Jacob Thomson Official Website

Royal "Arrow" Portable:  I bought one of these used when I was working on my Masters, and I've been using it ever since, even though we're well into the computer age. For some reason I seem to be able to write better on a typewriter than on a computer. I think this may be because it's too easy to make changes on a computer, which makes it too easy to edit when you should be writing.

There is a lot to be said for working on an old manual portable. It doesn't matter a bit if the power goes out, and since the output is ink on paper, you never have to worry about accidentally losing several hours' work when your word processing program crashes and you were too preoccupied with what you were writing to save it every few minutes. And, of course, there's the rhythmn of the typebars hitting the paper through the dancing ribbon.

Nicole Kidman:  Okay, so call me a dirty old man, I think she's hot. She's also one of the better actresses currently working, and has somehow managed to get those good parts despite being one of the most beautiful women in the film industry. Hollywood, unfortunately, isn't always willing to allow the leading man/woman types to really act, prefering to put them in "safe" roles. Kidman has been able to get these parts, and she's done a damn good job with them.

And, just in case you were wondering, the character of Dinah in The Alukam is not patterned on Kidman, despite the red hair. Physically, at least, Dinah's mostly based on a stripper in one of the local clubs who, while by no means even slightly vampiric, will quite happily drain your bank account and max out your credit card if you let her.

Dead Calm

Moulin Rouge

Batman Forever

Li'l Abner: We were a Daily News family when I was growing up, which was very good, because that was back in the days when the Times wouldn't stoop to anything as plebian as running comic strips in their paper. Li'l Abner was always a favorite, and remained so until 1977, when Capp ended the series two years before his own death. In addition to 43 years of newspaper strips, Li'l Abner appeared in animated cartoons, a movie, and a 1957 Broadway musical (which, in turn, was also made into a movie).

Li'l Abner Vol. 1: 1934-36	Li'l Abner Vol. 2: 1937-1938	Li'l Abner (CD) 1956 Broadway Cast Album	Li'l Abner (DVD) 1940 non-musical version
Li'l Abner (DVD) 1957 Musical