From The Shoulda-Been-There Department.

Here's The Huntington Cads at Tiki Oasis a week ago, their first show together in over a decade.



And I'd like to dedicate it to Spanky, who's being laid to rest this afternoon.

Brian Rogers (AKA Spanky Twangler) 1970 - 2009

Just found out that Brian Rogers — Spanky Twangler of The Penetrators — passed away yesterday.

The Penetrators were a fabulous surf band.

And Brian, he was a terrific person. I really enjoyed our sporadic, long-distance, email relationship over the years, and I wish I'd known him better. Having the band stay at my home during a pass through Chapel Hill was indeed a privilege, as is being a member of The Southern Surf Syndicate.

I admire Brian's faith, peace and determination throughout his illness even more than I've always admired his talent. He was a good one.

Let's remember the good stuff.

Last week marked 40 years since the murder of Sharon Tate by a gang of evil freaks. None of us have to really work at remembering the anniversary — the endless reruns of Geraldo's old interview with Charlie will let you know it's come around again.

But now that Geraldo has reminded me, I'm gonna dig up (no pun intended) the DVD of The Fearless Vampire Killers (1967).

It's funny. It's brilliant. It's silly. It's beautiful. It's dead-on. And it reminds us just what promise Sharon and Roman had going together before those freaks took it all away.

The Man In The Moon.

Ed "Big Daddy" Roth in a Mooneyes shirt of some sort.

That's Entertainment!

What your driveway looks like in Heaven.

Rio Bravo #4

The Untamed Youth: "Hey Elly May"

Rio Bravo #3

Howard Hawks tells John Wayne and Angie Dickinson what he wants.

Rio Bravo #2

A snapshot of Dean as Dude. Old Tucson, Arizona, May of '58.

Thanks to the site I took this from.

Rio Bravo

Here's John Wayne fixing Ricky Nelson's hat on the set of one of my all-time favorite movies, Rio Bravo (1959).

When I first saw this photo, I thought "Wayne's really cool in those Ray Bans." But the more I look at it, I think he's got some of those Esquivel/Buddy Holly frames. Even cooler.

Also, I noticed that even in his street clothes, he's wearing his belt buckle from Red River. Can you tell I've been looking at this way too much?

Thought I'd put my Friday/Zappa thing on hold and wallow in Rio Bravo for a while.

What a night.

Cary, North Carolina. The couch. A Sony console TV.

Fridays With Frank (Zappa) #15

Does that say "Turgid Flux States?"

I thought so.

Roth, anyone?

From an old Roth t-shirt ad.

Good news.

September 15, 2009, will see the DVD release of John Ford's Wagon Master (1950). Be sure to pre-order this one.

Fridays With Frank (Zappa) #14

I'd love to browse in this place.

Karl Malden, RIP

Here he is whipping Brando in the great One-Eyed Jacks (1961).

Dino DeLaurentis And His Crummy Kong

Crummy gorilla. Crummy movie — King King (1976) — but I love it anyway.

A Quick Lesson In Compostion

Attention photographers. Here's a couple frames lifted from a couple great Westerns. Dig the beauty of these shots.

First, Ride Lonesome (1960) directed by Budd Boetticher and shot by Charles Lawton, Jr.

Next, Sam Peckinpah's modern-day Western Junior Bonner (1972), with Lucien Ballard as DP.

I'd love to hang either of these images over my couch.

53 Gasser

Wish I could say I drove this 1953 Chevrolet to work this morning. Instead, I found it with Google Images.