Conan O'Brien Can't Stop

Oh, THIS...is going to be GOOD.

Brad Meltzer's Decoded: 24 Hour Giveaway Contest!

Are you a fan of the new series Brad Meltzer's Decoded? I was. I stuck with the show during it's initial year. Like all shows, it hit some high and lows. All the good shows do in their first season, it's called "development" and most networks don't give shows the chance to evolve like that anymore.

Remember how in the first episode of "The Golden Girls" they had a live-in cook named "Coco"? He was gone in episode two...gone but not forgotten. I miss you Coco.

If you like Decoded and you want the chance to win the first season on DVD, or if you didn't see it and want to watch it marathon-style in your own home, I'm running a quick contest. Of course, I guess you could also just buy it HERE. But then, you wouldn't have the satisfaction of winning.

To win, follow these instructions very carefully:

1. Email me a message with the subject heading DECODED GIVEAWAY. You can email bornforgeekdom@gmail.com (It's the title of the blog, no spaces at gmail.com)

2. Write me an awesome fake conspiracy theory! For example, "Bigfoot is actually the chief in command of an invading ground force of aliens from the planet Zebulon. And Elvis was his cousin." Or something...be much more clever than that...

3. I'll post the winner's conspiracy theory here at noon tomorrow along with two runners up. But only the winner will get season one of Brad Meltzer's Decoded on DVD. (There can be only one.)

Last Launch of the Space Shuttle Endeavor or Where is Kate Capshaw When You Need Her?

It’s just as breathtaking as it’s ever been watching the last launch of the Space Shuttle Endeavor on NBC. Just like every other shuttle launch I’ve ever seen, this moment fills me with hope, pride, and some kinda Christmas morning excitement. 

The brilliant orange explosion powering the shuttle into space dampens, the rockets safely separate from the ship, and the circular white halo of light from the back of the shuttle (that now looks like a spaceship proper) undulates and sparkles as it passes through the atmosphere into the blanket of black space.

As a nation, we still have one launch left. Yet I feel just as crushed as if this were the last one. Just as I did in Florida a few years ago when I caught one of the launches by accident on a vacation.

I remember racing to the top of my concrete hotel stairs to watch that same orange spark crawl up the sky. Knowing then, as I do now, that we’re counting down. Not to liftoff, but to the end of an era.

I Was Late to the Captain Eo Nostalgia Party

But hey, better late than never...Check out this month's Retro Orlando. Instead of pining for an attraction of yesteryear, I decided for once to write about a wish come true instead of my traditional theme park whining.

As a bonus, my editor posted a really cool video at the end of the blog done by the magazine back when Captain Eo first premiered again in 2010. It has interviews and some in-theater footage of that cheering audience I mention in my article.

Gave me the warm fuzzies to think that the energetic audience wasn't unique to my experience, but is, in fact, a regular occurrence.

One for Each Other and All for One

"The Three Great Amigos are we!"

Empire Magazine got the holy trinity of eighties movie glory to reunite for an upcoming article and they've been kind enough to share all kinds of preview goodies with the world.

Enjoy a quick Three Amigos break. You deserve it.

Graduation Week - Don't You Forget About Me

This is my last week of grad school. So long, suckers! Hey, since I'm on an eighties bender...

I'll also be watching "Say Anything", "Can't Hardly Wait", and "Pretty in Pink". What are some other great end-of-the-year/graduation movies that might be fun to add to the list? And yes, I know I'm thirty so it's not the same. But I party my way.