Dec Issue San Marcos

STOP LAUGH AWAY YOUR TICKET $30 INSURANCE DISCOUNT FOR $27 PRE-REGISTER AT

CORRIDORDD.COM    

I was really not looking forward to sitting in a defensive driving class, but they made it so funny. Great instructors! I recommend highly.

 The atmosphere is great, very intimate, had a lot of fun watching the comedians there.

 Interesting location in small comedy club adjacent to coffee shop and tavern/restaurant. Great coffee. Good food. Live music in coffee shop was fun for breaks. Instructor was engaging and sincere about driver safety.



129 E. Hopkins Suite #120 enter through the Coffee Pot

Rooster Suicide INTERVIEW

Weird Magazine Interviews ROOSTER SUICIDE

By Nicholas Aluotto WEIRD: Did you have fun playing at the Grey Hoarse?

RS: Mark: Yeah, playing out there is always a good time.

Great stage, great P.A., and the owners and the staff are all good folks.

WEIRD: Where did you come up with the name Rooster Suicide?

It’s a killer name.

RS :Mark: We originally wanted to call ourselves “Sweet Black Angel”, a take on the old B.B. King song, but after googling the name, I found that another band was using that name.

We could’ve just asked them if they’d be willing to face us in a Texas Death

Match for the name, but I doubt they would’ve accepted.

After kicking a few names around, a friend of mine told me about watching a chicken throw itself into a river, and we had ourselves a name.

WEIRD: How long have you been playing together?

RS:Mark: I got the idea for what has become Rooster Suicide shortly after my band of 15 or so years, Dual Exhaust, broke up. I’ve always been drawn to the blues, and without a full-time project going on, I got to work on putting this together. Handsome Dan and Dan Halens bands, Oceanus and Teabag, had both broken up, so I asked them if they’d be interested in starting up a blues band, and luckily for me, they were into it.

The three of us started jamming in Dan’s

garage last fall, and after a few sessions, I realized that we’d sound much fuller with a second guitar player, so I had Handsome Dan ask his old band mate, Matt, if he’d be interested in coming on board. I’ve always admired Matt’s ability as a guitar player, and I wasn’t too sure if he’d dig what we were doing, but he showed up to practice and hasn’t split. We’re right around the one year mark.

WEIRD: How much beer & whiskey does your band consume weekly?

RS:We don’t count, we drink.

WEIRD: Who are some of your influences?

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Rooster Suicide INTERVIEW about 5 or 6.

WEIRD: How many tattoos does the band have combined? 1 gazillion?

RS: Mark: Dan Halen is the most heavily tattooed of the bunch, Handsome Dan and I aren’t too terribly far behind him, and Matt is a blank canvas. But since I’m a tattooer down at Classic Tattoo here in San Marcos, that may change soon….

RS:We are definitely influenced by metal as well as the blues, but I wouldn’t go so far as to call it “Blues Metal”. I would consider bands like Black Sabbath and Blue Cheer “Blues Metal”. We’re just cranking out some heavy blues.

WEIRD: How many original songs do ya’ll have?

RS: My

original

intention with Rooster Suicide was to just do old blues covers, but we have managed to crank out a few originals.

Counting some songs we’re still working on, we have

WEIRD: I noticed you covered a few songs tonight. What are some of your favorite songs to cover?

I’ve always loved doing Rolling Stones songs, but I really enjoy taking old blues songs and breathing new life into them.

“Poor Black Maddie” is one of the first songs we worked out, and I think that’s probably the best example of what we do to old blues songs.

RS:

We’re about to start working with Sarah Jones, who is by far one of the most amazing singers I’ve ever heard, and we’re planning on doing some Etta James songs with her, as well as some other stuff.

WEIRD: Tell us about your first Album.

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RS:Mark: We don’t have one yet, but we will be putting out a split 7 inch with Cactus Rash soon.

WEIRD: Which one of you is the ugliest?

RS: You’re kidding, right?

We’re the best looking band in San Marcos.

WEIRD: What’s next for Rooster Suicide?

RS:After last nights show, I’m laid up recovering. As for the band, practice, shows, recording and drinking WEIRD: When is your next evening of entertainment scheduled?

RS:We are actually booking dates right now, so keep an eye out… we’ll be getting’ it on again real soon….

Matt Begley & Bitter Whiskey www.mattbegley.com

along the way that we love getting into and throwing down a show. So sometimes, you just have to get up early and stay out late.

Playing two shows in a day isn’t an everyday thing, but it can happen more than ya think. Just give us an ear, and we’ll throw it down.

W:. What is some of your favorite venues to play in San Marcos?

Matt Begley & Bitter Whiskey Interview By: Nicholas Aluotto

W:. So, Matt Begley & Bitter Whiskey, How do you feel after playing two shows last Friday night?

MB:. We love getting out there and playing for as many people as possible. And sometimes you just have to pull in some dates that you want to make work.

Now that San Marcos is our home and base of operations, we try to get involved with Texas State. The Mystic Music Festival was fun and we look forward to more opportunities to get new crowds.

‘W:. Is it common for you to play two shows in one night?

MB:. We love playing the fes-

tivals, rallies, and rodeos… and there are a lot of bars and dives

MB:. Now this type of question usually can get complicated… but luckily we don’t mind telling our friends hello and the others to fuck off. Kim and Mike over at The Gray Horse Saloon have given us a place to call home and we’re grateful for all that. It’s got a great crowd and friendly people. (Matt and Charlie Lisk (drummer) play every Monday..”Matt Begley Monday Song Swap with... _____” another local artist.) We just got into The Triple Crown, another kick ass bar across town last month, so we’re looking forward to going back in January to see Eric and the family. Shoot, Don’s Fish Camp is bad-ass in the summer… All in all, you don’t have to play the “standard San Marcos” venues across town. That’s what makes San Marcos so cool, there are a lot of bars and venues out there and we’re willing to play at em’ as long as they don’t tie us down to one place.

W:. What is some of

your favorite venues in Texas?

MB:. Woody’s Beach Bar on Galveston Island is a really nice

place. Its stage backs up to the ocean, so if you are ever down that way... check out Woody’s and raise some hell. The Chaparral Club out in Van, TX is another old-school dancehall bar that we like getting back to, and of course the Dirty Dog Saloon on 6th street. We always have fun out there and look forward to every show.

Shoot, there are so many dive bars and VFW’s along the way... that is the type of venue we feel at home.

W:. When did you start making music?

MB:. Matt Begley & Bitter Whiskey is going on our fourth year, but everyone has a lot of experience in their instrument.

I (Matt) started writing in 2003 and Charlie (drummer) started playing drums when he was 12, so 1997 I guess. Jimmy (lead guitar) and Nathan (bass) have been playing since about 1998 so everyone brings a lot to the table as individuals. We’ve all known each other for a while and known that if given the opportunity we would want to put it together... so about a year ago, after some personnel changes in the band things really started to fall into place.

w: . How come I want to drink whiskey and get in a

bar fight when your music is playing? Do you put subliminal messages in your music? ‘

MB:. No, there ain’t no sublimi-

nal messages here, just good ol’ country music. Now there might be something to the fact that we all like to drink whiskey like it’s going out of style.

Maybe that just rubs off on the crowd. As for the fightin’… we pride ourselves on a high energy show and I guess that plus booze could make someone feel a little froggy... just don’t look to us for bail money! Hell it might be the other way around and we’re calling you!

W:. I like that song “White Trash Trio”. What is in a “White Trash Trio”? ‘

MB:. Thanks, the “White Trash Trio” is a song about the three favorite things in every redneck’s life. Jack Daniels Whiskey, Marlboro Reds cigarettes, and Red & White Dynamite (Budweiser beer) make up the Trio. It’s something we can all relate to and look forward to at the end of hard-working day.

We all like to drink, dance, laugh, and just have a good time after a long day. I think everyone can relate to that so why not sing about it.

W:. You talk about cocaine in a few of your songs? My guy sucks. Do you know anyone that can get some good stuff?

W:.Whats your December schedule look like?

MB:. On Christmas Day we are going to record a live show at Huntsville prison, so of course we are anxiously awaiting that date. Christmas has always been a big holiday in all of our homes with our families and we feel it is important to allow everyone to have that experience.

Even if it means missing our own. The holiday season tends to be a slower time for a lot of bands, but we are making the best of everything and going to be releasing our 2nd album “The Duct Tape Sessions”. We are really proud of our product and want to get it out there ASAP.

Don’t answer...just text me his number.

W:.Whatcha got in the works

MB:. Ha! We plead the 5th!

B:. The future is wide open.

W: Every great band has a cra-

zy story about a fight or a crappy venue. Whats the weirdest thing thats happened on the road?

MB:. Sadly, we tend to wrestle and fight together more than anything. We are all like brothers and damn it, brothers sometimes we knock the shit out of each other. We grew up watching old-school wrestling and after a few drinks and when the music is cranking loud, it just feels good to slap the shit out of other…but it’s all in good fun.

As for crazy, weird shit...there are honestly good stories every time we come back in town. Bike rallies are wild too. Those are the people that really get down.

We get to see all the tits and ass we want, get rowdy drunk and paid for it...life is good.

for 2010?

The more faces we see, the better. We will always stay true to the idea that we want to play any and every dive, stage, bar, saloon, and venue in-between.

We’re not scared to play...so don’t be afraid to listen. It might get loud and in your face, but you’ll always be tapping your foot and dancing. In 2010,hopefully you’ll be singing along.

W:. How can someone find

your music online? Facebook myspace?Do you use twitter?

Whats your website?

MB:. You can find us at our website.. www.mattbegley. com.. or on myspace at… www.myspace.com/mattbegley.

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THE TAP ROOM BURGERS secret weapon, the sweet toasted buns.

The buns’ unique flavor is the glue that holds all of the other flavors together.

THE TAPROOM 129 E Hopkins St # 120 San Marcos, TX 78666 (512) 392-9824

At

the Taproom, meat, beer, and atmosphere combine forces to create the optimal burger experience. The Taproom has a variety of burgers from plain to the most adventurous selections. Having tried a few

burgers, I ordered the Mushroom Swiss Cheeseburger. The burger comes with two slices of swiss cheese and freshly grilled mushrooms and onions. The mushrooms are browned but not burnt. The cheese is melted but not sloppy. The meat is browned but still tender.

No matter what burger is served, the sweet buns compliment the ingredients quite well.

Burgers aside, the fries are delicious in their own right. They’re always just crispy enough on the outside and tender enough on the inside.

I personally prefer to wash down my burger with a hearty but sweet Spaten Opti-

mator. For the light-of-heart, wash your burger down with the Dog Fish 60 Minute IPA. For those in between, the Taproom has the best draught beer selection in San Marcos. There is something for every beer fan at the Taproom.

The atmosphere at the Taproom is pleasant. The game is always visible somewhere in the room. The music is nice and quiet; people can actually enjoy their conversations at a reasonable volume. The decor is authentic to the pub style and the big moose on wall has a top hat. I personally enjoy the really

dim lights. I can walk inside and still feel like I have my sunglasses on. The service is quick and waitresses are always sweet.

I recommend lunch hours for the optimal experience; things really pick up at night.

I challenge any meat and beer fan to leave the Taproom without being thoroughly satisfied.

Taproom Burger Review

BY Joe Wozny

No description of the Taproom is complete without mention of their

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WEIRD SPORTS: THE UFL Weird Magazine Interviews THE UFL WEIRD: Welcome to Weird Magazine How many games are left in the season?

UFL:Hey, thanks for inviting me!

There should be we have over 15 games left in the season. Then, we have an all star game the following week, and we will return to the 2nd half of the season January 15th.

WEIRD: Who are some of the strongest players in the league?

UFL:The league is filled with amazing players! My favorites are Turbo VanWinkle, McSeth, Crazy Horse, Baby Punch, and Swift Dickens.

WEIRD: Were are the games located?

UFL:Farmer Market (See ad for address)

WEIRD: How many teams are in the UFL?

WEIRD: What are some of the unique rules of unicycle football

UFL :There are five teams consisting of the Gnarwhals, Hot Dogs, Berzerkerz, Unicychos, and our newest team is the iLL Eagles.

UFL: In pedestrian football, they flip a coin to determine which team punts or kicks. In Unicycle-football, we joust.

WEIRD:Which team is the strongest this season?

UFL:Unicychos are the only team that’s undefeated. This season they’re 3-0!

WEIRD: Who are the referees?

UFL: The referees have the toughest job of all,

keeping the players inline and making sure the game goes by the book.

Frank, Jojo, and Carlton ref our games each week and they really work hard for the UFL! The whole league owes these guys a huge thanks!

WEIRD: What is it like to create an brand new sport?

UFL: It’s really great seeing the enthusiasm and support for unicyclefootball. I am still shocked that we’ve come this far so fast! Hopefully soon Austin will join us!

WEIRD:Are there teams in other cities?

UFL: There is a team forming in Austin and we’ve had people express

interest in Oregon.

in nearby cities!

WEIRD: Are you on facebook?Twiiter? Or myspace?

WEIRD: Who are these pretty ladies they call the Unibrawdz?

UFL: We have www.myspace.com/unicyclefootball and our own website www.unicyclefootball.com.

UFL: Those pretty

WEIRD: II can see why that dot com was available. What can a first time fan expect in person from their first game?

UFL: Expect to be surrounded by fun people, ice-chests, barbecue pits, and unicycles.

WEIRD:Tell me how you got that school bus. What’s that for?

UFL: The bus belongs to Corporal Punishment of the Unicychos. Hopefully we can use it to play teams

ladies are the heart and sole of unicycefootball. They jumped on board over a year ago and they’ve really improved the UFL! WEIRD:How can someone learn to play unicycle Football?

UFL: Come to a game! People learn to ride unicycles at games all the time.

Also check out our website www.unicyclefootball.com

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Aloha Taxi: Your Friend this Holiday Weird Magazine Interview: ALOHA TAXI WEIRD: Welcome to Weird Magazine Willie. Happy Holidays AT:Thank you, glad to be here.

Happy Thanksgiving!

WEIRD: Willie, tell Weird Magazine readers how they can call Aloha to get home safe this season.

AT :We are open Monday through Saturday from 7am to 3am and Sunday from 9am to 3am. You can call 512 392 2222. Store it in your phone so you don’t forget it.

WEIRD: How long now has Aloha Taxi or Corridor Cab been servicing San Martians?

AT:Corridor Cab has been in operation for 7 year here in San Marcos and was bought out in August by Aloha Taxi WEIRD: People are taking taxi’ cabs more these days to get home. Do you agree?

AT:Yes I agree. Prior to the ownership change, I feel people were not aware of the service available. I wanted to change that. I want people to know that they have a safe and reliable alternate means of transportation. By painting the cabs bright green, it has helped to make people

aware that they are there, by seeing them around town. I have gotten a lot of reaction out the color change and people are starting to realize the service is available. And for an average ride of less than $10 you can beet it. The average cost of a DWI is around $ 5000.

It is the smart thing to do.

Even TV commercials show people singing along with the Cab driver.

It’s cool to take a cab home now.

WEIRD:

Do you guys sing?

You Say he’s Just a Friend . . . But you say he’s just a friend.

ohh Baby, You, . . . . got what i neeeeeed!

AT:It depends on the driver, but I am sure if you tip them enough they would.

WEIRD: Seriously though, it is a great service to keep people safe during the holidays. I mean you guys are like the paramedic, or fireman, or any other public serviceman who does a great service for our community.

Isn’t that a good feeling?

AT: Yeah it feels

great! I have had a lot of friends go to jail and get hurt driving when they shouldn’t have. Being able to keep San Marcos roads safer definitely helps me sleep at night.

WEIRD: How late is your staff working through the season this year?

AT: We are open till 3am seven days a week with multiple drivers and cabs running Thursday Friday and Saturday.

AT: We are open 365 days a year and just a call away. We also do Airport runs to both San Antonio and Austin Airports.

Call today to schedule your Holliday travel trip!

WEIRD:Thanks for helping us all get home this Holiday season.

Aloha.

AT: Thank you and have a happy holidays. Drink responsible! Catch a Cab!

WEIRD: Christmas and New Years are a great time to celebrate. What would you like Weird Readers to know about Aloha this Holiday?

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Hybrid Pies in the Hill Country

The only question is: what can you get at one company that you can’t get at the other?

Wimberley Pie Company owner,

PIE IS GOOD!.

Hybrid Pies in the Hill Country

By Adrianna Villanueva

There only two places to get pie near San Marcos, TX: The Texas Pie Company in Kyle, TX and Wimberley Pie Company in Wimberley, TX. Both companies have the classic menu of Dutch apple, lemon chess, chocolate fudge, peanut butter mousse and an assortment of fruit pies all similarly priced. In addition to pie, both companies offer cheesecake, cookies, quiches, and more.

Neal Mallard says the top seller is the coconut custard. However, they also offer hybrid creations like chocolate chip pecan pie as well as a pumpkin pecan pie available only October through December.

For people averse to pie, cola cake, Italian cream cake, carrot cake, and

cream cheese poundcake

are offered. In response to dessert aficionados who think pie is boring, try a slice of the rhubarb strawberry pie. Rhubarb is an intensely sour vegetable so don’t mistake it as a fruit. Only the stalks of rhubarb are edible which is what you will eat in a rhubarb strawberry pie. Be aware, however, it was once surrounded by leaves that are poisonous.

The front of The Texas Pie Company is identifiable by its hard to miss giant slice of pie. They have their own pie fusions like pumpkin praline and uniquely the Almond Joy pie which is made from the ingredients of its candy namesake. The cheesecakes are a little wild with apple streusel, Oreo cookie, and the scandalous Kahlua cream. In addition to sweet renderings, they have savory comfort entrees to go that are perfect for a homemade away-fromhome dinnerTheir chicken pot pie has been described

as making a man feel like a man. The only problem you should face is what you are in the mood for and then which direction to head.

The Texas Pie Company Open since 1986 202 W. Center Kyle, Texas 78640 (512) 268-5885

Wimberley Pie Company Open since 1989 13619 Ranch Road 12 Wimberley, TX (512) 8479462 www.wimberleypie.com

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Finland Releases UFO Files DAWN OF THE NEW MILLENNIA

For decades, Finnish Defence

Forces have been interested in the unusual incidences within our air space, things that people usually call as UFOs. Recently published book reveals official UFO studies in Finland from 1933 to 1979.

It is based on three hundred official documents, which has been released for researchers – until the last year, when the public military archives was closed down and after that only a part of this material has been released under the National Archives of Finland.

First cases in the book are from years 1933-1937 when hundreds of citizens in the Finland saw mysterious phantom aircrafts or ghost fliers.

It was probably a second wave of unusual mass sightings in the World, which was officially studied. Although some private investigators have found and published much of Finnish UFO folklore regarding to incidents before Second World War, including even more than couple hundred years old events, it is not sure if any other than phantom planes were really investigated or even known by the military at the time.

Official explanation for the phantom plane incidents was that most of them were in fact astronomical objects, meteorites, electrical phenomena or even hoaxes, but still some cases remained unexplained.

However, because of the public hysteria, late in the 1937 military concluded that planes are product of overactive imagination and country had no evidence for the Soviet spy-plane regularly breaking into our air space, which was main concern back then.

This was the last time when Finnish Defence Forces was publicly interested in unidentified flying objects, although the truth behind the scenes was quite different. Soviet hysteria even increased before the war, which led illegal executions and things like that.

Now released modern UFO reports covers mainly period from 1965 to 1973. After the present UFO era began in 1947, first years were apparently quite silent time in the Finland,

because only few documents is released from the official records regarding to flying saucers as they were called at this time. Interest in UFOs among the civilian population was also very low at the time, since first private UFO research organization in Finland was founded as late as 1960.

Probably one reason was the war recover and political atmosphere. However, even the Finnish prime minister and later president Urho Kekkonen promoted publicly early UFO research.

Yet many of the relevant reports after year 1972 are still waiting for releasing and some are even

burned. Because of so strict classification procedures in the Finnish Defence Forces, any of the possible UFO related documents after year 1980 is not yet officially released – except for leaked infrared UFO-film, which famously led to internal investigation at Finnish Border Guard Service in the summer 2007.

Finland’s most prominent official UFO incidents include case where Finnish Air Force was trying to chase seven bright UFOs over Pori airport, Western Finland. In April 12, 1969 about twenty pilot and ground staff of the Air Force witnessed the objects, which were 2000-3000 meters above the ground, as the same time they were tracked by the radar.

When the fighters were getting close to the unidentified flying objects, objects climbed above the nearest fighter while its pilot was taking a closer look. After the short dogfight, objects started to move very fast towards the north and only minute later they were picked up on the radar about two hundred kilometers away from Pori, where objects disappeared towards Northern Sweden as

the same time their altitude was increased more than double.

The Pori UFO incident has been part of public knowledge for years before this current release, because of the testimonials by brave pilots, who played part in the famous UFO chase.

In the 1993 Air Force officially released the incident. After that also Rauno Meriö, the former head of the Finnish Air Force finally openly confirmed the existence of this case, although it has been now revealed that as a commander, he has also tried to cover it up, which was kind of conflict with his well-known civilian interest in UFOs. Another interesting reported

sighting happened in the Suomussalmi near Soviet border where local people saw a saucer-like object flying just above the ground. Device was brownish, it had diameter not more than 80 cm and it caused little hum. After first witness tried to get close to the object, he sensed weak electrical shock in his body after the object started to move and three antennas arose from it. He wasn’t able to get much closer as the device was moving and his hat, which he threw towards the UFO, fled almost 15 meters away from it because of the strong whirlwind as the device was moving.

Couple weeks after the first occurrence in the summer of 1967, the same UFO was seen again, not far away from first spot. Incidents caused governmental investigations, which ended up to the official conclusion that this particular flying saucer was indeed real, but instead of extraterrestrial origin it was probably man-made!

In the case of the military UFO reports, this new book studies also other sources than official documents, like affidavits of inside sources, retired officers

or even lucky civilians. For some independently reported military UFO sightings at the end of sixties and more in the seventies, even if they have more or less plausible explanations, lack of released official documents became soon clear – it means that either reliability of original sources is questionable in such cases or then documents are not yet fully released, they are missing, or even destroyed.

There are strong indications for still classified UFO evidence even before 1980 while in Finland, automatic declassification happens after 25 years. There are even some officially confirmed older cases (like the Pori UFO chase in 1969) where documentation is not released. It is also known for sure that in 1968 Finnish Air Force ordered their personnel in various units to officially report any unusual aerial sighting they’ve made, even in the free time and holidays, which indicates that there should be much more the yet unreleased material.

Interesting example for such independently reported case is recently revealed 1974 incident in the Air Force base near Rovaniemi in the Northern Finland. Main source of this incident came to top of the hill when he was guarding the area – there was large storage facility beneath of him, with second guard inside.

Soon he noticed that a strange metallic device with blue glow around it was landed near the facility and finally he fired his machine gun towards the unidentified object when he was only about 30 meters away from it. Shooting caused that the UFO immediately started to glide away and it disappeared behind the ramparts.

Afterwards he suffered severe burn marks in his skin and it was told that during the confrontation, a large electromagnetic disturbance was detected in the area. Before this bizarre shooting there was also rare accident with Draken fighter where its

Page 14 • weirdmagazine.com

generator burst to fire spontaneously, which put driver’s life at risk until almost miraculous

landing – evidently there was also radar contact with unidentified target following the damaged fighter.

Hoaxes, rumors and merely coincidences or something more, nobody really knows without availability of the official documents. Unfortunately it has been revealed that the Intelligence Office of Finnish Air Force has burned all the relevant documents it had, which leaves researchers with quite empty hands, at least until the release of survived documents from the other units.

In spite of many really unexplained reports, large majority of the released sightings has been explained with quite general causes. Still some of suggested explanations are more surprising, as the nuclear explosions in the atmosphere, U-2 spy plane or conjunction of three bright planets.

Regarding to some rare Finnish cases, military also has got the opportunity to study physical evidence like landing traces, radar data and photographs.

Majority of this material is still classified and some are even burned. Besides the burning of important data, published book exposes also other questionable actions within military forces.

Source: UFO Casebook http://www.ufocasebook. com/2009d/finlandfiles.html

THE WEIRD NEWS WEIRD NEWS: O S W A L D S H O OT E R ?

Digital Forensics Expert: Controversial Lee Harvey Oswald Photo is Not A Fake

by Ralph Bernardo on November 21, 2009

doesn’t make them stupid. I was wrong too. But that photo is not the proof they think it is.”

hours it took police and the fire brigade to get him out Sunday morning.

It’s long been the contention of conspiracy theorists that photos of Oswald were doctored as part of an elaborate cover-up after the President’s Nov. 22, 1963, assassination.

Arrests Made in Peruvian Ring That Sold Human Fat

Farid said over the years, he’s received dozens and dozens of requests to analyze the photo. What helped him decide to take on the project was a recent study he worked on looking at how the human brain processes images

MELANIE PLENDA writes in the Union Leader:

Trapped thief drops pants in bungled burglary

Kennedy conspiracy theorists appear to have one less bullet in their arsenal. Hany Farid, a computer science professor and expert in digital forensics at Dartmouth College, spent two months evaluating a photograph of John F. Kennedy shooter Lee Harvey Oswald.

He wiggled, jiggled and even dropped his trousers, but a thief trying to break into a supermarket in Portugal stayed stuck fast in a tiny window until he was rescued by police and the fire brigade.

“You can’t really authenticate a photo in all honesty,” Farid said of the image, which shows Oswald holding a Marxist newspaper and a rifle. “But I can say pretty definitively that the things that people thought made the photo a fake, well, those people are wrong. And it

“Apparently he dropped his trousers as he was trying to free himself by wiggling,” Capt. Santos, local police chief in Loule in southern Portugal, told Reuters Monday.

He said the slim 22-year-old Romanian man had spent about 11 hours stuck in the window, including the two

Peruvian authorities say they have arrested four members of a gang that specialized in selling to European labs fat obtained from dead humans.

Officials are investigating the disappearance of at last 60 people they believe were killed by gang members in two mountainous states in central Peru, lead prosecutor Jorge Sanz Quiroz said Friday.

The four suspects have been charged with murder in the September slaying of a Peruvian man, the prosecutor said.

“They killed to obtain human fat because there were European laboratories that would pay them,” Sanz Quiroz said.

The suspects told authorities they were paid $15,000 for a liter (about 1 quart) of human fat

Climate Sceptics Claim Leaked Emails are Evidence of Collusion Among Scientists Hundreds of private emails and documents allegedly exchanged between some of the world’s leading climate scientists during the past 13 years have been stolen by hackers and leaked online, it emerged today.

The computer files were apparently accessed earlier this week from servers at the University of East Anglia’s Climate Research Unit, a world-renowned centre focused on the study of natural and anthropogenic climate change.

Climate change sceptics who have studied the emails allege they provide “smoking gun” evidence that some of the climatologists colluded in manipulating data to support the widely held view that climate change is real, and is being largely caused by the actions of mankind.

The veracity of the emails has not been confirmed and the scientists involved have declined to comment

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129 EAST HOPKINS SUITE 120 CORRIDORCOMEDY.COM 512-619-5386

Paranormal Monsters of Texas been brought to my attention – encounters that strongly suggest we should carefully reconsider the notion that Bigfoot is simply an unknown form of ape or ape-man, even.

Paranormal Monsters of Texas Paranormal Monsters of Texas

By Nick Redfern

Two extremely similar cases in particular which stand out both occurred during the late 1970s in the huge, dense area of forest in southeast Texas called the Big Thicket. Weirdly, both incidents involved Bigfoot having the apparent ability to adversely affect the electrical systems and engines of automobiles – which is highly odd, to say the very least.

Although many mainstream cryptozoologists (those dedicated souls who pursue Bigfoot, Nessie and the many and varied other beasts that are said to haunt our planet) are reluctant to admit it, the fact is that there are a considerable number of reports on record in which the critters in question seem to be far more (or, paradoxically, much less) than mere flesh-and-blood animals of unknown origin.

Indeed, there are many cases on file in which Bigfoot, in particular, seem to possess skills, talents and senses that practically border upon the supernatural. I have no real idea why this should be the case. What I can tell you, however, is that witness testimony relative to Bigfoot has taken some very strange twists and turns over the decades – something that leads me to believe we still have yet to successfully scratch the surface of what lies at the heart of all-things of a definitively Sasquatch nature.

For the last decade or so I have made my home in the Lone Star State: Texas (on the fringes of the city of Dallas). And, it is from within this huge state that more than a few encounters of the monstrous kind have

Consider the evidence: Gerald told me that his sighting in the Big Thicket took place in the summer of 1977 – and just about as midnight was looming, too, somewhat appropriately.

The location was right around the Old Hardin Cemetery, which can be found near the town of Kountze.

Without warning, the engine of his vehicle spluttered and its headlights began to dim – something ominous was most assuredly afoot. As he pulled the vehicle to the safety of the side of the road, and at around twenty yards from him, Gerald told me, he saw what he described as a seven-foot tall, incredibly thin creature covered in dark hair. It walked like a man, Gerald

added, but was “leaning forward and swinging [its] arms.”

The encounter barely lasted mere moments, Gerald explained, and the beast disappeared into the shadowy woods.

But, perhaps, most intriguing of all was the next development: only seconds afterwards, a basketball-sized ball of light came floating through the trees at a level above the road of about fifty or sixty feet, and from the same, precise location where the hairy man-beast had entered the trees.

The aerial intruder maneuvered at a very slow pace; until it was ultimately lost from view amid the dense woods on the opposite side of the road. Notably, after both the creature and the ghostly-light disappeared, Gerald was able to restart his vehicle with absolutely no problems at all; strange, indeed.

arms as it did so, but did not appear fazed or at all concerned by the fact that the headlights of Dwight’s car illuminated its face.

Interestingly, and in a situation that very eerily paralleled the story of Gerald, when Dwight came within around fifty feet of the creature, the engine and headlights on his car both failed.

It was only when the creature had departed into the woods that Dwight was able to re-start his vehicle again. And, as a result, he has, today, become a solid adherent of the theory that the Big Thicket Bigfoot is some form of paranormal creature, rather than merely a beast of a

conventional, flesh-and-blood nature.

Some might, of course, relegate such tales to the world of fantasy or hoaxing; and, perhaps, in some cases they might be correct to do so. But, when tales of very high-strangeness can be found in the files of numerous Bigfoot researchers here, there and practically everywhere, it’s time – in my view, at least – to reevaluate our views and opinions on just what the beast may be – or may not be.

Bigfoot & Aliens are NOT Jewish

Very similarly, there is the tale of an elderly man named Dwight, who resides in the relatively-nearby Texas town of Nederland, and who personally saw a large and lumbering apelike creature crossing a road close to the Big Thicket’s Bragg Road late at night in the winter of 1978/1979.

Dwight described the beast as being around seven feet in height, jet-black in color, and with a head that sat squarely on its wide shoulders. He added that the creature moved slowly across the road, and swung its

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SWINE FLU TOTAL HYPE FOR BIG PHARMA: MAINSTREAM MEDIA TAKES

ADVERTISING DOLLARS AND SPINS THE HYPE WereSwine Flu Death Projections Hyped?

Adam Murdock, M.D. Infowars November 22, 2009 The 2009 H1N1 swine flu “pandemic” may turn out to be one of the most overblown and expensive medical crises in modern history. Indeed, this particular swine flu may be one of the weakest in history. The most recent figures show that the number of flu cases are already dropping in the U.S., England, and elsewhere.

According to the UK Independent, “Britain’s Chief Medical Officer, Sir Liam Donaldson, published a worst-case scenario suggesting the country should plan for up to 65,000 deaths.

That planning assumption has since been revised downwards twice.

In September the ‘worst case’ was cut

A similar revisionist trend has occurred in the United States.

As a result of the original nightmare “pandemic” scenarios, governments around the world have spent billions of dollars to stockpile antivirals (ie. Tamiflu) and to propagandize, produce, and distribute H1N1 vaccinations. The most notable change

It is a mild illness in most but occasionally can lead to severe complications due to bacterial superinfections. In the UK, under 200 people have died from the virus and in the US a debatable 4 thousand people have died. The number of deaths in the US greatly expanded from 1,200 to 4,000 after the CDC recently decided to lump in bacterial infections and “flulike illnesses” with confirmed swine-flu related deaths.

Even with these inflated numbers, in comparison to previous pandemics or even compared to seasonal flu epidemics, this has been a relatively mild illness.

The Spanish H1N1 flu of 1918 was estimated to have killed up to 50 million people. In 195758, the Asian HN2 flu caused the death of 1.5 million to 2 million people. Only a decade later, this was followed by the Hong Kong H3N2 in 1968-69 which is thought to be responsible for one million deaths. So far the 2009 H1N1 flu has only been implicated as the cause of death for a few thousand people.

What is striking is that just six months ago, officials in the US and UK were predicting tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of deaths from this swine flu.

Since that time officials have had to revise their numbers downward on many occasions.

to 19,000 deaths, and in October it was cut again to 1,000 deaths. This compares with an average annual toll of 4,000 to 8,000 deaths from seasonal winter flFLu.”

in how government has tackled this flu emergency has been how they have used the media to spread panic amongst the citizens of the world. Just take the example of Kathleen Sebelius who is the US Health and Human Services (HHS) director. She has publicly gloated over the US Federal Government’s campaign to spread H1N1 flu information on children’s television programming. This has included putting flu messages and even creating whole television shows devoted to government flu propaganda on programs such as Elmo’s World on Sesame Street, Sid the Science Kid, and ESPN. They have also spread their reach into internet social networks like Facebook.

In her testimony before Congress, she remarked that she is particularly proud of hearing stories of children that are now correcting their misinformed parents after they had watched the government programming.

This propaganda campaign is in addition to direct advertising and almost continuous hysteria from supposed health experts on prime time television. The advice from these individuals is sometimes so obviously biased that it can be nauseating.

Unfortunately, it all comes down to power, money, and prestige.

In order to get to the bottom of why swine flu hysteria was so overblown one has to simply ask: Who is prof-

iting from the whole swine flu hysteria?

In answer to that question one has to look no further than the drug companies and the medical research establishment.

As I have reported previously, drug companies are in line to make billions of dollars over this pandemic and are preparing to expand vaccinations for years to come. As drug companies have already produced vaccinations for most of the other infectious diseases that cause significant mortality in the western world, they are now looking for a new crop of diseases that could become potential vaccine candidates. In fact, facing the prospect of curtailed drug spending, pharmaceutical companies foresee vaccination expansion as one of their greatest areas of focus and future profit.

According to the Associated Press (AP), “vaccines are seen as a critical path to growth for drugmakers, as slowing prescription medicine sales and intensifying generic competition put pressure on company bottom lines.”

In addition to drug companies, as reported in Reuters, medical researchers have had to respond to “accusations” that the “pandemic has been ‘hyped’ by medical researchers to further their own cause, boost research grants and line the pockets of drug companies.” In response to this, researchers have maintained that “we need to know a lot more to conquer the virus, and funding for new research and drugs is vital to be equipped for future pandemics.”

Where this comes full circle is with the government. The great majority of medical research spending is sponsored by government. It is well known that funding from the US National Institute of Health (NIH) and other international governmental bodies favors “pertinent” or as I like to call it “trendy” research.

This funding favoritism is especially true of research that can be used to support government policy positions. Most recently, this has been seen in the great expansion of government sponsored global warming research.

Now, vaccine experts and their infectious disease cohorts are likely to profit greatly in terms of research grants for preparing for “future pandemics.”

One only has to hope that those future pandemics will actually deserve all the attention and expense that this one has.

CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE.

How could the estimates have been so wildly exaggerated?

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Were Swine Flu Death Projections Hyped?

Finally,

central governments profit greatly from supposed pandemics such as this one. It permits them to try to justify their existence as our “great guarantors” of health and safety. It also allows them to continue to expand their tentacles of influence and power to an even greater extent in individual lives as they try to remove our medical freedom by making health care decisions for us. Remember that the government, as President Obama’s top economic advisor Rahm Emanuel puts it, “never” likes to “waste a good crisis” by not effecting a change that they would ordinarily not be able to accomplish. In this case, governments are trying to expand their mandate as the sole provider of health care because they were the only ones able to protect us from a supposedly horrific swine flu pandemic. Even if the truth has been that their efforts have been largely fruitless, the vast majority of people will remain oblivious to this fact. In the future the government will never cease to congratulate itself for coming to our rescue.

The way government has reacted to this flu reminds me greatly of Orwell’s “double-

freedoms if realistic swine flu death projections were used from the beginning?

think” as employed by the totalitarian government in his book Nineteen eighty-four.

In terms of the swine flu, the H1N1 “doublethink” means that government says one thing but the reality is the exact opposite.

This “doublethink” says that freedom from death from the swine flu means surrendering your medical freedom to a government health bureaucracy.

The reality is that government intervention will have proven to do little more then spend our tax dollars and come at the expense of our health care freedom. This is evidenced by the fact the gov-

ernments have used this mild flu and hysteria surrounding it to create medical emergency acts that would grant powers to forcibly vaccination citizens despite their objections.

One has to ask the question – would government, researchers, and drug companies been able to justify billions of dollars of expenditures and encroachments on our

In addition, would the public have been so eager to tune into government and media flu propaganda, or support totalitarian pandemic emergency power bills, or shown up for mass vaccinations if they knew the truth and not the worst? Would they have done any of these things if they had known from the beginning that this pandemic would amount to a few hundred deaths? Surely, the answer would be no.

Many health professionals agree that the original estimates were unreasonably high. According to the UK Independent, “Dr Steven Field, chairman of the Royal College of GPs, said: ‘I thought the original predictions for the number of deaths were incredibly high.’”

As with the avian flu scare before it, these groups have great incentive to inflate worst case scenarios because they have the most to profit from the hysteria.

There is really no reason why this inflationary pattern will not continue so long as government can use the hysteria to justify increased expansion, drug companies can produce the needed pandemic vaccines, and researchers need a reason to justify massive pandemic research grants.

In the end, I urge you to resist the temptation to sacrifice any of your freedoms for any ounce of government “well-meaning” slavery, especially over a contrived “pandemic’ such as with the 2009 H1N1 swine flu.

Adam Murdock, M.D. is founder of The Freemen Institute, www. freemeninstitute.com.

Hill Country & History

tory. I had an opportunity to sit down with the man behind the restaurant, Gary Moore. Not only did I enjoy a delicious meal, I also received a history lesson in the process.

The building where the Getaway now resides was built in 1891 to serve as the “Old State Bank.” In 1924 four of the most successful bank robbers of all time, the Newton Gang, blew the door off the bank.

By Joseph Wozny Hills Edge Grill Review

E veryone needs to take time to escape to Wimberley and

enjoy a delicious meal at Hills Edge Grille and Pub. The drive to Wimberley is a relaxing and enchanting survey of the Texas Hill Country.

Hills Edge Grille is conveniently located towards the north edge of town at 15401 Ranch Road 12. Hills Edge has a lovely dining room and separate Pub

area. For diners who want to sit outside there is an enchanting patio setup. The patio, complete with a beautiful Koi pond, is the perfect place to enjoy an afternoon. Hills Edge has an additional building, “The Koi Room,” for private parties and music events.

The Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner menus are all extensive in their own right. From fresh seafood to home style cooking, there is something for every diner. I had the pleasure of en-

joying a Double Hamburger with melted Provolone cheese. The hand crafted patties are cooked to perfection and covered with the freshest ingredients. Hills Edge makes their sauces from scratch; it makes all the difference. Everything on my burger tasted fresh as can be. Make sure to try the hand cut French fries and beer battered onion rings.

The Newton Gang made off with 30,000 dollars

Moore has been involved in San Marcos’s downtown district for quite some time. Moore owned and restored the original Café On The Square in 1988 and sold it in 1999. He was also involved with Katy Station on Cheatham Street. Moore thought he had left the restaurant business until he saw that the old bank building was vacant.

They have wide variety of bottled beers available in the dining room and the pub.

While enjoying a delicious local burger, I recommend treating yourself to the locally brewed Fireman’s Four ale, brewed nearby in Blanco Texas.

The Pub has a full bar and a wide variety on entertainment options during the week. Hills Edge hosts an open-mic on Monday night, a local duo on Thursday, and full bands on Friday and Saturday. The owners mentioned starting comedy and karaoke nights soon.

The Hills Edge Grille’s consistent food, affordable prices, and charming atmosphere make it a must stop in the Texas Hill Country.

Newton Gang’s Getaway

Newton Gang’s Getaway may be the newest addition to the square, but its roots are firmly planted in San Marcos’ his-

The breakaway bars used in the film are still in place in the dining area. Moore combined the Newton Gang and the film to come up with the name The Newton Gang’s Getaway.

worth of cash and bonds. In 1972, the “Old State Bank and Trust” building was used in the filming of the Sam Peckinpah film “The Getaway.” The film starred Steve McQueen and was one of the most commercially successful films of his career.

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“I drove past the building and prayed I could have a restaurant there,”

Moore said. “I saw a classified ad in the San Marcos Daily Record. Someone was looking for a partner to start a restaurant.”

The partner happened to be the owner of the bank building. They quickly set to work on what would become Newton Gang’s Getaway. Moore worked hard for one month with a small

team and completely renovated the interior this past summer.

Moore has done an excellent job rendering the style of a western saloon.

Moore comes in each morning and prepares the ingredients fresh for the day. He works hard to make the Getaway a worthwhile addition to San Marcos.

Moore claims his meatloaf will stand the test against any meatloaf in town. I took him up on this challenge and sat down with a Shiner Bock and a plate of his meatloaf. The meatloaf was tender, juicy, and fresh.

The side of creamy garlic mashed potatoes went down easy with a warm and flakey biscuit. Add in some steaming corn-on-the-cob, and I had myself a delicious home-style meal. I’ve had meatloaf cooked by plenty of grandmothers, and I think Moore’s recipe stands the test. The Getaway’s menu offers a variety of choices.

Head down to Newton Gang’s Getaway soon and sit down for a full plate of quality cooking. Stop by late on Thursday through Saturday; they’re open until 2 am.

Vaccines: A Bullet to the Head Dr Sherri Tenpenny Infowars November 22, 2009 Vaccines: A Bullet to the Head

It seems people often need to experience a bullet to the head before they will believe bullets can be deadly…and then they rue the day they ignored warnings about playing with loaded guns.f Vaccination seems to hold a similar place. People ignore words of caution and roll up their sleeves to get a flu shot. It seems they think getting a vaccine is the same as taking a multivitamin, and equally as benign. But when serious adverse events occur, such as Guillain-Barre paralysis, a seizure disorder or even a death, a jolt of reality lays bare just how damaging a “simple vaccine” can be.

The stranglehold of fear, perpetrated by those in white coats and by the medical bureaucrats in Washington DC who take their marching orders from pharma, is working hard to choke rationally thinking adults into submission. I get emails almost every day that say something like, “I bought your DVDs and your books…but I have a question: Should I get a flu shot?” WHAT?@!>! My mouth drops. I have to clear my head and find a way to say, “No, you should not get the flu shot”, being cautious to keep my tone void of sarcasm. That may seem harsh, but in very turbulent times. Soft language and hand holding until people “get it” is becoming increasingly more difficult.

Being in the business of waking people up to the hazards of vaccines certainly has its ups and downs.

A recent “up” was the public policy debate held on November 10 at the University of Texas in Austin. Sponsored by the Libertarian Longhorns, the Texas College Republicans and a few other Texas health freedom groups, the discussion called, “Are

Vaccine Mandates Good or Bad for Public Health?” was open to the

general public. Interest in this timely topic was reflected by the standing-room only attendance of the meeting.

Speaking in support of vaccination and school mandates was Tom Betz, MD, MPH, Director of Region 7 for the Texas Department of Health Services.

Several of his health department colleagues joined him in the audience but chose not to join him on the stage. I had the pleasure of being teamed with Dawn Richardson, President and Co-founder of PROVE (Parents Requesting Open Vaccine Education) in Austin, Texas and the Directory of State Advocacy for the National Vaccine Information Center in Vienna, Virginia. Our presentation was mostly about opposition to vaccine mandates but we were able to address our opposition to vaccines in general. Based on the hundreds of comments we received, the debate (found all on YouTube) was well received and enlightening for all.

All three participants were given the questions to review prior to the debate. There is so much to

say about vaccines that preparation was important to cover key points, almost as sound bites; only three short minutes were allowed for each answer. Our very professional moderator, Dr. Donna Campbell, allowed equal time for each side.

During the personal introductions, Dr. Campbell informed the audience that the plan was to have two persons on each panel; but that Dr. Betz was the only person from the Health Department who would agree to participate. Prior to settling in on the stage, I had learned the reason why.

Shaking Dr. Betz’ hand, I thanked him for joining the discussion.

He returned the niceties with a slight shrug, confessing that, “No one else wanted to do it.”

Surprised, I queried, “Why not? This is a great way to tell everyone your message about vaccines.”

My unspoken question was, “Why didn’t the Health Department want to jump on the opportunity to bury anti-vaccination ‘pseudo-science’, as you call it, once and for all, in front of everyone?”

He quietly replied, “We’ve done these types of programs before; they never go well.”

It seems pro-vaccine arguments are being soundly defeated, time after time. And the real vaccine “pseudo-science” is being exposed for the rhetoric it is: factoids crafted by public health officials from the WHO and the CDC, and then regurgitated by underinformed medical professionals to a naïve public.

Funny how medical bureaucrats and doctors are considered the “experts” when it is strangely obvious they don’t understand – and probably don’t even read – their own medical literature.

The Austin debate was the next important step in exposing that the “science of vaccination” isn’t so scientific after all. Vaccination has been accepted as safe, effective and protective. The shots can be described as a medical sacred cow, defined as “a medical procedure that is unreasonably immune to criticism.” Doctors and patients who question vaccines are ridiculed and marginalized. It is heresy to suggest that the status quo is wrong.

Vaccine adverse events are considered “rare,” so when reactions occur, steps are taken to negate the association to the vaccine. Patients are discredited, parents are dismissed.

Doctors subject very ill persons to thousands of dollars of inconclusive medical tests, rather than to simply acknowledge – and rightfully assign causality – to the vaccine. When a person reacts to penicillin or Paxil or any other drug, it’s it is blamed on the drug? Not so with vaccines.

Going to Austin was an upbeat offset to other particularly disturbing news reported over the last few weeks about the H1N1, swine flu vaccine: • Several schools have vaccinated children without parental consent.

• The growing list of reported miscarriages.

• A teen athlete who is now crippled.

• Two students and a teacher in China who died hours after getting the shot.

• Children having hallucinations, and then committing suicide, after taking Tamiflu.

• The strange and virulent outbreak in the Ukraine, where the WHO has been deafeningly silent about its findings – but knows that whatever is the cause, vaccination is the answer.

We seem to regard germs the same way we think about terrorism: Random attacks that can be deadly. All parties who promote vaccination hawk this view, particularly those pushing both types of flu shots. Tens of millions have been spent in the US on national advertising campaigns, and even Sesame Street merchandising, to convince us that flu shots are necessary to keep us well – and keep us alive.

But perhaps we have it backwards. Bugs can cause random, mostly benign attacks, particularly among the healthy. But random, “deadly” attacks, with health consequences that can show up years later? I’d worry more about the vaccines.

After 200 years, with our many advances in science and medicine, you would think that someone could develop a method to protect babies and adults from infectious disease other than injecting them with animal cells, stray viruses, heavy metals and toxic chemicals. Why do we call this health and protection? Until my dying breath I will never understand why people resolutely defend – and demand – the right to inject themselves and their children with these risky potients.

For those who meet resistance when trying to warn family and friends of vaccine risks, the only thing to do, really, is to keep spreading the word.

Don’t be discouraged. You never know who is listening and you never know when the seeds will sprout. Focus on those who are waking up and gratefully support them. The rest, well sadly, they may have to find out the hard way what it feels like to get hit by that stray bullet.

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the art of Robert Cook Weird Magazine Interviews Robert Cook WEIRD: Welcome to Weird Magazine Bob tell us about your art?

BC:It came about this way. I’m a bit of an astronomy buff so in 2005, I joined a boat trip across the Pacific to see a solar eclipse in mid ocean. The ship was the actual Love Boat from the 70’s, now re-purposed as Ship of Nerds. It worked and all, but I failed to anticipate how big the Pacific Ocean is: days of floating along with nothing to do but eat five times a day. I checked out an art book from the library, “Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain” and started doing the exercises. And son of a B, I began to be able to do it. So...I added color and got into it more deeply and took a workshop (back on shore) or two. Then, noticing what was selling in galleries, I started to figure my stuff could sell too and besides, I was running out of room in the

garage. So that worked too.

Then, on a fateful day, I saw the Artomat machine in San Antonio.

Artomat machines are rebuilt cigarette machines which now sell $5 art works. There’s 85 of them around the country.

The buyer selects an artist but can’t see what he’s bought till it vends. The art work must be the size and shape of a cigarette pack. There are 420 juried Artomat artists who feed the machines. I thought, “I’ve gotta get into this”, but you need a theme and I thought, MONSTERS. Artomat accepted me and fame but not yet fortune have resulted. I’ve done hundreds of cigarette pack sized creatures and each buyer gets a monster biography and my business card too. I’ve received commissions. People love monsters.

As they should.

WEIRD: What medium is your favorite?

BC: I tried nearly everything cause it’s fun to fool around but I presently have two co-favorites; oils and pastel.

WEIRD: Why horror or macabre? Were you always into horror?

BC: Well not al-

ways. At about age 11, I saw Boris Karloff in “The Mummy’ and was deliciously frightened and attracted. Beaucoup years later, I still love Egypt and Mummies and all sorts of monsters. I’ve been to Egypt twice and have the T shirts to prove it. I have gazed into the face of Ramses the Great at the Cairo Museum.

WEIRD: Do you have a favorite artist?

BC:Here’s my chance to say it’s Bosch or Frazetta. But no, it’s Rembrandt. And it’s a long way down to number two.

WEIRD: Who are your influences artistically?

BC:I’ll break this into two pieces. When I liked art but didn’t think to produce it, I had a teacher named Davis in college who introduced me to the medieval Dutch painter Jan Van Eyck. And I’ve twice visited a cathedral in Ghent, Belgium to see what Prof Davis said was the greatest painting ever made, “The Alterpiece of the Lamb”.

Awesome, dude. After I started painting, my best teacher was Bob Rohm.

WEIRD: Have you seen the naked booogaddee booo?

BC: No and darn it, the web links all seem to be broken. Can Weird help?

WEIRD: What’s next for Bob Cook?

BC: Well, I’m in detox after two weekends displaying my monsters as a studio guest in the East Austin Studio Tour which has metastasized to 170 venues showing more art than one can shake a stick at. I make ‘em, sell ‘em. Repeat. www.bobcookart.com

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