A few months back I got this crazy idea that my favorite Mini Cooper magazine, MC2, might have a place for me. So, using the crazed pen name, Hollywood Zombie--with the thought of reaching a new demographic for the Mini Cooper business, I sent in my shit and, while they enjoyed reading it, they said they didn't know where to put me, and that their demographic was too old to relate. Duh.
In retrospect, there's not many places in the world for a guy like me, but that's okay. I accept that.
So, in light of this realization, I insist in at least publishing my own stuff for all the people who want to inflict suffering on themselves in a hundred years or so. With that in mind, here are 3 installments of my failed attempt at magazine publication.
"Rob Zombie and Frank Sinatra"
By Hollywood Zombie
(installment 2 of 3)
I can’t speak for everyone who owns a Mini Cooper, but, even though I was born in 1961, I have always prided myself in the fact
that I almost never say that things were better in “the good old days.” And, while I know this might start arguments, as far as entertainment goes, I don’t think music or movies were any better in the “good old days” than they are today. Actually, I like almost everything from 1910 to 2010. I like all music genres, from Elvis to Alice in Chains; there’s also not many films I won’t watch, either.
As for national pastimes, I’m happy with televised sports or video games. And, while life before 1960 may have been simpler for some, the “good old days,” as I see it, were also full of disease, racism, and wars. Hmmm, I guess things really haven’t changed much, have they? As for my particular tastes in music, sure, I have my favorites, but it’s the honest truth when I say that, even though I’m 48 years old, I like to listen to Rob Zombie while driving The Slayer (our Chili Red Mini Cooper S). Of course I also listen to Louis Armstrong, Django Reinhardt, Smash Mouth, and Disturbed. That’s right, I can switch from the haunting melody of Slim Whitman’s “Indian Love Call” to the screech of Marilyn Manson’s “Mechanical Animals” on the same road trip! I know, I know, you think I’m the devil (don’t worry; my wife doesn’t like it, either).
And while I’m not a huge fan of Hip Hop or Country, I’ve even listened to both of those genres on occasion, because, for me, music is really more about life. And, whether I listen to Sinatra or Zombie, almost all music has a place in my crazy life. Sinatra may be more about making love and being cool, and Zombie may be more about kicking ass and death, but I seem to need both to be a well-rounded lunatic. As for films, I love movies like It’s a Wonderful Life and I also love movies like Shawn of the Dead (okay, I’m kind of stuck on zombies), but I really need the full mix of everything or I feel like I’m missing something (maybe I’m not getting enough fiber).
Is there something wrong with a guy who might enjoy Singing in the Rain and Zombieland? Perhaps. Maybe I was dropped on my head as a small child, but what is it we’re talking about? If you’re really honest with yourself, every generation thinks their stuff is better than the things that came before or after, right? The kids in the 1950s looked down on their parents who jumped and jived to Cab Callaway. The kids who grew up in the 1990s might have hated Abba—it’s all relative. If you grew up in the caveman days, you would’ve probably enjoyed the sound of some guy beating on a log, and hated it when your son beat on his new fangled skin drum. You might have screamed, “Thag! Stop beating stupid drum! Music only good on log!”
It’s really only been in recent years that some of the kids today have actually started listening to Frank Sinatra, Swing, or Big Band, while they might also listen to Linkin Park or the Black Eyed Peas. Why? I don’t know, maybe they just wanted to see what they’re missing. Heck, that may be why bought a Mini Cooper when I once thought they sucked. I met so many people who loved them, that I gave it a chance and found out that it not only didn’t suck, but it was the absolute coolest car I’ve ever driven, so I bought one.
In life, when people claim that one thing, music, film, style, or art is better than another, they lock themselves into a mindset that is potentially stifling. In the end, taste is all pretty relative and has more to do with personal preferences or even a misplaced sense of loyalty to the established opinions of our peers. The single-hearted devotion to a certain musical style or artist is really nothing more than being nostalgic about what we grew up with, and not so much an actual appreciation of art.
Sure, it’s okay to like something, but to say it’s better than everything else that is different, old or new, betrays the devotee. In many ways, such rigidity is the same exact thing we disliked about our parent’s opinions about the things we loved when we were teens. Why do we do the same thing? We’re idiots. Of course, it’s perfectly acceptable to hate a certain style of music or genre of film, or even a type of car, but do so only after giving it a chance, right? Who knows, you might find that you like Rob Zombie’s song, “Living Dead Girl.”
Okay, some might argue that old Blue Eyes didn’t use vulgar expletives when “Young at Heart” became a million seller in 1953, but before the Korean War ended in the same year, I’m pretty sure expletives were used quite frequently by the young soldiers who sang along; on the battlefield they probably had good reason to use expletives. Sure, that’s no justification for dropping f-bombs in a song, but songs are about emotions, experiences, and sometimes you just need to scream when life makes you a little nuts—at least I do. And the MP3 sound system in The Slayer REALLY rocks! Oh yeah!
Hollywood Zombie also answers to the name Wade Buffington. He earned a BA in English Creative Writing from the University of West Florida. He is retired from the US Air Force and currently works as a civilian supervisor and 3D Illustrator/Animator for the US Navy, and, in his spare time, writes screenplays and fancies himself an independent film director. Wade and his lovely wife, Lynn, live in beautiful Pensacola, Florida. They have four self-sufficient adult children who live all over the world, and awesome grandchildren, that they don’t see near enough. Hollywood can be reached at: wbuffington@cox.net
(installment 2 of 3)
I can’t speak for everyone who owns a Mini Cooper, but, even though I was born in 1961, I have always prided myself in the fact
that I almost never say that things were better in “the good old days.” And, while I know this might start arguments, as far as entertainment goes, I don’t think music or movies were any better in the “good old days” than they are today. Actually, I like almost everything from 1910 to 2010. I like all music genres, from Elvis to Alice in Chains; there’s also not many films I won’t watch, either.
As for national pastimes, I’m happy with televised sports or video games. And, while life before 1960 may have been simpler for some, the “good old days,” as I see it, were also full of disease, racism, and wars. Hmmm, I guess things really haven’t changed much, have they? As for my particular tastes in music, sure, I have my favorites, but it’s the honest truth when I say that, even though I’m 48 years old, I like to listen to Rob Zombie while driving The Slayer (our Chili Red Mini Cooper S). Of course I also listen to Louis Armstrong, Django Reinhardt, Smash Mouth, and Disturbed. That’s right, I can switch from the haunting melody of Slim Whitman’s “Indian Love Call” to the screech of Marilyn Manson’s “Mechanical Animals” on the same road trip! I know, I know, you think I’m the devil (don’t worry; my wife doesn’t like it, either).
And while I’m not a huge fan of Hip Hop or Country, I’ve even listened to both of those genres on occasion, because, for me, music is really more about life. And, whether I listen to Sinatra or Zombie, almost all music has a place in my crazy life. Sinatra may be more about making love and being cool, and Zombie may be more about kicking ass and death, but I seem to need both to be a well-rounded lunatic. As for films, I love movies like It’s a Wonderful Life and I also love movies like Shawn of the Dead (okay, I’m kind of stuck on zombies), but I really need the full mix of everything or I feel like I’m missing something (maybe I’m not getting enough fiber).
Is there something wrong with a guy who might enjoy Singing in the Rain and Zombieland? Perhaps. Maybe I was dropped on my head as a small child, but what is it we’re talking about? If you’re really honest with yourself, every generation thinks their stuff is better than the things that came before or after, right? The kids in the 1950s looked down on their parents who jumped and jived to Cab Callaway. The kids who grew up in the 1990s might have hated Abba—it’s all relative. If you grew up in the caveman days, you would’ve probably enjoyed the sound of some guy beating on a log, and hated it when your son beat on his new fangled skin drum. You might have screamed, “Thag! Stop beating stupid drum! Music only good on log!”
It’s really only been in recent years that some of the kids today have actually started listening to Frank Sinatra, Swing, or Big Band, while they might also listen to Linkin Park or the Black Eyed Peas. Why? I don’t know, maybe they just wanted to see what they’re missing. Heck, that may be why bought a Mini Cooper when I once thought they sucked. I met so many people who loved them, that I gave it a chance and found out that it not only didn’t suck, but it was the absolute coolest car I’ve ever driven, so I bought one.
In life, when people claim that one thing, music, film, style, or art is better than another, they lock themselves into a mindset that is potentially stifling. In the end, taste is all pretty relative and has more to do with personal preferences or even a misplaced sense of loyalty to the established opinions of our peers. The single-hearted devotion to a certain musical style or artist is really nothing more than being nostalgic about what we grew up with, and not so much an actual appreciation of art.
Sure, it’s okay to like something, but to say it’s better than everything else that is different, old or new, betrays the devotee. In many ways, such rigidity is the same exact thing we disliked about our parent’s opinions about the things we loved when we were teens. Why do we do the same thing? We’re idiots. Of course, it’s perfectly acceptable to hate a certain style of music or genre of film, or even a type of car, but do so only after giving it a chance, right? Who knows, you might find that you like Rob Zombie’s song, “Living Dead Girl.”
Okay, some might argue that old Blue Eyes didn’t use vulgar expletives when “Young at Heart” became a million seller in 1953, but before the Korean War ended in the same year, I’m pretty sure expletives were used quite frequently by the young soldiers who sang along; on the battlefield they probably had good reason to use expletives. Sure, that’s no justification for dropping f-bombs in a song, but songs are about emotions, experiences, and sometimes you just need to scream when life makes you a little nuts—at least I do. And the MP3 sound system in The Slayer REALLY rocks! Oh yeah!
Hollywood Zombie also answers to the name Wade Buffington. He earned a BA in English Creative Writing from the University of West Florida. He is retired from the US Air Force and currently works as a civilian supervisor and 3D Illustrator/Animator for the US Navy, and, in his spare time, writes screenplays and fancies himself an independent film director. Wade and his lovely wife, Lynn, live in beautiful Pensacola, Florida. They have four self-sufficient adult children who live all over the world, and awesome grandchildren, that they don’t see near enough. Hollywood can be reached at: wbuffington@cox.net
