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Forbidden Planet Flying Saucer for Sale!
Posted by Michael Pinto on Dec 11, 2008 in Cinema, Hobbies and Collections
It looks like today some lucky fanboy collector will be walking away with the model of the flying saucer from the 1956 classic science fiction film Forbidden Planet. The model was later used on several episodes of the Twilight Zone TV series as well: Robo Dog: DIY Robotics on the Streets of London
Posted by Michael Pinto on Dec 11, 2008 in Hobbies and Collections, Tech
In this video Lyle of the Mutoid Waste Company shows off his fire breathing Robo Dog creation to the public. The Mutoid crew dates back to the mid-80s when they started out as an arts collective that would hold huge parties that would feature all sorts of neat mega sized kit bashed creations — sort of like the Burning Man of England. Read more… USB Warm Gloves: Unbearably Cute!
Posted by Michael Pinto on Dec 10, 2008 in Hobbies and Collections
These ultra cute bear warm up gloves are USB powered and are being produced by Thanko in Japan. You know at first I though this was a totally silly idea, but today I visited a company where for some odd reason they running the air conditioner in Winter — had they equipped each employee with these gloves and hot chocolate productivity would have risen while improving their office cute quotient.
Found via akihabaranews.com. Forrest J Ackerman: Fanboy Extraordinaire
It’s with a heavy heart that I learned of the passing of Forrest J Ackerman because so much of what we take for granted today as fanboys we owe to the man and his generation. Forrest was among the members of First Fandom: The first generation of fanboys who during the 30s invented science fiction conventions, fan clubs, fanzines and cosplay. And Mr. Ackerman did all of that by playing a leading role in establishing the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society in 1934, attending the first World Science Fiction Convention in 1939 and published on the first fanzines Futuria Fantasia in 1939. Here’s an interview with him talking about the early days of science fiction fandom from 1996: Read more… The Making of a Maidokuro: The Awesome Corpse-Housemaid
Posted by Michael Pinto on Dec 4, 2008 in Animation, Hobbies and Collections
Being a goth fanboy at heart one of my favorite Flash cartoons from Japan is the ever so evil Maidokuro: The Awesome Corpse-Housemaid (I’m always watching her twisted adventures on my iPhone). So recently not only was I very blown away to find out that the animator behind pipya.com was hanging out on Twitter but also I was given this amazing Flickr link to an actual doll they constructed of Maidokuro for what seems to be some sort of trade show exhibit. You know the doll looks so cool that I hope they start to bring out a line of merchandise to go with their deliciously gruesome cartoon. Read more… Monster Hunting Cats on the Prowl
Posted by Michael Pinto on Dec 3, 2008 in Hobbies and Collections, Videogames
The minute I came across these two cats I was impressed: There’s something ever so cool about outfitting two elegant felines in medieval attire and then giving them the most silly accessories that you can imagine. The two kitties in this case are from the Capcom title Monster Hunter, and in the game they do everything from mundane chores like cooking to the more exciting gigs like distracting giant creatures. On the left is Airou who carries an oversized paw on a stick, and on the right is Merarou who prefers a giant tooth on a stick. Seeing the Sexiest: The Used Animation Art Auction & Underwear Sale
Posted by Guest Author on Nov 30, 2008 in Animation, Hobbies and Collections
Editor’s Note: This week animation industry insider Joe Strike takes us to a charity auction where the who’s who of NYC animation embrace their inner fanboy to swap goodies and gawk at cartoons. Whatever possessed me to raise my hand? I went into the ASIFA auction on November 20th, as broke or broker as anyone else in the USA today, just to see who was there and what was going on… before I knew it I was bidding on a 1926 copy of Animated Cartoons, by one E.G. Lutz Nick’s Nippon Notebook: Suntory Carbonic Acid Gas Cylinder
Posted by Guest Author on Nov 30, 2008 in Design, Hobbies and Collections
In my never ending hunt for cool and unblogged about pop culture in Japan, I found this mysterious item at the convenience store:
What sold me was it apparently went fast enough or was powerful enough to shatter it’s own UPC code. My first impression was that it had something to do with racing given what I thought was a speedometer or cyclometer. Then there is the fake signs of scraping and damage printed on. Read more… Old School Star Trek Phaser and Communicator Set Takes No Prisoners
Posted by Michael Pinto on Nov 29, 2008 in Hobbies and Collections, Star Trek
You know what I want for Christmas? I want William Shatner to have a guest spot in the upcoming Star Trek XI film! But if I can’t get that instead I’ll gladly settle for this old school Star Trek Phaser and Communicator Set from ThinkGeek. The phaser has the nice touch of including an overload setting that is followed by an exploding sound effect (or as my computer programming friends would say “If it’s not a bug it’s a feature!”). The communicator is also cool as it features 20 fanboy friendly phrases like “Spock here, Captain”, “Scotty here, Captain” and my personal favorite “Transporter room ready to beam up”. Hello Kitty Bling on a Limited Budget
Posted by Michael Pinto on Nov 28, 2008 in Hobbies and Collections
If you’re a Hello Kitty fangurl (or fanboy) that’s been hit by hard times this Hello Kitty 2009 Limited Edition Swarovski Watch might just be for you. Priced at a mere $579.99 the budget conscience kitty themed watch is a bargain when put next to the $3000 Neiman Marcus diamond-crusted Hello Kitty watch. The Wall.E Laptop (Sorry for Kids Only)
Posted by Michael Pinto on Nov 26, 2008 in Animation, Hobbies and Collections
Sometimes I wish the kids toys were for grownups — in this case the Wall.E Learning Laptop Watching the Watchmen Whatnots
Posted by Michael Pinto on Nov 18, 2008 in Comic Books, Hobbies and Collections
Watchmen fanboys can sleep soundly at night knowing that there will be tons of collectable knickknacks to coincide with the release of the feature film. My favorite of the goodies is a nifty 1:24 scale replica of the Owl Ship (shown above) and of course there are plenty of action figures too: Read more… There’s No Hiding from a Hello Kitty Wake Up Call
Posted by Michael Pinto on Nov 10, 2008 in Hobbies and Collections
There’s just no excuse not to take Hello Kitty on the road with you! This new Hello Kitty Alarm Clock is purrfect for those who like to travel — when you flip it open you use the mirror to see just how tired you look too. And best of all this alarm clock features “three different Hello kitty chimes to wake you up in style”, although I’m not sure I’d call that a feature… Found via akihabaranews.com. A Re-useable Ramen Cup: Now That’s Using Your Noodle
Posted by Michael Pinto on Nov 8, 2008 in Hobbies and Collections
Nothing goes together better than ramen and fanboys! There are two things that are great about this re-useable noodle cup which is made out of ceramic: First it’s good for the environment (although perhaps not as good for your diet) but it also allows a budget conscience fanboy to buy ramen in bulk and pinch pennies even further which can be spent on better things like comic books. Will You Take Me to the Mickey Mouse Magic Kingdom?
Posted by Michael Pinto on Nov 7, 2008 in Hobbies and Collections
From 1977 this is a commercial for the Mickey Mouse Magic Kingdom which featured a set of modified Weebles made to look like popular Disney characters. Looking at this ad the monorail looks quite cool, although as I child I detested the egg shaped toys a great deal. In fact the advertising taunt of “Weebles wobble but they don’t fall down” so irritated me as a child that I had to know the answer as to what kept the damn things from falling over. So after much experimentation my ultimate solution was to put one in a vice grip — and thus in the process almost destroying the vice grip. But after a long struggle I got to see the inner workings of the Weebles which were remarkable simple (there was a lead ball at the bottom of the inside of the sturdy plastic shell). Although looking back at it I had no idea that this Hasbro toy (which was rolled out in 1971) would be going strong decades later despite my scientific research on how to destroy the buggers. The Mickey Mouse Glove Flash Drive Honors the Golden Age of Cel Painting
Posted by Michael Pinto on Nov 5, 2008 in Animation, Hobbies and Collections
This is the first look at the Mickey Mouse Glove USB Flash Drive, although right now there’s no info on pricing and availability. The gloves in the Mickey Mouse cartoons were in fact a silent tribute to the cel painters who had the painful task of coloring each inked frame of acetate. Having done this sort of work back in my art school days I can tell you that it’s a painfully slow task which is very easy to muck up, so it’s very gratifying to see this very modern tribute to the golden age of hand painted cel animation. Found via geekalerts. Strike Witch Yoshika Miyafuji Will Cute You to Death
Posted by Michael Pinto on Nov 1, 2008 in Animation, Hobbies and Collections
I think I’ve yet to see a Nendoroid figurine that didn’t cute me out — and in this case Yoshika Miyafuji (the already cute heroin of Strike Witches – ストライクウィッチーズ) becomes even more adorable in her Nendoroid treatment. Yoshika is available for pre-order now, but she won’t show up on your doorstep until April of 2009. Halloween from Almost a Hundred Years Ago
Posted by Michael Pinto on Oct 31, 2008 in Hobbies and Collections
Digital archivist Steven Martin has put together an amazing collection of turn of the century photos entitled Halloween in the Time of Cholera. Most of the photos are from the 1910s — having grown up in the age of mass marketing what’s amazing to me is how homemade everything looks.
It’s What the Astronauts Ate — NOT!
Posted by Michael Pinto on Oct 31, 2008 in Hobbies and Collections
It’s 68% instant energy! Space Food Sticks date to the golden age of NASA which happens to also be the dark ages of American nutrition. These “chocolate treats” were marketed by Pillsbury in 1969 and lasted until the 80s. Although what’s shocking to me is that you can still buy them online today! Props to Lockwasher for Roboskater
Posted by Michael Pinto on Oct 29, 2008 in Hobbies and Collections
I’ve always admired the mechanical creations of Lockwasher. What’s wonderful about this robot is that he a definite sense of boyish excitement about him mixed with with a just a tad of punk attitude in his skull and cross bones emblem. Every Hippy Child Should Sport a Flying Nun Lunchbox!
Posted by Michael Pinto on Oct 29, 2008 in Hobbies and Collections
I recall seeing Flying Nun re-runs during my childhood, and what’s strange looking back at it is that at the time not only did it see like a normal TV show show — but while being blitzed with the more interesting eye candy of the era like H.R. Pufnstuf the Sally Field sitcom seemed pretty mundane. However now that I’m looking back at it the entire concept for the show is pretty bizarre, and I do wonder if the show could ever air today given how seriously everybody takes religion. The show went on the air in 1967, and the above lunchbox was produced in 1968. Here’s the backside of the lunchbox which is just as strange: Hello Kitty Portable Printer is Precious Party Purrfection
Posted by Michael Pinto on Oct 28, 2008 in Hobbies and Collections
The fun thing about a Polaroid camera was that it was always the perfect party device due to its instant gratification. These days digital photography has replaced that, but there’s something nice about walking away with a print that you don’t quite get from being tagged in Facebook. That’s why I got a kick out of this Canon SELPHY CP770 Hello Kitty Portable Printer which is due out in November — I think it’s going to be an ideal party accessory. In fact more and more my hunch is that you’ll start to see what use to be on the desktop become more mobile, playful and stylish. And who knows, perhaps one day we’ll see a return to an all-in-one digital camera/printer ala Polaroid. A Somewhat Eco-Friendly Japanese Newspaper Tote Bag
Posted by Michael Pinto on Oct 27, 2008 in Hobbies and Collections
This is the prefect gift for eco-minded Japanophiles: “Japanese newspaper (shinbun) expertly folded and glued by hand in Towa Village by farmer’s wives. For the environmentally conscience.” Although now that I’m thinking about it: I wonder how eco-friendly the bag is if it needs to be flown to the United States all the way from Japan thus adding to global warming? Oh well you can’t have it all, but the bag still looks cool… Found via uniquedaily.com. Retro Rogers Ray Gun
Posted by Michael Pinto on Oct 19, 2008 in Hobbies and Collections
I think that it’s fair to say that Buck Rogers was the first Star Wars of its day (sorry Flash Gordon came later). Buck started as pulp fiction but quickly made the jump to comics, movies and later television. And with success came merchandising — and the toy ray gun from the show became a favorite to a generation of young fanboys back in the day when “Atomic” conjured up visions of the future: Buck Rogers Atomic Disintegrator “Sideshow Collectibles is proud to present Go Hero’s Buck Rogers Atomic Disintegrator replica. Originally manufactured by Daisy in the 1930s, the Buck Rogers pistols were the most popular toy ray guns for kids and adults for years! Starting with the Atomic Pistol, and then after WWII, the Disintegrator Pistol, these celebrated ray guns became the gold standard by which all others would be judged. The Go Hero version is a hybrid of these two designs, 10″ metal pistol, four fins (sub-atomic condensors), and nearly a piece for piece reproduction of the originals. Pull the trigger for a loud pop sound and bright flashing spark to deliver that great original experience! Used as cover art for the 1995 Foo Fighters debut album and inspiration for blasters in several modern day sci-fi films, it is the epitome of iconic design perfection. It shoots no projectiles and is completely harmless, unless you happen to be an evil alien! Travel through time to see what the future used to be, as Go Hero presents the Buck Rogers Atomic Disintegrator Pistol!” |
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, a copy of the book that taught Walt Disney how to animate (or so the legend goes), for a mere $60. 
