenic revelation that had a profound impact on art, music, culture, and consciousness.

We can't go out right now, but we can go in. Way in. To celebrate Bicycle Day, my Ozma Records partner Tim Daly and I are offering a 33% discount on The Family Acid: California, a book of marvelous photographs drenched in the psychedelic experience.

For more than 50 years, photographer Roger Steffens has explored the electric arteries of the counterculture, embracing mind-expanding experiences, deep social connection, and unadulterated fun at every turn. After serving in Vietnam at the end of the 1960s, Steffens immersed himself in California’s vibrant bohemia. Since then, with his wife Mary and children Kate and Devon, he has sought out the eccentric, the outlandish, and the transcendent. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/19/celebrate-todays-lsd-anniver.html

It may be awkward to point this out during these tough times...but cooking is having a moment.

All this extra time spent at home is sparking thousands to do what they’ve always wished they had time to do before: get in the kitchen and craft tasty meals with their own two hands.

From Amy Schumer hosting her own cooking show to famous brands revealing their secret recipes, there’s never been a more opportune moment to ignite a love for cooking yourself. And it just so happens we’ve assembled 23 appliances, cooking utensils and meal aids that can help make all those culinary dreams come true.

We can’t promise everything you make is going to work out, but it sure will be fun trying. And we could all use a little more fun right now.

It’s the most important meal of the day — so whether you want to stay healthy with a smoothie or get decadent mixing up some pancake batter, the Personal 20-Oz Electric Blender ($22.99; originally $29.99) has you covered. Of course, if you’re going the smoothie route, this high-powered, innovative 400W blender also comes with a 20-ounce sports bottle to blend your drink and take it with you anywhere.

Any breakfast needs a quality frying pan for those eggs, so the Swiss Diamond HD Classic 7" Nonstick Fry Pan ($33.99; originally $39.95) serves it up. Perfect for frying, saut'eing, or browning ingredients for your favorite small meals and side dishes, it’s oven-safe up to 500°F and perfectly sized for small apartments and dorm rooms. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/19/ready-to-turn-the-kitchen-into.html

"Hi, Lloyd. Little slow tonight, isn't it?"

Deepfake auteur Ctrl Shift Face presents Jim Carrey in... The Shining.

(Thanks, Jeff Cross!) Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/19/jim-carrey-stars-in-the-shi.html

When your under lockdown there isn’t always a good way to get any real separation or alone time within those close quarters. When the walls start closing in a little, there are two sure-fire ways that audio can help: either tune ‘em out — or drown ‘em out.

With that self-preservation in mind, consider this assortment of great audio accessories, including earbuds and headphones to immerse yourself in anything but what’s happening around you; and Bluetooth speakers to build a blazing hot wall of sound between you and everyone else.

Tough tactics? Sure. But these are tough times...and we all have to be prepared.

There are loads of convenient affordable earbuds that can help make the world go away -- for a few minutes at a time, at least. The Skullcandy Jib Wireless Earbuds ($12.99; originally $29.99) help you live wirelessly without sacrificing any essential features -- although at over 50 percent off, getting these at less than the price of a quick lunch is probably their most impactful selling point.

Meanwhile, the Crave Octane Bluetooth Earphones ($29.99; originally $49.99) are actually magnetic, up and running when they’re disconnected, powered down and conserving energy when the buds are stuck together. And the newest version of the best-selling AirSounds Pro True Wireless Earbuds ($34.99; originally $129.99) have a new and improved design, seamless connectivity, and battery life status updates every time you connect.

Beats Tour 2.5 Wired In-Ear Headphones ($47.99; originally $59.95) are built for function and durability in our busy world, engineered with a variety of fit options for all-day comfort and sweat and water resistance to easily shrug off all your life throws at them. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/19/from-headphones-to-bluetooth-s.html

Summer 2020 is already in tatters if you’re a movie fan. Potential blockbusters like Black Widow, Wonder Woman 1984, F9, Mulan, Top Gun: Maverick, Ghostbusters: Afterlife and the latest James Bond thriller No Time to Die have all been shunted off the release schedule. No matter what happens with our current health epidemic, the cineplex is guaranteed to be stone-cold quiet until fall — at the earliest.

Thankfully, the world has been slowly turning your home theater into a true home theater for years. Between rapidly growing screens, HD streaming, premium sound and more, it’s tough to see where the movie palace begins and your living room couch ends.

However...there’s always room for upgrades.  We’ve assembled a dozen cool deals on TVs, antennas and other options so the only difference you’ll see between your house and the cinema house is that addictive movie theater popcorn butter.

Not too long ago, a 50-inch TV screen in your home was practically a movie screen. Now, it’s almost quaint. But for many shoppers facing space limitations or who just don’t want to turn an entire wall into a video screen, 50-inchers like the VIZIO E-Series Class 4K HDR Smart TV ($429.95; originally $469.99) pack more than enough viewing punch. With Google Chromecast built-in, the E-Series also boasts SmartCast, the app-based system featuring voice control to run your TV through Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa-enabled devices.

Meanwhile, the VIZIO D-Series 50" Ultra HD Full-Array LED Smart TV ($429.95; originally $499.99) Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/18/your-home-is-becoming-your-own.html

So many artists are now playing music online from home. For many, it shows a different, more vulnerable side to them.

This is definitely the case in this set with the great Gary Numan. From his den, he plays guitar and sings, something he says he rarely does.

In the intro and the patter between songs, he spends a lot of time with clearly an aching heart over what we're all going through, showing real tenderness and compassion. And he spends lots of time apologizing for his guitar playing and the raw circumstances of the performances. No need, Mr. Numan. It all sounded perfect and heartfelt to me.

During the set, he does "Everyday I Die," "Bleed," "Crime of Passion," and "Down in the Park." On several songs, he is joined by his daughter, Persia.

Image: YouTube Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/18/shut-in-sounds-gary-numan-sig.html

In 2009, musician Daniel Lopatin (Oneohtrix Point Never) released a track called “Nobody Here” followed by the album “Chuck Person's Eccojams Vol.1” less than a year later. Now, that track is considered the first vaporwave song, and "Eccojams" the first vaporwave album, with one of the original 100 cassettes going for $2,000 on Discogs. Yesterday saw the launch of a crowdfunding campaign for “Nobody Here: The Story of Vaporwave," the first feature documentary about the genre, with artists on the soundtrack (and hopefully in the film) like Saint Pepsi, CatSystem Corp., Death’s Dynamic Shroud, Yung Bae, Luxury Elite, and more. The Indiegogo rewards range from the soundtrack on vinyl, cassette, or MiniDisc to a Macintosh Plus signed by the artists and filmmakers. They aim to complete the film by January 2021 but right now, there's not much to do but support the project and just enjoy yourself...

Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/18/support-a-new-documentary-abou.html

There's an interesting piece in MIT Technology Review about how the COVID-19 virus and social isolation have re-enlivened the Web in ways that hearken back to its earlier, more human and optimistic days.

It’s like turning the clock back to a more earnest time on the web, when the novelty of having a voice or being able to connect with anyone still filled us with a sense of boundless opportunity and optimism. It harkens back to the late 1990s and early 2000s—before social media, before smartphones—when going online was still a valuable use of time to seek community.

You see it in the renewed willingness of people to form virtual relationships. Before social media soured us and made us aloof and dismissive, we used to take the internet’s promise of serendipitous connection more seriously. Now casually hanging out with randos (virtually, of course) is cool again. People are joining video calls with people they’ve never met for everything from happy hours to book clubs to late-night flirting. They’re sharing in collective moments of creativity on Google Sheets, looking for new pandemic pen pals, and sending softer, less pointed emails.

I'm not so sure of some of its assertions, but I do love the thought of reclaiming some of that early optimism and genuine sense of (virtual) community. And it does beg the question of how the pandemic might change the character of the web in its aftermath.

Read the rest.

Image: Salorenzo Herrera on Unsplash Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/18/gathering-online-like-its-19.html

Door stop books. Baby booster seat books. Boat anchor books. Whatever you want to call them, gargantuan novels have their weighty charms, especially now, as we're all looking for distracting rabbit holes to fall into.

To that end, Literary Hub has put together a list of 50 fine, contemporary novels that clock in at over 500 pages. Read 'em if you can hold them up.

Richard Powers, The Overstory (512 pages) Strap in for a 512-page book about trees. But of course it’s really about humanity—all literature is—and it’s weirdly engrossing. Though it lags a bit at the end when it succumbs to polemic, for the most part, Powers manages to entertain, inform, and inspire action in the most high profile work of climate fiction yet.

Umberto Eco, The Name of the Rose (512 pages) A murder mystery concerning a labyrinthine library, and probably the only bestselling novel to be based on semiotics.

Tana French, The Witch Elm (528 pages) It’s not my favorite of French’s novels (that would be The Likeness, obviously, I’m not a crazy person), but it’s the only one that tips over the 500-page mark, and honestly, even my third favorite French ranks above most other people’s books. The Witch Elm is also perhaps her most fully realized, investigating not just a murder but privilege and society and the notion of memory—or sanity—itself. It’s very good.

Michael Chabon, The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay (639 pages) Chabon’s magnum opus is a gloriously fun, wham-pow novel of heroes, friendship, magic, the Golden Age of Comics, and sure, okay, Hitler. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/18/get-lost-in-one-of-50-contempo.html