Whenever I mention “Weird Al” Yankovic to one of my friends I get two responses: “Is he still around?” and/or “You still listen to that guy?”  The answer to both questions is “Yes” and I don’t appreciate your tone.

Ever since the early 80’s, Al has been there to lampoon, skewer, & cut-down-to-size that most bloated of monstrosities: the professional musician (but in the nicest way possible).  He always gets permission for his parodies and most artists agree without hesitation.

But Al’s parodies have never been my favorite of his fare.  They may have gotten me in the door as a mere youth but his original songs and style parodies (songs that take on the overall oeuvre of an artist instead of a specific track) have kept me coming back.  In fact, I argue his original material has only gotten stronger as the years have drifted by.

Another thing I prefer about the style parodies is their lasting quality.  A specific song parody has a shelf-life as long as the single it lampoons, but the style parody lasts as long as the band it references remains in the zeitgeist.  It can mean different things to different fans.  It’s malleable and therefore long-lasting.

So with the release of The Essential Weird Al Yankovic this week, I thought it would be nice to look over my 11 favorite Weird Al originals of the last 26 years.

Since in comedy to analyze is to kill, I’ve kept it short and added links!

“The Check’s in the Mail”
1983, “Weird Al” Yankovic
The boppy little ditty from Al’s first LP takes every slimy business cliche and gives it a beat.  In a 60’s big band motif (with accordion), the song’s protagonist dodges calls, bills, and general decency in an oddly endearing second person narrative.

“This is the Life”
1985, Dare to Be Stupid
Al’s offering to the Michael Keaton comedy Johnny Dangerously provides that underrated film with some period appropriate montage music & lyrics.  It’s not the funniest song in Al’s catalogue but it is one of the catchiest.

“Dog Eat Dog”
1986, Polka Party!
This Talking Heads style parody is the highlight of Al’s least-successful album.  Here is where you can clearly see him simultaneously lampoon the office world and David Byrne at the same time. A feat unseen since Spike Jones took on Hitler and the bilabial fricative.

“The Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota”
1989, UHF: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack and Other Stuff
I was lucky.  I had only recently unearthed my dad’s copy of Verities & Balderdash by Harry Chapin. Since I had heard songs like “30,000 Pounds of Bananas” and “Six String Orchestra,” I got this song immediately. Along with my friend & school bus-mate Neil Casey knowing all the words, this is a seminole song of my childhood.  Still think I’m lucky?

“You Don’t Love Me Anymore”
1992, Off the Deep End
Admits the sensitive rock of the early nineties with it’s silk shirts & black and white videos, there was this ballad.  This wonderfully absurd ballad.  My mom laughed out loud on the line: “You shoved my face down on the barbecue grill / Now my scars are all healing but my heart never will.” Bringing generations together.

“Since You’ve Been Gone”
1996, Bad Hair Day
When I saw Al live at Kahunaville in Wilmington, Delaware with my girlfriend (he added for a little street cred), this was the opening song.  Some consider it a rehash of Al’s hit single “One More Minute”. But if it is I prefer this version for it’s brevity and a-capella. [By the way, if you get to see Al live, it's amazing. In addition to the show he puts on, he does parodies he never released on CD, like a mash-up of Green Eggs and Ham and U2's "Numb".]

“Hardware Store”
2003, Poodle Hat
I’ve always loved songs with lots of words that come fast and furious. From the patter songs of Gilbert & Sullivan to this little ditty about a guy who’s really, really, REALLY excited about the hardware store opening in his neighborhood. I will learn all the words, oh yes, I will.

Poodle Hat 1996, Bad Hair Day
“Close But No Cigar” 2006, Straight Outta Lynwood
These style parodies of Nirvana and CAKE respectively are examples of Al not only writing music that could easily fit on either band’s album but lyrics that give fans of Kurt Cobain and John McCrea something additional to laugh at.

“Skipper Dan” / “CNR”
2009, Internet Leaks
Both of these songs are from Al’s latest non-compilation EP and are the reason I wrote this posting in the first place. The first an edgy look at a fully-schooled & unemployed actor working the Jungle Cruise Ride at Disneyland, the second a fable about Charles Nelson Reilly told in the style of The White Stripes. Both have a high place on my iPod’s rotation and both made me laugh out loud.

I will leave you with the video to “CNR” made in collaboration between Al & the fine folks at Jib-Jab.

Hav you already seen FESTIVALE? Why not come to the Wilmington Fringe Festival & bring your iPod. That way, you can listen to Patrick’s commentary to the film! Huh? Huh? Yeah . . .

Download the current Unknown Penguin Podcast on iTunes or here to get Patrick’s commentary. Press play when the “Unknown Penguin Pictures” logo fades up at the start of the movie.

Something for Google’s birthday.

As you may or may not be aware, this past Monday Gmail was offline for about 100 minutes. While that may not sound like a big deal, the Internets came alive during that 100 minutes with a kind of frenzy not seen since Twitter went offline for a few hours last month.

Three days later, we look back at one of the darkest parts of a section of an afternoon.

Enjoy.

More on the Gmail outage.

Starring & improvised by Patrick Flynn, Andre Meadows, & Burl Moseley.

Audio clips from Buzz Out Loud: CNET’s podcast of indeterminate length, episode 1055: “Sign me up for awesome” featuring Tom Merritt, Molly Wood, & Rafe Needleman. Video clip from CNET’s The Buzz Report: “Texting While Driving: The Horror!” (9/3/09) featuring Molly Wood.

Unknown Penguin’s entry for the 2009 Los Angeles 48 Hour Film Project.

UPDATE: Ghost Date named one of the 13 films selected LA 48 Hour Film Project’s Best Of out of approximately 75 eligible entries!!

Welcome to “Speed Ghost Dating.” It’s like speed dating . . . but with ghosts.

REQUIRED ELEMENTS
genre: Ghost Movie
prop: junk mail
character: Alex or Alexis Filbert, champion
line of dialogue: “How was I supposed to know?”

For the second time in a row, we drew “Ghost Movie” as a wild card genre. GHOST DATE was filmed at the ComedySportz theatre in LA and stars many ComedySportzLA mainstage players including Cat Davis (afterellen.com’s Cat on the Prowl), Christopher Mathieu (truTV’s Missing Person’s Unit), Andre Meadows (Black Nerd Comedy), Scott Palmason (Scrubs), Andrew Stubblefield (I’m Reed Fish). GHOST DATE also stars Burl Moseley (24), Erin Buckley, and Patrick Flynn.

A woman who has had 24 kids by 28 men, wonders why she does not have her own TLC show.

This week the Unknown Penguin Podcast is dedicated to the late, great voice of the Philadelphia Phillies: Harry Kalas. Harry was very important to all Phillies fans and he will be dearly missed. Listen on iTunes or HERE.

Read Patrick’s review of Derrick Comedy’s debut film Mystery Team for CinCity2000 HERE .

Here’s the trailer:

This week we present a new segment in our movie discussions in which Patrick watches a classic film he’s never seen. This week: The NeverEnding Story.

Joining Patrick ’round the table are Burl Moseley & Wes Whitehead.

{The following is brought to you by Countrywide Beatnik Hard Liquor: “Drink to forget.”}

Greetings one and all. In these troubled times [drink] we turn to the movies, to the TV, to the Interwebs and hope to borrow surcease of sorrow. I saw 277 feature length films last year [7 non-fiction, 9 animated, only 6 foreign (sorry, dad)]. And since no one asked me, here is what I think of the Oscar nominations and the best movies of 2008.

This year, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences (and most other Awards shows) have nominated five films that most haven’t seen and (mostly) aren’t all that spectacular (this is called “drawing the audience in with controversy”). Is the Academy out of touch? To quote my friend Keith Powell: “Who cares?” Well said, sir.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a masterpiece of digital technology but in terms of story, interest, and pathos, it is less-than. I felt no connection to the characters and no interest in their stories. On a side note, I am not a fan of the story-within-a-story device of a character telling the story of their life during the movie (Forrest Gump). It doesn’t add anything to the story, and in this film’s case it actually took away from my enjoyment.

Frost/Nixon is a very enjoyable and tense thriller. It is also an example of how to adapt a work from stage to screen. Ron Howard does what may be the best work of his career and uses the camera to aid the characters. Instead of “opening up” the play he closes in and lets us really get up in these characters’ faces, one thing a play cannot do.

I did not enjoy Milk as much as I was hoping to. Top shelf acting from the whole ensemble and the parallels between California then and now are startling. However, it didn’t grab hold of me as most Gus Van Sant films do. It didn’t challenge me as much as I was expecting. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed it but it hardly blew me away.

I did not enjoy The Reader. I found it pedantic, didactic, and other snooty words. Kate Winslet is good, of course (she always is), but the rest of the cast in uninspired and I wasn’t at all sure what I was supposed to take from it if anything. On a side note, Winslet should not be up for Lead Actress but rather Supporting Actress since her character is very much a supporting role in the story.

Slumdog Millionaire is the best of group by far. Danny Boyle’s direction is top-notch and I’m glad he’s finally getting the recognition he deserves. The acting is quite good as well. The story didn’t blow me away and I think we’ve all seen this movie before. But the more I think about this film, the more I like it.

“Patrick, what were your favorite movies of the year?” Good question, plebeian reader. In alphabetical order, here are the ten best movies I saw this year.

The Bank Job
(Roger Donaldson) Set in the 70’s, Martine (Saffron Burrows) offers Terry (Jason Statham) a lead on a foolproof bank hit on London’s Baker Street. But Terry and his crew don’t realize the boxes also contain a treasure trove of dirty secrets - secrets that will thrust them into a deadly web of corruption and illicit scandal. Based on a true story.  This is a masterful heist film. Donaldson manipulates us and his characters with true excellence. He also handles the very complicated story with true talent. You trust him from the start, so although you may be lost for a moment, you never feel out to sea. Statham gives his best performance since Snatch.

Burn After Reading (Joel Coen & Ethan Coen) A disk containing the memoirs of a CIA agent (John Malkovich) ends up in the hands of two unscrupulous gym employees (Frances McDormand & Brad Pitt) who attempt to sell it.  This movie devided a lot of critics and friends of mine alike. As a self-confessed Coen Brothers lover, I must admit I’m biased. But, c’mon, how can you watch this film and not have a great time. A great cast (including the always wonderful J K Simmons) take you through this insane world with glee. No one does chaos like the Coens, no one does stupidy like the Coens, and no one makes you laugh quite like the Coens. If you liked The Big Lebowski, you’ll like Burn After Reading (the opposite is also true).

The Dark Knight
(Christopher Nolan) Batman (Christian Bale), Lt Gordon (Gary Oldman), and D.A. Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) deal with the chaos unleashed by an anarchist mastermind known only as The Joker (Heath Ledger).  Okay. So, I assume that you’ve either seen it or aren’t going to see it (or have young kids and will see it later). Many have said to me they found it long, many have said to me they liked the first one better, to them I have all said the same thing: I have seen this movie three times and would go again if you asked. Nolan, Bale, Oldman, Eckhart, and Ledger blend in a compelling and fascinating way. It’s not the best movie ever, it’s not the best movie I’ve seen this year, but it is amazing to watch (and I think better than Batman Begins). Ledger deserves the Oscar he’s going to win. There I said it.

Happy-Go-Lucky
(Mike Leigh) A look at a few chapters in the life of Poppy (Sally Hawkins), a cheery, colorful, North London schoolteacher whose optimism tends to exasperate those around her.  Most movies are not what you’d call realistic. Some movies claim to be realistic but are really just boring as hell. But every now and again a movie like Happy-Go-Lucky comes out and really “holds the mirror up to life” in a genuine way.  And if you’re lucky, it’s half as good as this movie is.  Mike Leigh’s “kitchen sink realism” has been evidenced in films like Vera Drake and Naked but not since his 1999 film Topsy-Turvy has it been so compelling and startling. Nothing really happens in Happy-Go-Lucky, there are no major revelations, deceptions, betrayals, etc. The characters go about their lives much as you imagine they would in “real” life. But they (the characters) are so complete and so compelling that the experience is magical. What’s best is this movie really is for everyone. I highly recommended to anyone and everyone. It’ll just make you feel good.

In Bruges
(Martin McDonagh) Hold up in the Belgium town of Bruges after a difficult job, two hit men (Colin Farrell & Brendan Gleeson) begin to differ on their views of life and death as they become used to local customs.  I loved, loved, loved this movie. McDonagh crafts an interesting morality fable about the wages of sin and theories of hell. Beautifully shot in the simultaneously bleak and beautiful Bruges, this is one for the books. Farrell & Gleeson are as good as Travolta & Jackson as philosophical hitmen (though McDonagh’s hitmen are probably more realistic). Ralph Feinnes is masterful as their gang leader. I can’t say enough good things about In Bruges.

Rachel Getting Married
(Jonathan Demme) A young woman who has been in and out from rehab for the past 10 years (Anne Hathaway) returns home for her sister’s wedding.   There have been many hand-held, shot-on-video, family dramas over the last several years. And while some have been better than others (Pieces of April is quite nice), none of them comes anywhere near the beauty or sophistication of Rachel Getting Married. Jonathan Demme and Jenny Lumet (daughter of Sidney) find a perfect harmony as director and writer respectively that is reminiscent of Juno’s Jason Reitman and Diablo Coby (or Network’s Sidney Lumet and Paddy Chafesky). The acting is first rate (especially Bill Irwin as the father of the bride) and the sheer simplicity of the storyline make you feel like this is really unfolding before your eyes. Excellent, excellent stuff.

Slumdog Millionaire
(Danny Boyle) A Mumbai teen who grew up in the slums (Dev Patel), becomes a contestant on the Indian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? and is arrested under suspicion of cheating. While being interrogated, events from his life history are shown which explain why he knows the answers.  Again, really good.

The Visitor
(Thomas McCarthy) A college professor (Richard Jenkins) travels to New York City to attend a conference and finds a young couple living in his apartment.  Thomas McCarthy’s first film, The Station Agent, was a heartbreaking study of people out of step with the world finding their own family. The Visitor is about a man who has removed himself from the world finding his way back in. Both are brilliant. Jenkins gives what will surely be the performance of his career. One which should be studied for its subtlety and intricacy. And I ask you (after you’ve seen it) who is “the visitor?”

WALL·E
(Andrew Stanton) In the distant future, a small waste collecting robot inadvertently embarks on a journey that will ultimately decide the fate of mankind.  I don’t think it is an overstatement to say that WALL·E might be the most beautiful animated movie ever made. Pixar used 7 time Academy Award nominated cinematographer Roger Deakins to consult on shot design and the results are amazing. On top of all of that, WALL·E is one of the best characters Pixar has ever presented. Is the message heavy-handed? I don’t care, it’s great stuff.

The Wrestler (Darren Aronofsky) Drama centered on retired professional wrestler Randy “The Ram” Robinson (Mickey Rourke) as he makes his way through the independent circuit, trying to get back in the game for one final showdown with his former rival.  It’s a hard movie to watch and it isn’t for everyone but it is (in my opinion) the best movie of the year. Aronofsky (Pi, Requiem for a Dream, The Fountain) strips all the frills away from filmmaking and presents a barebones and heartbreaking story. Rourke is electric as is Marisa Tomei as an over-the-hill stripper and Evan Rachel Wood as Randy’s estranged daughter. Heartbreakingly wonderful.

Other very good movies I saw this year and would recommend are: Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Get Smart, Gran Torino, Hellboy II: The Golden Army, Iron Man, John Adams, My Boy Jack, Rambo, Redbelt, and Tropic Thunder.

“But, Patrick, who do you think is going to win at the Oscars this year?” Calm down now, I’m getting there.

I did manage to see all of the domestic, feature length, fiction films nominated for Oscars this year but I found the effort more taxing than normal. Just not as many exciting films out there.

Best Motion Picture of the Year
WILL WIN: Slumdog Millionaire
SHOULD WIN: Slumdog Millionaire
SHOULD’VE BEEN NOMINATED: Happy-Go-Lucky, WALL·E, and The Wrestler should replace The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Milk, and The Reader.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
WILL WIN: Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler
SHOULD WIN: Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler
SHOULD’VE BEEN NOMINATED: Clint Eastwood, Gran Torino / Dev Patel, Slumdog Millionaire

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
WILL WIN: Kate Winslet, The Reader
SHOULD WIN: Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
SHOULD’VE BEEN NOMINATED: Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
WILL WIN: Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
SHOULD WIN: Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight [there, I said it again]
SHOULD’VE BEEN NOMINATED: Eddie Marsan, Happy-Go-Lucky / Ralph Fiennes, In Bruges

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
WILL WIN: Penélope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona [goin' out on a limb here]
SHOULD WIN: Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler
SHOULD’VE BEEN NOMINATED: Evan Rachel Wood, The Wrestler

Best Achievement in Directing
WILL WIN: Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
SHOULD WIN: Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
SHOULD’VE BEEN NOMINATED: Darren Aronofsky, The Wrestler

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen
WILL WIN: Milk, Dustin Lance Black
SHOULD WIN: In Bruges, Martin McDonagh
SHOULD’VE BEEN NOMINATED: Rachel Getting Married, Jenny Lumet

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published
WILL WIN: Slumdog Millionaire, Simon Beaufoy
SHOULD WIN: Slumdog Millionaire, Simon Beaufoy

Best Achievement in Cinematography
WILL WIN: Slumdog Millionaire, Anthony Dod Mantle
SHOULD WIN: The Dark Knight, Wally Pfister
SHOULD’VE BEEN NOMINATED: The Wrestler, Maryse Alberti

Best Achievement in Editing
WILL WIN: Slumdog Millionaire, Chris Dickens
SHOULD WIN: Slumdog Millionaire, Chris Dickens
SHOULD’VE BEEN NOMINATED: The Wrestler, Andrew Weisblum

Best Achievement in Art Direction
WILL WIN: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Best Achievement in Costume Design
WILL WIN: The Duchess

Best Achievement in Makeup
WILL WIN: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Best Achievement in Music Written, Motion Pictures, Original Score
WILL WIN: Slumdog Millionaire, A R Rahman

Best Achievement in Music Written, Motion Pictures, Original Song
WILL WIN: WALL·E, “Down to Earth,” Peter Gabriel & Thomas Newman [I think the two Slumdog Millionaire songs will split.]

Best Achievement in Sound
WILL WIN: Slumdog Millionaire

Best Achievement in Sound Editing
WILL WIN: WALL·E

Best Achievement in Visual Effects
WILL WIN: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year
WILL WIN: WALL·E

Best Foreign Language Film of the Year
WILL WIN: Waltz with Bashir (Israel)

Best Documentary, Features
WILL WIN: Man on Wire [the one about the indomitable human spirit]

Best Documentary, Short Subjects
WILL WIN: The Witness from the Balcony of Room 306 [the Civil Rights one]

Best Short Film, Animated
WILL WIN: Presto [the Pixar one]

Best Short Film, Live Action
WILL WIN: Spielzeugland [the Holocaust one]

Below is a list of all the movies I saw this year and recommendations [+] or not [-]. Hugh Jackman’s hosting Sunday, how many times will they mention Australia?

Good night, everybody.

Fiction:
Appaloosa
Australia
Baby Mama
The Bank Job [+]
Body of Lies
Burn After Reading [+]
Cadillac Records
Cassandra’s Dream
Changeling
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight [+]
Defiance
Definitely, Maybe
Doubt
Eagle Eye [-]
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Four Christmases
Frost/Nixon [+]
Frozen River [+]
Get Smart [+]
Gran Torino [+]
Hancock [-]
The Happening [-]
Happy-Go-Lucky [+]
Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay [-]
Hellboy II: The Golden Army [+]
In Bruges [+]
In Search of a Midnight Kiss [+]
The Incredible Hulk
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull [-]
Iron Man [+]
John Adams [+]
Leatherheads [+]
Milk [+]
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day
My Boy Jack [+]
Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist
Pineapple Express [-]
Quantum of Solace [+]
Rachel Getting Married [+]
Rambo [+]
The Reader
Recount
Redbelt [+]
Revolutionary Road
Righteous Kill [Uncle John movie of the year]
Semi-Pro
Slumdog Millionaire [+]
Traitor
Tropic Thunder [+]
21
27 Dresses
The Visitor [+]
W.
The Wrestler [+]
Zack and Miri Make a Porno

Animated:
Bolt
Kung Fu Panda
The Pirates Who Don’t Do Anything: A VeggieTales Movie
WALL·E [+]

Non-Fiction:
The Black List: Volume One
Public Enemies: The Golden Age of Gangster Film
Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired [+]

Debuting this week is the new theme song/opening sequence of the AfterEllen.com chat show Cat on the Prowl starring Cat Davis. And who directed and edited said video? Well it was The Unknown Penguin. Performing the song is the duo That’s What She Said. Check it out at AfterEllen.com .