Congratulations to musicisn, animator, and YouTube star Mystery Guitar Man, also known as Joe Penna (previously at Neatorama) on the birth of his son Jonah Lane Penna! He and his wife made a pregnancy time-lapse video with a difference: this one has a plot, sort of. A lot of planning, work, and timing went into this video over ten months. They even moved to a new home during the shoot, and the new residents of their old apartment let them keep the camera and props set up in the garage to finish the video. He talks a little about how they did it here. -via Viral Viral Videos
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The advertising character we know as the Michelin Man has been used by the tire company off and on for 116 years now. His name is Bibendum, a moniker he gained from an appropriated artwork. It’s a Latin word for the act of drinking, which seems weird now, but his creators did not know Latin. And Bibendum was quite an odd character 100 years ago.
Many of the posters from the early 20th-century depict him as a somewhat sinister figure, large and bespectacled and chomping permanently on a cigar. Initially he was shown drinking champagne, which linked to the Latinate toast, and this was reinforced by a strangely worded tagline that had been first mentioned in 1893: "À Votre Santé Le Pneu Michelin Boit L’Obstacle!" (The Michelin tire drinks up obstacles!). The poster apparently led to the character being known for a while as the "road drunkard," an image that would be abhorrent to any car-related company today. But the Michelin Man learned to change with the times.
Not only did he sober up, he became less obviously wealthy. Notice the fat cat look in the 1914 poster above. Read about the evolution of the Michelin Man at Co.DESIGN. -via Digg
Kittens are adorable, but when a kitten that looks different comes along, like Lil Bub or Grumpy Cat, we make stars out of them. And that’s why we have Slittens! Slittens are sloth kittens, or kittens with sloth faces, and there’s a Tumblr blog of them. At first, they’re a little creepy, but once you get used to them, you want one for your very own. -via Boing Boing
William Garratt made a little animation showing how difference audiences react to the music at various types of concerts. There’s folk, rock, metal, EDM, jazz, dubstep, opera, and maybe a couple more. Things start to go a little weird as each concert progresses. -via b3ta
Even among miniature horses, Acer stands out for being the shortest at only 22 inches tall! Mainestar Aces High was born of an imported sire, who has since been gelded, at Wolfscastle Miniature Horse Farm. The only survivor of three foals of the sire, Acer was born with dwarfism. Outside of a deformity of the rear hooves, which has been corrected with artificial hoof extensions, Acer appears to be in good health. Read his story here. The three-year-old horse is smallest in Britain! -via Viral Viral Videos
Pixar’s next feature film, Inside Out, takes place inside the head of an adolescent girl, where her five main emotions battle each other for supremacy. We’ve seen these emotional battles from the outside, but inside Riley’s head, the emotions are anthropomorphized and voiced by Amy Poehler (Joy), Lewis Black (Anger), Mindy Kaling (Disgust), Bill Hader (Fear), and Phyllis Smith (Sadness). The teaser is actually quite short, as Pixar takes half the video to remind us of the emotions they evoked in their previous films. Inside Out should be in theaters in June, 2015. -via FilmDrunk
Between the vine and the liquor store, plenty of secrets are submerged in your favorite bottle of vino. Here the author of Black Lane Wineries of Sonoma spills some of the best.
(Image credit: Jim G)
1. Digital eyes are everywhere in vineyards. Certain premium estates in Bordeaux and Napa are beginning to look a little more like an army base -or an Amazon.com warehouse. They’re using drones, optical scanners, and heat-sensing satellites to keep a digital eye on things. Some airborne drones collect data that helps winemakers decide on the optimal time to harvest and evaluate where they can use less fertilizer. Others rove through the vineyard rows, where they soon may be able to take over pruning. Of course, these are major investments. At $68,000 a pop, the Scancopter 450 is about twice as costly as a 1941 Inglenook Cabernet Sauvignon!
2. There are also lots of cow skulls. They’re not everywhere, but biodynamic farming techniques are on the rise among vintners who don’t want to rely on chemicals, and this is one trick they’ve been known to use to combat plant diseases and improve soil PH. It’s called Preparation no. 505, and it involves taking a cow’s skull (or a sheep’s or a goat’s), stuffing it with finely ground oak chips, and burying it in a wet spot for a season or two before adding it to the vineyard compost.
3. Ferocious foliage is a vintners friend. The mustard flowers blooming between vineyard rows aren’t just for romance. Glucosinolates in plants like radishes and mustard give them their spicy bite, and through the wonders of organic chemistry, those glucosinolates also double as powerful pesticides. Winemakers use them to combat nematodes -tiny worms that can destroy grape crops.
October is here, which gives us thoughts of Halloween and a hankering to enjoy some horror films. TV channels do their best to fulfill your desires, by pulling out all the stops on their October schedules. Every day of the month you’ll have quite a selection, and they’re all compiled in a day-by-day list at the Atlantic. Bookmark it now, to save the hassle of looking through your preview channel or cable company website.
There’s 23 horror movies on the schedule just for tomorrow! You might want to jot down your “can’t miss” choices on your daily planner or fridge notes. But you should also try some films you’ve never seen, or never even heard of, just for kicks. You’ll thank me later. -via Tor.com
Don’t you wish it were this easy to get rid of all those pesky drivers on the road? After all, you have places to go! Vine star Zach King (previously at Neatorama) made this little demonstration of an app every driver wants. Too bad it exists only here. If this were a real thing, it would be all-out war on the roads! -via Ralph Roberts
Leave it to Japan to give us a crew of adorable little robot cheerleaders! Or actually, they’d be more correctly called a drill team, since they don’t jump, but instead perform a dance of precision formations while their glowing pompons change colors. And they have a backstory: they are “elementary students full of energy and curiosity,” and are open to accepting new members.
Murata Manufacturing created the Murata Cheerleaders to show off the company’s gyro sensors, which keep the robots balanced, and communication technology, which keeps them dancing together. -via Geeks Are Sexy
In case you’ve never seen the original Star Wars trilogy, and really don’t want to, you can catch up with this 3-minute TL;DW version. Plus you’ll learn a little bit of what Star Wars nerds are like, in case you didn't already know. But you probably still won’t understand the story. -via Viral Viral Videos
Homemade crafts go through phases of popularity. Yarncrafts are hot now, but in the 1970s, they were not only hot, but they kept you warm and fashionable. Just look at that far out knitted halter top, and the guy in the groovy poncho! You can see an extensive gallery of knit patterns from the ‘70s that kept moms, grandmothers, and even young knitters busy while watching All in the Family or The Rockford Files on TV, at Collectors Weekly.
Neatorama presents a guest post from actor, comedian, and voiceover artist Eddie Deezen. Visit Eddie at his website or at Facebook.
Okay, we all, every one of us, have been raised on television and the movies. And while a truly original movie or TV show is very rare, the reverse is true: cliches abound. There are dozens and dozens of movie and television cliches we have all seen and all now come to expect.
Now, let's take a movie and TV cliches we are all familiar with: the bad (disastrous) first date which leads to a future great relationship. I think we have all actually seen this cliche happen: a couple go out on their first date, do not hit it off, but later go out again and find they really like each other. This leads to an actual relationship.
Sure, this one is real life material. But what about the ones that only seem to happen in the movies or on TV? Below is a list of nine all-too-familiar TV and movie cliches we've all seen a million times, a majority of which we never see in real life!!!
1) The bad guy with perfect teeth.
Am I the only one that notices this one? It usually occurs in Westerns, i.e. there is an outlaw or a desperado, he is unshaven, grizzled, has gnarly, dirty features and a mean personality. But his teeth are always pearly white, as if he had just flossed and double-brushed with a Colgate or Crest. You see this routinely on Bonanza and other Westerns (it is much easier to discern in color).
2) The surprised two-timing lover scene.
Have you seen this one- a couple has a fight or disagreement, then the guy or the girl feels bad and decides to make amends and goes to surprise his or her counterpart at their apartment. Either the girl will answer, wearing a man's shirt, or the guy will answer shirtless, or a strange girl or guy will answer. They see the startled former lover -with a new lover- and hear them mutter, “I really wish you'd called first.” The crushed ex-lover runs or stumbles off, with no more illusions.
How about this: you're having an illicit affair or rendezvous, don't just open the door, try saying “Who is it?"
3) The gun butt knockout.
Quick, where will you go when the zombie apocalypse comes? You, and everyone who visits your home, will know the best sanctuary if you have a Zombie Safe Zone Map from Design Different. Pick your city or state from a big selection: not only the US, but Canada, Spain, Germany, and other countries. Each map comes in a variety of sizes and colors. Heck, they’ll even make you a custom map if your city isn’t in stock. Let’s just hope the zombies can’t read a map! -via Gearfuse
Psst, wanna save some money? Of course you do! These aren’t just money-saving tips, they are “life hacks.” John Green has some really weird ways to get the job done cheaper. But do they really work? Let's say, some work better than others, and some are just plain weird. Even if I were to believe that it works, there’s no way that aerosol cheese costs less than stain remover! But those of us of a certain age already know you can brew an entire teapot of tea with one or two teabags. If you really want to save money, use loose tea in a tea ball.
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