Abel Raises Cain (2004)

In the odd world of media hoaxers and merry pranksters, Alan Abel ranks as an unappreciated superstar. He spent his life under the radar, mocking conservative mores and putting on the media. Abel’s daughter, filmmaker Jenny Abel, offers an unflinchingly intimate portrait of her eccentric father (codirected with Jeff Hockett). Following her 80-year-old dad around with a video camera as he embarks on his latest prank (a campaign to ban breast-feeding), Jenny explores the loving and unique relationship he has shared with his wife Jeanne for the last 42 years, while also chronicling the highlights of his mad career: the Society for Indecency to Animals (”A nude horse is a rude horse”); not to mention Euthanasia Cruises, the KKK Symphony Orchestra and Omar’s School for Panhandling. Wonderful archival footage reveals a deadpan con man who took particular delight in infuriating television talk-show icons like Phil Donahue. While some have questioned Abel’s true motivation (revolutionary anarchist or media menace?), Jenny Abel focuses on the humor behind the scams, as well as the underlying message: Don’t believe everything the media tells you.
(2005 SF International Film Festival)

We don’t know what you’re going as, but shall suggest “someone who isn’t on the guest list”.

The Girls : Daved Hild, Robin Amos, George Condo, Mark Dagley, circa 1978, long before Boston was Titletown and even longer before people like us figured out how to commodify stuff like this. YouTube link courtesy Jane, Pat.

Clearly, we’re living in puritanical times when a man can be placed on the sex offenders registry for merely attempting to have sex with a bicycle.

After all, who amongst us has not gazed longingly at an old Frejus catalog and thought, “I’d hit that”?

(Brian and Nathan, photo by Joel Didriksen for kingpinphoto)
As heard at Washington DC’s 9:30 Club last Tuesday, The Ponys-in-concert-specialness, courtesy of NPR’s All Songs Considered. 

Who amongst us hasn’t dreamed of tooling around town in a chariot previously owned by one of history’s most infamous despots?

But enough about Matt Dillon, apparently Pol Pot had something to do with this Mercedes, too.

Sounds kinda glamorous, but surely the Hanson Brothers can do better?

The Cave Singers - “Dancing On Our Graves”, directed by Mike Ott, from the album ‘Invitation Songs’

OK, not Thor himself, but the percussionist extraordinaire’s 1999 solo album ‘Fields Of Innards’ has been re-released by I Eat Records.  In commemoration, Thor and friends are playing tonight at Austin’s Club DeVille along with Yellow Fevor, the Shaky Hands and the excellent Denton, TX trio Tre Orsi, who feature Shearwater’s Howard Draper.

Call it getting in bed together or whatever you like but we’ve been cooking up a little promotion with our friends over at Paste Magazine. They helped us put together this terrific contest to win a custom designed New Pornographers’ guitar.

More details are available here.

If you win, we’d very much appreciate seeing you rock it a bit like this fella (cigarette not included)