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Sandbox World

Purple Haze:  Jimi Hendrix Beauty Collection

Talk about cashing in. Collaboration between Authentic Hendrix, LLC; Sony Music’s merchandise wing, The Thread Shop; and retail platform Rock And Roll Beauty want you to be a Foxy Lady. The range includes the Voodoo Child Artistry Palette (which comes in a guitar-shaped compact), the Purple Haze candle, Foxy Lady matte lip duo (of lipstick and liner) and (seemingly, not quite done with the song name) the Purple Haze brush set.

The Criterion Collection: Walker on Blu-ray

Out this week is The Criterion Collection: Walker on Blu-ray. This movie not only has Joe Strummer as an actor but Strummer also composed the whole soundtrack. Inspired by the music of the area where the movie was shot, this is a fine film to add to your collection. It takes liberties as a timepiece movie to play with accuracy. An unconventional retelling of the life of William Walker, a 19th-century American mercenary leader who became the president of Nicaragua. All can be forgiven for a great little film.

Girls on Film: Witty Life Lessons from Alicia Malone

I got TCM as my go-to station. My PVR is working overtime recording each week movies that matter. I value all the host's information about the movies that are about to show. Alicia Malone is a welcome addition to the station. Her keen movie sense brings a unique spin each week to movies we cherish. I am very excited to know she just released, Girls on Film: Witty Life Lessons from Alicia Malone from Mango Publishing. I am a fan of the hosts on TCM, nice to see Alicia share a bit more about herself through the movies she watches. Life imitates art some will say, Alicia, is just as glamourous as the film's actresses that she showcases each week. She is a jewel in the TCM family. This is one book you will not want to miss.

Vinyl Nation – A Documentary About the Return of Records

Vinyl Nation digs into the crates of the record resurgence in search of truths set in deep wax: Has the return of vinyl made music fandom more inclusive or divided? What does vinyl say about our past here in the present? How has the second life of vinyl changed how we hear music and how we listen to each other? The documentary features Judy Mills, Ashley C. Ford, Kelly Stacy, John Vanderslice, Kutmasta Kurt, Alyson Baker, Kelley Stoltz, Ben Blackwell, Billy Fields, Roz Lee, and Ashleyanne Krigbaum.

The Wonderful World of Brothers Grimm Deluxe Edition

I recently heard an old podcast Stuff You Should Know titled How Grimm's Fairy Tales Work. I was treated to the origins of the Brothers Grimm's true stories. The Brothers Grimm stories have been around for such a long time that they have embedded themselves in Hollywood and pop culture more than ever since it was first published. Walt Disney sanitized most of the stories to stockpile their fortunes. The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm is a 1962 fantasy film directed by Henry Levin and George Pal. The film was one of the highest-grossing films of 1962. It won one Oscar and was nominated for three additional Academy Awards. Several prominent actors—including Laurence Harvey, Karlheinz Böhm, Jim Backus, Barbara Eden, and Buddy Hackett—are in the film.

The More Things Change – Film, TV & Studio Work 1968-1973

John Barry is a man of mystery to most people outside England. Barry scored perhaps the top movies and TV shows ever known to the human ear in the 60s and 70s. You knew there was magic when the theme song for Beat Girl screamed from the screen in 1960. There was more magic to follow. Ace Records collects some of his best works from 1968-to 1973 with a new offering called The More Things Change - Film, TV & Studio Work 1968-1973. Nobody was doing it better than him at the time. You might also want to buy, Music By John Barry”, a 500-page book covering his greatest scores by Redcliffe Press.

What I am watching this weekend: The Torment (L’enfer) by Claude Chabrol on Kanopy

There is more to a library card nowadays. You can download books, audiobooks, music, stream, and graphic novels without setting foot in a library. My favorite freebie from my local library is Kanopy. The avantgarde streaming service is a welcome addition for unusual classic movies that you will not find with other streaming services. You stream thousands of films for free, thanks to the generous support of your public library or university. I am allocated 5 movies a month. This weekend I am watching The Torment by director Claude Chabrol from 1996. The French title is L'enfer. I do not know why they do not translate it as Hell. The movie stars Emmanuelle Béart, François Cluzet, and Nathalie Cardone.

The Hollies: A Biography by Malcolm C. Searles

The history of the Hollies is enigmatic at best. Their squeaky clean images kept them out of the spotlight. The Beatles hogged the British scene in the 60s, while The Rolling Stones thrived on their enfant terrible image. This might be the reason why not much is written on The Hollies. The Hollies: Riding The Carousel by Malcolm C. Searles promises to shed light on perhaps of the greatest 60s band.

To Everything That Might Have Been: The Lost Universe Of Space: 1999

The cult classic science fiction series Space: 1999 has legions of fans around the world and has been researched and documented in comprehensive books and documentaries, so fans can be forgiven for thinking there’s nothing new … This book takes you back to the beginning, to the genesis of the series, and to early themes, characters, and story outlines.

Moonfall descends on April 1

In Moonfall, a mysterious force knocks the Moon from its orbit around Earth and sends it hurtling on a collision course with life as we know it. With mere weeks before impact and the world on the brink of annihilation, NASA executive and former astronaut Jo Fowler (Academy Award winner Halle Berry) is convinced she has the key to saving us all – but only one astronaut from her past, Brian Harper (Patrick Wilson, “Midway”) and a conspiracy theorist K.C. Houseman (John Bradley, “Game of Thrones”) believe her. These unlikely heroes will mount an impossible last-ditch mission into space, leaving behind everyone they love, only to find out that our Moon is not what we think it is.

Michael Kleber-Diggs wins 2022 Hefner Heitz Kansas Book Award in Poetry

Worldly Things refuses to “offer allegiance” to this centuries-old status quo. With uncompromising candor, Kleber-Diggs documents the many ways America systemically fails those who call it home while also calling upon our collective potential for something better. “Let’s create folklore side-by-side,” he urges, asking us to aspire to a form of nurturing defined by tenderness, to a kind of community devoted to mutual prosperity. “All of us want,” after all, “our share of light, and just enough rainfall.”

Lucifer: The Complete Fifth Season

The devil made me do it. I had to post the latest release of Lucifer: The Complete Fifth Season. I really love this show. With solid acting, Lucifer found a new following on Netflix. So much so that it got an extension of life with new episodes. Better catch up and buy the previous seasons. You will not want to miss the exciting series. There will be hell to pay if you do not pick up this series.

JLA/Avengers Being Reprinted To Honor Artist George Pérez

The Justice League and the Avengers are coming together again, to honor one of the best artists to ever draw them. In December, legendary comic artist George Pérez announced that he was dying. Diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, Pérez announced to the public in a heartfelt Facebook post that he was opting to spend the last months of his life with his family, friends, and fans rather than try painful cancer treatments.

Clive Barker’s Dark World by Phil and Sarah Stokes

I am very excited about Cernunnos' new book Clive Barker's Dark World by Phil and Sarah Stokes. This is a must for fans of Clive Barker's cinematic dark world of gore and lore. Phil and Sarah Stokes are the official archivists of Clive Barker's work. The book explores the process of Barker's imagination germinating from paper to film. This is one book you do not want to miss. This is a perfect gift just before Halloween, Clive Barker's Dark World by Phil and Sarah Stokes will be released on October 18, 2022.

Spider-Man: Panel By Panel

Eisner Award–winning graphic designer Chip Kidd and award-winning photographer Geoff Spear deconstruct the first two iconic issues featuring Marvel Comics’ friendly neighborhood superhero in Spider-Man: Panel by Panel.

Bowie at 75 by Martin Popoff

Illustrated with live concert and candid offstage photography as well as memorabilia including gig posters, 7-inch picture sleeves, and more, this incredible package also includes a gatefold Bowie timeline, a gatefold painting depicting "A Party of Bowies," a previously unpublished 8x10 glossy print, and a pullout by famed gig poster artist Frank Kozik. The result is a stunning tribute to one of the most influential and admired stars in rock history—in a milestone year.

Classic stories that inspired The Batman feature film box set

One of the most iconic fictional characters in the world, Batman has dedicated his life to an endless crusade, a war on all criminals in the name of his murdered parents, who were taken from him when he was just a child. Since that tragic night, he has trained his body and mind to near physical perfection to be a self-made Super Hero. He’s developed an arsenal of technology that would put most armies to shame. And he’s assembled teams of his fellow DC Super Heroes, like the Justice League, the Outsiders and Batman, Incorporated.

Index, A History of the: A Bookish Adventure from Medieval Manuscripts to the Digital Age

Most of us give little thought to the back of the book—it’s just where you go to look things up. But as Dennis Duncan reveals in this delightful and witty history, hiding in plain sight is an unlikely realm of ambition and obsession, sparring and politicking, pleasure and play. In the pages of the index, we might find Butchers, to be avoided, or Cows that sh-te Fire, or even catch Calvin in his chamber with a Nonne. Here, for the first time, is the secret world of the index: an unsung but extraordinary everyday tool, with an illustrious but little-known past.