There’s a new movie coming that I sneakily got to see recently – it’s about Jack the Ripper, and it’s based on Alan Moore’s classic graphic novel about the Ripper, freemasonry and beyond. First off, for a look at the official site, go to From Hell.
Then for a streaming online short movie on Alan Moore, try PreScientist.
And to get a fairly comprehensive glimpse into the literary creations of the man who single-handedly dragged the comic book into critical acceptance, browse through A Review of From Hell. [Editor’s note: Alan Moore may be the greatest comic-book writer to date. More on him here.]
Then sticking with the much-maligned graphic novel genre, for some interesting online adult reading, try Nowhere Girl.
And for a great collection of vintage Dagwood and Blondie comic strips for the more conservative among you, take a look at Blondie Gets Married!
Staying with the ‘hell’ thread’. Not many folks know that the creative genius behind Futurama and The Simpson’s had a strange comic strip before fame struck. Take a look through the rather messy page dedicated to Matt Groening’s Life in Hell.
More online reading – and this is the stuff that urban legends are made from – buckle up and get ready for the classic article Deaths in Disneyland.
Then for something related but different, Wired Magazine sent the man who coined the term ‘cyberspace’ to Singapore to soak up the atmosphere; see what William Gibson had to say in Disneyland With the Death Penalty.
If you like cutting ‘n pasting odd and silly reading from the Net, then take a looksee at the atrociously bizarrely named We Made Out in a Tree and This Old Guy Sat and Watched Us.
Let’s break away from the threads. The war against spam continues – and here’s a really cool online spam header checker. Just cut ‘n paste the full header of that unwanted advert you received into this online resource, and discover who you need to send spam complaints to. The Online Spam Relay Checker!
Here’s an interesting local development of something that’s been around overseas for a long time (as cheerful junkies who know how to use the postal system will know). Don’t feel like going in the flesh to your pharmacist for your weekly potions and medicines? Take a look at Direct Medicine Online.
Oddly, some people don’t seem to like the fact that we can all download whatever music we want off the Net for free. Go figure! The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) were recently blocked from – and I kid you not – effectively hacking into peoples PCs to hunt down copyrighted material. Now they’ve come up with a new scheme which will cause a Denial of Service attack on users trying to download music. Read the story at RIAA Hacking.
Geek stuff. XP users will find lots of useful resources at this site, even though it was created before the final release date. Go to Northern Light Special Edition.
You may not have heard of Dan Eldon, but let’s change that. He was a 22-year-old photojournalist who died in Mogadishu, Somalia in ’93. For a look through an online exhibit filled with his pictures, newspaper cuttings and notebook scribbling, go to Dan Eldon.
Then, just to cruise briefly into the world of gaming, take a read of some of these interesting and silly articles – WebVoids Ten Scariest Games. There’s also Gamespot’s Ten Best-Looking Games.
For a glimpse of a real-life ‘home improvement’ concept, pay a visit to the one-stop joys of Mister Fixit!
And finally, something to sink your teeth into. If you’re a vampire in search of a Significant Other or want the latest fads and fashions, or even online games (like Create Your Own Funeral) – wing your way towards Vampire Nightly.
Until the next time, if pharmacists and local music distributors don’t get me.
Ian Fraser is a playwright, author, comedian, conspiracy nut, old-time radio collector and self-confessed data-junkie. Winner of numerous Vita and Amstel Awards, he’s been an Internet addict and games-fanatic since around 1995, when the Internet began to make much more sense than theatre.