Wow, there’s a flashback. Like Robin says kids, “it was *actually* like this. ALL. THE. TIME.”

I’m going to go drink something hard.

THIS IS HOW I MAKE BREAD [Bougieman via MercyStreet1986]

Happy Hallowe’en everyone! Here’s to hoping the dead don’t come back tonight, I’ve got a party to attend!

imply fascinating, as the good Mr. Spock might say. Vintage images from a Kaiju art book showing anatomical cutaways of some of our favourite giant monsters. Apparently Godzilla’s flame breath comes from “a “uranium sack” and “nuclear reaction sack” that produce radioactive fire-breath and energize the body.” That’s pretty swift, if you ask me. Mothra and Anguirus are tucked below the cut. Follow the link to the originator for more, including Gamera!

Kaiju Anatomy: Internal Organs that Allow Giant Monsters to Breathe Fire [io9.com, via Pink Tentacle, via modern_fred]

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Ah, childhood and the scars it leaves upon us. Back in the day when we still had local children’s programming, there was a British former clown who went by the name of Uncle Bobby, and his show was one of the most low-budget affairs you can imagine. This clip I present to you shows Bimbo The Birthday Clown, a giant cardboard monstrosity who would present birthday wishes to the boys and girls. One must remember, however, that what appears to us now to be laughable and quaint, to a young child was terrifying. The flapping ears, the rolling eyes of the giant with his jabbering mouth; the high-pitched cries of the yarn puppets, creatures I can still never look at without a modicum of discomfort. Truly nightmarish. Please, enjoy my memories laid bare for you, whilst I leave you with a transcript of the goliath’s song, which rings through my head to this day:

Bimbo Bimbo

I’m the birthday

clown they call

Bimbo Bimbo

On the Uncle Bobby Show

Bimbo Bimbo

I would like to say

you and you a very

happy birthday

“Happy birthday boys and girls”

Happy Birthday, indeed.

The Uncle Bobby Show – Bimbo the Birthday Clown [YouTube]

Just… wow. I have not seen anything this cracky in quite some time. A giant robot bunnygirl shoots a giant robot panda in the face with her rocket boobs. If you need more impretus than that to watch this clip, you probably are reading the wrong blog.

Panda-Z, Episode 01 [YouTube]

Goddamn do I love neon. Click on the image for a full-size, desktop-ready version.

Is that… semen? I think that’s supposed to be an x-ray of semen, yeah. Anyhow, I found this awesome site; a photographer by the name of Nick Veasey takes x-rays of atypical stuff. There’s some very creepy shots of a baby doll, some awesome animal x-rays, and the coolest of all is the insect images. Exo-skeletons make for some very interesting x-ray results. YOu really should go check this out.

Oh, if you’re wondering why, if the insects are so cool, I used the image I did, wel, I’m not going to tell you why. I have a good reason though. Trust me.

Nick Veasy – X-Ray Photographer

Isn’t that just one of the nicest renditions of Eris you’ve ever seen? It comes from D.J Coffman’s blog Yirmumah.com, which has one of the more interesting gimmicks I’ve seen yet. Basically, you send him two bucks via the PayPal with a request, and he’ll provide it for you in visual format. He’s already managed to piss off Scott Kurtz from PVP for this one, so the man is a king in my book. Go check it out, and if you request anything, make sure to tell me!

Will Draw Anything 49: Eris Goddess of Strife eating a Hotdog [Yirmumah.com]

Aerospace behemoth Boeing has announced that it will build a hybrid airship/helicopter combination aircraft, able to lift heavy loads across long distances. Boeing will work with Canadian firm SkyHook International.

Finally, the industrial-corporate hegemony has seen the value of lighter-than-air craft! Oh, how I’ve yearned for a world where giant zeppelins drift silently through the sky, like massive lofty whales of the aether. Thank you Boeing, for making this young man’s dreams a wonderful reality. Now, I just need to convince someone that these are needed in Vancouver…

Boeing to build combo airship-copter flying cranes [The Register]

Who says video games can’t teach you anything? This video demonstrates the many-worlds theory of quantum physics by using a hacked, super-difficult version of Super Mario World called Kaizo Mario World, and a customized emulator to overlay 134 different playthroughs of a single level. It’s really quite an enjoyably fascinating little bit of footage, and the write-up that goes along with it is definitely worth a read to see the inspiration behind the experiment. Science, art, and fun, all rolled into one package. Ebert, eat your heart out.

Super Mario World Explores Quantum Physics [Kotaku, via Mechanically Separated Meat]

Wow. This is some neat effect work. Monkey drummer, yeah!

It’s a little too early in the morning for clever dialogue. Bugger off, or give me whiskey.

Monkey Drummer [YouTube]

Okay, maybe it’s just a hologram projected over a fountain, but damn, isn’t it pretty? This is a Japanese promotion for The Water Horse, a new Disney movie about some Loch Ness Monster type of critter. Yes, it’s a giant, animated holographic projection of a water monster. I dunno, I saw the commercials and just couldn’t get over how crappy the CGI looked. However, this is way neater. The holographic technology was apparently developed by Disney years ago for their theme parks; I’ve never heard of it before, but it’s sure spiffy. The way it moves! Be sure to follow the link below for video footage!

Cool Stuff: Holographic Water Monster Invades Japan [/Film]

This is Marco. Isn’t he adorable? His little swirly ball, big buggy eyes, and glistening exposed fangs just scream huggable, dontcha think? I love his little hands. Marco was made by the amazingly talented Jessica Joslin, a Chicago-based artist, and apparently a junkhound extraordinaire, judging by the amount of neat stuff she’s found to make her menagerie with. There’s an interview with her over at Coilhouse, which I’m not even going to bother excerpting, because you’re all going to go right over there and read it. Or at least stare at the pretty pictures.

Jessica Joslin’s Delightful Wunderkammer Creatures [Coilhouse]

Beuatiful. Haunting. Creepy as fuck. All these terms can be used to describe this nightmarish little bit of clockwork. Her vacant, yet active, dollface looks around the room as she plucks away at her invisible harp. Her bady is old, broken; the holes are visible, and one wonders how this marvel has stayed intact for so long. How old is she? Where did she come from? Her enigmatic, slack-jawed stare provides no answers. Luckily, YouTube does. Made by Gustave Vichy, she was born in Paris in 1880. Truly haunting, truly wonderous.

Automaton Harpist by Vichy [Bruce Sterling, via Ectoplasmosis]

Try to think about parasites without a feeling of fear, and take the time to learn about their wonderful world of the Parasites

Such is the mission statement of sorts from the official website of the Meguro Parasitological Museum. A small little institute based in Tokyo, the museum boasts over 45,000 specimens, each beautifully encapsulated and mounted for display. They claim to be the only parasitological museum in the wold, and I’d be very surprised to find out otherwise. Admission is free, which would probably partially account for the fact that it is apparently a rather popular date spot; I can only think of a few ladies that I would take to such a place, but I’m quite certain they’d all love it terribly.

I’m absolutely fascinated; this is definitely going on the list of “Things To Do” when I make it to Tokyo, and I suspect it’ll place highly in my treasured memories. I love me some parasites, oh yeah.

Meguro Parasitological Museum [Coilhouse]

I love The Residents so damn much. When I was but a young man experimenting in the eldritch ways I spent an entire summer hypnotizing myself in the dark with a cigarette, listening to the Freak Show CD. I’d usually fall asleep to the sultry strains of Jelly Jack – “whoa whoa whoa, I’m Jello Jack, jolly boneless boy. I live inside, a jar beside, a rooster-boy named Roy…” – emanating through my subconscious. Even now, I could probably sing the album back to you with a minimum of error. On that note, and for your reading pleasure, the Jefitoblog has posted a massive primer to the best band ever, with sample MP3s a-plenty. Make sure to check out The Electrocutioner and Constantinople, from the album Duck Stab/Buster and Gen. It’s one of my favourites, and those two songs are wonderfully illustrative of the influence the Residents had on later bands such as Primus and They Might Be Giants. Also, please take a moment to listen to Nobody Laughs When They Leave, from Freakshow, to hear the song I want played at funeral. Thanks muchly to the always-wonderful Ectomo for pointing out this excellent retrospective.

The Complete Idiot’s Guide to the Residents [Jefitoblog, via Ectoplasmosis]

Amazing piece of art here. Theo Jansen is a kinetic sculptor who lives in Holland. Using the wind on the beaches of the Netherlands to power his works, he builds these giant skeletons which are able to walk. According to his Wikipedia article, Jansen is “dedicated to creating artificial life through the use of genetic algorithms”. He tests the survival-fitness of his pieces by studying their ability to survive on the beach while moving around within enclosed areas of both wet and dry sand. He then “breeds” his structures together, and grades the “offspring”. By doing this, complex designs emerge on an almost evolutionary scale. So damn cool.

Kinetic Sculpture [glumbert.com, via Bioephemera]