Cartoon Sunday: Tim Burton's Vincent [Narrated By Vincent Price]

How's it going lurkers? So, after watching this Animated Horror Stop-Motion Short for today, it reminded me of a Creative Writing Class I had taken. 

While attending UW-Parkside 15 years ago, I took a Creative Writing- Poetry course. We learned about different types of poetry. This included creating our own story poems.

Because our Creative Writing professor wanted us to write our story poems based on a past excursion, I wrote about the time I shopped at the store, Circuit City and bought KoRn's Follow The Leader album.

Oh, how I miss the days of Circuit City. If only Best Buy had helpful and competent employees, quality electronics, and better organization. 

As I was saying, I wrote a story poem about shopping for KoRn's 3rd album. I wish I remembered how I wrote that story poem, years ago. It's somewhere in 1 of my old roller backpacks.

Returning to the topic of today's Cartoon Sunday, I found a rare gem by Tim Burton. On October 1, 1982, the Gothic Horror filmmaker released the Animated Horror Stop-Motion Short, Vincent.

Tim Burton's Vincent was a story poem with a sing-songy rhyme scheme about the delusional 7-year-old boy, Vincent Malloy. It was also narrated by the late great Vincent Price.

I say that Vincent Malloy is a delusional 7-year-old boy for a reason. I may take it a step further by saying that he is quite morbid for his age. Not that I can really talk. 

When I was Vincent Malloy's age, I was a morbid little girl except I did not practice experiments on my pets like a mad scientist, in order to create zombies.

In hopes of creating a ravenous zombie dog, Vincent practices experiments on his dog, Abercrombie. The protagonist also idolizes Vincent Price, is obsessed with the works of Edgar Allan Poe including Poe's "The Raven," believes he's some "tortured artist," and is deprived of the woman he loves.

Some of you might find my description of Vincent Malloy to be patronizing, but you should most DEFINITELY watch Vincent for yourself. This Animated Gothic Horror Short was filmed, when Tim Burton was still an animator at Walt Disney Animation Studios.

Vincent was Burton's 2nd Disney Horror film. In 1980, he debuted with the British American Horror film, The Watcher In the Woods.

I enjoyed Edward Scissorhands, Sleepy Hollow, the Pee-wee Herman franchise, and the first 3 Batman movies. 

This may or may not come as a shock to you but I am not a huge Tim Burton fan.

Even though the Beetlejuice franchise during the late 1980's and early 1990's contributed to me being a Goth little girl, I find a lot of his other work to be contrived.

As much as I enjoy watching SOME campy entertainment, there is a time and a place for campiness.

Years ago at James O'Barr's panel for The Crow, O'Barr said he was approached with the idea of having Tim Burton turn his comic book into a Broadway musical, starring Michael Jackson. 

As much as I like Michael Jackson, that SCREAMS laughingstock.

It made sense for James O'Barr to turn down the offer. The Crow comic book was not comedic; O'Barr's comic book was mostly about tragedy.

When something is TOO campy, it starts to look and feel contrived.

Anyway, to lighten the mood and to segue into the Halloween spirit early, here is Tim Burton's Vincent narrated by the late great Vincent Price, for today's Cartoon Sunday.

Vincent [Narrated By Vincent Price] (1982)

Which Writers Made Writer's Relief's Top 10 Horror Writers Countdown

How's it going lurkers? Because I normally blog at least 2-3 days a week on here, blogging appears to overshadow the fact, that I am also a Horror Writer. 

I have been creating MY OWN stories with MY OWN characters, since I was a 3rd grader. This cannot necessarily be said about those, who write Fan Fiction.

I'm actually amazed by some people I meet in public, who have NEVER heard of Fan Fiction or know what it is. Even though I am not yet published, I have never liked or respected Fan Fiction. Neither do more established and published authors such as Stephen King, for example.

Fan Fiction is more like a disguised form of plagiarism by nerds online, who want to pretend they are so-called screenwriters. I have said this countless times, if you are able to write your own stories, you can create YOUR OWN CHARACTERS, as well.

Why re-write another author or screenwriter's story to best suit YOUR OWN LIKING, when you can create your own characters and write your own stories?

I can understand basing your story on a historical figure/event or paying homage to an author. 

In fact, 11 years ago, I was assigned to pay homage to an author for a Creative Writing class during my college junior year. 

My short story, "Dolls", which I eventually renamed "Across The Street," is mostly an homage to Octavio Paz's Flash Fiction piece, "The Blue Bouquet." 

In addition to paying homage to Paz, I incorporated an homage to the inside album cover of KoRn's Follow The Leader album and James O'Barr's The Crow.

This will surely offend quite a few by me saying this, but it seems like it is mostly Millennials, who are so quick to write Fan Fiction rather than creating their OWN stories to write and creating their OWN characters.

It's as if Fan Fiction writers are striving to be wannabe "screenwriters" and expect for everyone to pat them on their backs for UNoriginality and copycatting. 

Writers of that ilk don't try to be innovative in the slightest because they deluded themselves into believing, that they can write a famous author or screenwriter's story BETTER than he/she did. This automatically makes me roll my eyes and laugh.

If Fan Fiction writers can create such dynamic stories, they can surely create their own characters. I don't care HOW they try justifying to me or anyone else. You will be a lot more respectable, WHEN you create your OWN characters with the stories you independently created. It would NOT surprise me if most publishers consider Fan Fiction writers to be laughingstocks.

Speaking of writers in today's blog, Writer's Relief shared a YouTube video sharing their countdown of Top 10 Horror Writers. Since I am a Horror writer and a FAN, I thought I would share their video.

When I was growing up, I was NOT a bookworm. Reading books typically bored me to sleep. Watching TV, movies, and music videos were entertaining. However, I will say that whenever I DID enjoy reading books, they were usually published books by R.L. Stine or another Horror author.

Whether I was reading or watching it, Horror always kept my interest. Then again, it's like I already said, I was born and raised during the 1980's and '90s. During the 1980's, TV shows such as Freddy's Nightmares, for example, used to air on local TV stations.

Slasher Horror was highly condemned and demonized yet it was a favorite among Horror fans. The Horror fandom was not like it is today. Horror was nicher for a niche audience.

Almost everyone today is a Horror fan because Horror is now widely acceptable, more contrived, LAMEstream, and "trendy" for the HIPSTER demographic.

You will have to forgive me, if I sound more like an elitist for saying this, but a lot of today's so-called Horror fans are hipsters. Those supposed Horror fans did NOT  earn their proverbial stars and stripes of being labeled as a sociopath, psychopath, FREAK, weirdo, serial killer, or any other type of negative label, which most of us REAL Horror fans were demonized and branded as, during our youth.

Anyway, here is Writer's Relief's video countdown for their Top 10 Horror Writers.

Writer's Relief's Top 10 Horror Writers Countdown (2015)

Song Saturday: Lacuna Coil Block {With Their Better Songs}

How's it going lurkers? Last October, I published a Song Saturday blog featuring the Italian Goth Rock/Metal band, Lacuna Coil. While helping my uncle with his on/off again company last year, I listened to Lacuna Coil's Dark Adrenaline album. As much as I love the band, their earlier albums from 1999 to 2002 were and still are the best.

Lacuna Coil's 2002 album, Comalies became mainstream 1 year later. I loved that album. I listened to Lacuna Coil's earlier albums such as In a Reverie (1999) and Unleashed Memories (2001), during my years in college because of Comalies.

Before, during, and after I graduated from Carthage College in 2006, Lacuna Coil's single, "Our Truth" was featured on the Underworld: Evolution Soundtrack. "Our Truth" was also featured on the band's 2006 album, Karmacode. It's a decent song as well as their song, "Within Me." However, I really don't care for Karmacode and the rest of Lacuna Coil's more recent albums.

I hate saying that Lacuna Coil "sold out," but in a way they did sell out. Their more recent albums sound nothing like their earlier albums. Then again, Ozzfest is somewhat "The Kiss Of Death" for most Metal and Hard Rock bands.

It's great that Ozzfest helped give obscure bands more exposure. At the same time, their music completely changes after they reach their pinnacles.

After those bands change their sound, they soon begin to lose their integrity by pandering to the wrong audience. I understand that bands must evolve in sound over the years, but... 

If it's not broken, why fix it?

Take KoRn, for example. Their music was enjoyable, until they reached their pinnacle in 1999. Then, KoRn became a Shit Sandwich. 

Even though I still like 3/5 the original band members, I haven't bought a KoRn album, since I was a teenager in the late '90s. Their music has become unrecognizable.

The same most definitely applies to some of the original band members' personalities (*cough-cough* "Head's" for example). Talk about being pretentious and self-righteous, since he has now found Jesus. Don't even get me started.

At least I can't say this for Lacuna Coil's Cristina Scabbia and Andrea Ferro (I'm really more of a Cristina Scabbia fan). I still like them as people even though I do miss the band's earliest sound.

This Song Saturday is a LENGTHY  block of Lacuna Coil's songs between 1999 and 2002. 

Before listening to the block, here's an interview Cristina Scabbia did with Mike DiQuinzio of JAM Magazine.

JAM Magazine: Mike DiQuinzio Interviews Lacuna Coil's Cristina Scabbia {NEW} (2014)

 

The following songs are from their albums In a Reverie, Unleashed Memories, and the album that made the Goth Metal band popular, Comalies.

 

1) Lacuna Coil "My Wings" In a Reverie (1999)

2) Lacuna Coil "To Myself I Turned" In a Reverie (1999)

3) Lacuna Coil "To Live Is To Hide" Unleashed Memories (2001)

4) Lacuna Coil "Senzafine" Unleashed Memories (2001)

5) Lacuna Coil "Cold Heritage" Unleashed Memories (2001)

 

6) Lacuna Coil "Lost Lullaby" Unleashed Memories (2001)

7) Lacuna Coil "Aeon"/"Tight Rope" Comalies (2002)

8) Lacuna Coil "Entwined" Comalies (2002)

9) Lacuna Coil "Comalies" Comalies (2002)

What Are My Thoughts About KoRn's The Family Values LIVE On AXS TV?

This blog was originally published on Blogster October 6, 2013.

Hey Blogsterians! ~ 2 hours ago, I finished watching KoRn's The Family Values Live on AXS TV. For the most part, most of the bands, that performed sucked ass. Beware Of Darkness, Machine Gun Kelly, and Hollywood Undead suck.

Asking Alexandria was the best band, that performed before KoRn. Honestly, they should've performed as a great lead in for KoRn rather than Hollywood Undead. KoRn performed last. I guess this really fed into the whole "saving the best for last" adage. 

Regardless, I sat through mostly shitty performances. 

I am glad I wasn't in Denver to see that concert because I would've demanded my money back. In a nutshell, Asking Alexandria and KoRn's performances were the best. Everybody else sucked.

I don't know why KoRn had such bad acquisitions for their concert tour. They could've picked better than what they did. KoRn's Family Values Tours always had a variety of Rap and Rock groups on their tours, but at least they were normally good.

Most of the performers were terrible from what I saw earlier. I didn't get a chance to watch the entirety of KoRn's performance because it ran against Bleach on Adult Swim. However, I watched most of their performance. KoRn was the main reason why I watched AXS TV over 2 hours ago.

Since the band is celebrating their 20th anniversary, it would've been more appropriate to have the entire band reunite rather than 4/5 of them.

HardDrive Radio's blogger/interviewer, Roxy, ranted about David Silveria recently on the show's Dirt page. She ranted that David did NOT need to return to the band because he supposedly didn't want to return.

I somewhat have a problem with what Roxy said about David Silveria. She's all for Brian "Head" Welch returning to KoRn but not David? That doesn't make any sense.

David, as well as "Head," were part of the original band. If anything, I would expect for Roxy to have a bigger problem with "Head" returning because he left KoRn, before David Silveria.

"Head" originally left KoRn for his quest to find Jesus, while blaming everyone else in KoRn for his drug abuse. I always thought, that was such bullshit. "Head" abused drugs before and after KoRn was formed. At the risk of sounding self-righteous, none of them should've been abusing drugs, anyway.

D.A.R.E. programs have been around for DECADES and KoRn already knew what happened to all their idols many years ago. They abused drugs out of defiance because they were already warned.

It would be an unrealistically high expectation of mine to think, that musicians do not abuse drugs. I am simply pointing out the facts. "Head" had no right to blame his band for his own drug abuse.

He had and still does have a mind of his own. If "Head" didn't want to be on drugs, he should've never started. Duh!

Like I was saying earlier, I have a problem with what Roxy from HardDrive Radio said about David Silveria. It's absolutely hypocritical for her to be rejoicing over "Head" returning to KoRn, while condemning David, who was ALSO an original KoRn band member to return. 

A real KoRn reunion would be having everyone back together rather than 4/5. I fail to understand Roxy's logic but whatever.

I think KoRn should've disbanded 10 years ago because their albums went from phenomenal to garbage. I have KoRn's first 4 albums dating back to 1994. I did not waste money on their other albums because they were garbage.

KoRn's Issues album was a disappointing Christmas present in 1999 but they temporarily redeemed themselves with their 2002 album, Untouchables.

I don't own Untouchables but, I listened to the album in its entirety when I was a DJ and played some of the songs from Untouchables on my radio show. 

Once KoRn released Take A Look In The Mirror, I was disappointed again like I was with Issues.

About a year or 2 ago, I listened to all of KoRn's other albums from 2003 and beyond on MySpace. Those last albums were not worth investing in.

I didn't get a chance to listen to KoRn's last album. I heard their song "Get Up," which was a Skrillex collaboration. OMG! That was terrible.

Almost everyone in The Music Industry is abusing that Dub Step shit like it's the new Auto Tune, which was why I didn't give KoRn's last album a chance.

I have heard at least 2 of KoRn's latest songs, which are "Love and Meth" and "Never Never." So far, they're not bad. I hope their new album is the best they have released, since 2002.

When I was 12-20 years old, I loved listening to KoRn. After turning 21, their music went down the shitter.

It's not that my musical preferences drastically changed because I still listen to a variety of music genres and sub-genres. Old School KoRn Kids like myself miss the way they were.

After KoRn became more mainstream, their music changed much like most Metal bands have over the last 1-3 decades.

That reminds me, Roxy keeps branding Old School KoRn Kids as "haters" on HardDrive Radio's daily blogs. I resent that. It's a major slap in the face to all of us veteran fans.

Roxy is an old ass, divisive, Baby Boomer who claims that KoRn is her "favorite band," YET she's acting like a butt-hurt sycophant because Veteran KoRn Kids like myself don't share her views. If she and the New Age KoRn Kids like KoRn's newer music, that's their right. 

At the same time, Roxy and the newbies have no right to label us as "haters" because we dislike what their music has become, and because David wants to reunite with everybody just like "Head" decided to do for their 20th anniversary. 

I think I have said all of what I needed. So, what are your thoughts about this whole pseudo KoRn reunion? 

KoRn "Never Never" The Paradigm Shift (2013)