Category Archives: books/film

On Finishing David Quammen's "Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic"

Posted on November 15, 2012 by williamjcobb

So I’ve finished David Quammen’s excellent new book of nonfiction, Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic, about zoonotic viruses and the danger we face from new pandemics originating in crossover viruses leaping from animals to humans. At 520 … Continue reading →

Posted in books/film, Climate Change, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Good Review of "The Bird Saviors" in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Cormac McCarthy News

Posted on August 8, 2012 by williamjcobb

So there’s a good review of The Bird Saviors in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer (or “SeattlePI”), here. I’m not thrilled with the word “meandering,” but then again, the reviewer gives much praise, so I’ll set aside my quibble. Here’s a pic … Continue reading →

Posted in books/film, The West | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Standoff With Sam Shepard at Ten Thousand Waves: Guest Blogger Elizabeth May's Brush With Greatness

Posted on June 18, 2012 by williamjcobb

Standoff with Sam Shepard at Ten Thousand Waves On a recent trip to Santa Fe I took my mother to Ten Thousand Waves, a gorgeous, serene Japanese spa located on Hyde Park road. I first read about the spa when … Continue reading →

Posted in books/film, The West, writing | Tagged , | Leave a comment

"Prometheus" at a Cinema in Santa Fe, An Experience in Intensity

Posted on June 16, 2012 by williamjcobb

So while I was in Santa Fe I caught Ridley Scott’s prequel to Alien (1979), the flashy and eye-catching Prometheus, which is certainly trippy, even if it doesn’t all add up. I guess if I were rating it as such, … Continue reading →

Posted in books/film, Film, Photography, The West | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

"The Bird Saviors" Playlist at Largeheartedboy.com, Live From the El Rey Inn in Santa Fe

Posted on June 13, 2012 by williamjcobb

So I’m at the El Rey Inn in Santa Fe, a supercool motel in the (greatly upgraded) motor-court mode on the historic Route 66, on this the official debut day of The Bird Saviors. Part of the debut is a … Continue reading →

Posted in books, books/film, Photography, The West, writing | Tagged | Leave a comment

John Kennedy Toole's "A Confederacy of Dunces" Finally to be Filmed, With Zach Galifianakis playing the Inimitable Ignatius Reilly

Posted on May 31, 2012 by williamjcobb

So one of the funniest American novels EVER is about to (finally) make it into a film version (in which Hollywood will no doubt muck it up, but so it goes): John Kennedy Toole’s (infamous) A Confederacy of Dunces (1980), … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, books, books/film, Film, writing, Zach Galifianakis | Leave a comment

On Alex Prudhomme's "The Ripple Effect," Plus My Very Own Drinking Problem

Posted on May 11, 2012 by williamjcobb

So I have a confession to make: I have a drinking problem. But no, it’s not that kind, the James Frey kind (greatly exaggerated, we later learned), the sadsack rehab kind. Like the weepy drunk on the barstool next to … Continue reading →

Posted in books, books/film, Climate Change, The West | Leave a comment

The Heartland Institute's War on Science, Michael Mann's "The Hockey Stick and the Climate Wars," and E.O. Wilson's "The Social Conquest of Earth"

Posted on May 5, 2012 by williamjcobb

So I’ve been sick the last week with a travel bug, which I suspected I caught in a St. Louis restaurant via an infected cook, a la Gwyneth Paltrow in last year’s bird flu epidemic movie Contagion, but I’m alive … Continue reading →

Posted in books/film, Climate Change, The West, writing | Leave a comment

Pete Dexter's Great Novel "The Paperboy" Now Coming Out as a Film, Starring Nicole Kidman, No Less, As a Skanky Prison Wife

Posted on April 23, 2012 by williamjcobb

So I just stumbled across this little gem of good news: Pete Dexter’s knockout novel The Paperboy (1995) has been made into a film, which is about to be shown at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival, starring Nicole Kidman, among … Continue reading →

Posted in books, books/film, Film, writing | Leave a comment

James Cameron's Metaphor of Climate Change as the 21st Century Iceberg to Our Big Oil Titanic, Plus a Shout-out to E.O. Wilson's new book "The Social Conquest of Earth" and the Coen Brothers classic "Barton Fink"

Posted on April 21, 2012 by williamjcobb

So I’m not exactly a huge fan of James Cameron films, full of over-the-top razzle-dazzle, some great images (such as the Titanic sinking, rising into the air and all the unfortunate passengers plummeting into the water) but enough bad melodrama … Continue reading →

Posted in books, books/film, Climate Change, Film, Politics, The West, writing | Leave a comment