Google's Doodle celebrating the life and works of Jules Verne.

February 8, 2011 marks the 183rd birthday of Jules Verne, known to many as the father of science fiction.  His most popular novels include Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, Journey to the Center of the Earth and Around the World in Eighty Days.  Verne was a visionary who lived from 1828-1905.  During his life, he wrote about space, air, and underwater travel before any practical means of exploring those realms had been developed.  In 1863, Verne imagined what Paris in the 20th Century would look like, creating a world full of glass skyscrapers, high-speed trains, gas-powered automobiles, calculators, and a worldwide communications network.

Now you can use that worldwide communications network to learn more about Verne, download free audio versions of his books and dive 20,000 leagues under the sea.  Today’s Google Doodle honoring Verne is designed to appear like the portholes of a submarine – one that you can guide by either using the joystick to the right of the Doodle (if you’re on a PC) or by tilting your iPad or iPhone. Continue reading »

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Remember being forced to memorize lengthy poems in grade school? Or maybe you’re facing the unenviable task of sitting through hours of “Thirty days hath September, April, June and . . . Mooooom, what’s next?”

Might we provide them with a little inspiration to get the job done?

Behold Michael Vanderbilt, a guy who appeared on Jeopardy last year (a friend sent me this yesterday) and recited a popular kids’ poem . . . in one breath. Continue reading »

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It’s here, it’s here. No time to say hello, goodbye, it’s here, it’s here, it’s here.

Oh yeah, that would be the Alice in Wonderland trailer. After months of being sated with pictures from the Tim Burton take on the Lewis Carroll classic, we’ve got live action featuring Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter in the form of the official trailer. Continue reading »

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I’m already freaked out. Tim Burton is currently working on a 3-D adaptation of Alice in Wonderland. I love Alice in Wonderland. I adore the book and have watched the sugarcoated Disney animated version countless times. I’m also a big fan of the surreal take of the tale by Jan Švankmajer. But this new incarnation of the Lewis Carroll classic…it’s looking pretty damn creepy.

Photos of the film – which won’t be out until spring of 2010 – were released and give a sneak peak into the eerie and odd aesthetic that we can expect. To the right, is the Johnny Depp ‘s possessed portrayal of the Mad Hatter and Continue reading »

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