Movieclips

Launched in beta in December, the free Movieclips service features 12,000 classic film excerpts — from It’s a Wonderful Life to The Big Lebowski. Search by actor (”Jeff”), director (”Coen”), keyword (”Big”), or line of dialog to call up the snippet you seek (”Where’s the money, Lebowski?”). In the mood for the full flick? Movieclips directs you to other sites to download, rent, or buy.

Enter the Ultimate LOST Fan Promo Contest

Your Promo Could Be Shown on TV! Be part of LOST history by creating a 35-second LOST finale promo for the series to get a shot at having your work shown on TV! You could win a trip to a LOST party and have your finale promo shown on air during LOST: THE FINAL SEASON. You don’t have to be a video pro to enter — you can use our mash-up tools or you can use your own personal editing software. Enter HERE.

Realistically Painted Children’s Drawings – The Monster Engine

The Monster Engine is a book, a demonstration, lecture and a gallery exhibition created by Dave Devries. The premise for all three came from one single question: What would a child’s drawing look like if it were painted realistically?

It began at the Jersey Shore in 1998, where Dave’s niece Jessica often filled his sketchbook with doodles. While Dave stared at the images, he wondered if color, texture and shading could be applied for a 3D effect. As a painter, Devries made cartoons look three dimensional every day for the likes of Marvel and DC comics, so why couldn’t those techniques be applied to a kid’s drawing?

Funny or Die’s Presidential Reunion With Saturday Night Live Alumni

Hosts of Saturday Night Live presidential past came alive for FunnyOrDie.com’s attempt to promote financial reform. Director Ron Howard rounded up the ultimate all-star lineup of presidential imitators to advise Barack Obama (Fred Armisen) and Michelle Obama (Maya Rudolph)about the much-debated Consumer Financial Protection Agency.

Dana Carvey, Dan Aykroyd, Chevy Chase, Will Ferrell, and Darrell Hammond resurrected their famous political alter egos, while Jim Carrey portrays a Ronald Reagan.

What Are The 10 Most Addictive Sounds in the World?

You’re probably among the millions who have experienced it: driving in a car, listening to the radio, and suddenly this song comes on. It is not just any song–this was your favorite song when you were a teenager. As the first few notes strike up, you’re transported back in time. Everything is so vivid, and your mind wanders to parties, first kisses and sweaty palms. It’s as if time stands still and you suddenly realize that for the entire duration of the song, you haven’t seen a single thing on the road.

There’s no doubt about it, sound is immensely powerful. And yet 83% of all the advertising communication we’re exposed to daily (bearing in mind that we will see two million TV commercials in a single lifetime) focuses, almost exclusively, on the sense of sight. That leaves just 17% for the remaining four senses. Think about how much we rely on sound. It confirms a connection when dialing or texting on cell phones and alerts us to emergencies. When the sound was removed from slot machines in Las Vegas, revenue fell by 24%. Experiments undertaken in restaurants show that when slow music (slower than the rhythm of a heartbeat) is played, we eat slower–and we eat more!

Is this just coincidence, or does sound make us buy more, want more, dream more and eat more? Any 50-year-old American can sing a whole range of television jingles from the 1970s–they are all well stored in the recesses of our brain. Yet if you were to ask the same of those who have come of age recently, you will find them stumped. Has the magic of a television tune disappeared, or has the advertising world lost sight of the fact that people do indeed have speakers at home? I decided to put these questions to the test.

Buyology Inc. and Elias Arts, a sound identity company in New York, wired up 50 volunteers and measured their galvanic, pupil, and brainwave responses to sounds using the latest neuroscience-based research methods. We learned that sound has remarkable power. This may not be surprising for many, but it was certainly surprising to realize just how many commercial brands over the past 20 years have made their way into the world’s 10 most powerful and addictive sounds–beating some of the most familiar and comforting sounds of nature. Read more HERE. (Thanks for the tip Don)

Meet Twitch From Pixar’s Toy Story 3

Meet Twitch, the insectaloid warrior, where MAN + INSECT = AWESOME! This sturdy action figure stands over five inches tall, with more than 15 points of articulation, including ferocious chomping mandibles. Use his powerful wings and impenetrable exoskeleton to evade capture! Twitch is meticulously detailed and includes his signature magical battle staff and removable chest armor. For children ages 4 and up. Other insectaloid figures sold separately.

The LOST Cast Simpsonized

Adam Reynolds created this awesome LOST wallpaper parodying favorite LOST characters.

Yo Gabba Gabba’s New Season Kicks Off On March 8th, 2010

The party continues with the Gabba gang – DJ Lance Rock, Brobee, Muno, Toodee, Foofa and Plex – as Nickelodeon premieres the third season of the award-winning preschool music series Yo Gabba Gabba! on Monday, March 8, at 10:30 a.m. (ET/PT).  The new season commences with a week of brand-new episodes featuring Sarah Silverman, Weird Al Yankovic, Black Kids, Jack McBrayer, Paul Scheer, Weezer, Anthony Bourdain, Of Montreal, Mos Def, Devo, The Aquabats, Mark Mothersbaugh, Biz Markie and a special remix by Travis Barker. Yo Gabba Gabba!, created by Christian Jacobs and Scott Schultz, is produced by The Magic Store and W!LDBRAIN.

Future guest stars for season three include: Fred Armisen, Erykah Badu, Band of Horses, Blitzen Trapper, Chairlift, Rob Dyrdek, The Faint, Flaming Lips, The Killers, Solange Knowles, Mix Master Mike, Angela Kinsey, The Sounds, Taking Back Sunday, Marissa Jaret Winokur, Charlyne Yi and John Francis Daley, Samm Levine and Martin Starr from “Freaks and Greeks.”  In addition, Biz Markie is back with his regular “Biz’s Beat of the Day” segment teaching preschoolers how to beat-box, singer/illustrator/composer Mark Mothersbaugh returns in his recurring “Mark’s Magic Pictures” drawing segment and Jack McBrayer and Paul Scheer visit with their recurring “Knock Knock” joke segment.

Yo Gabba Gabba! Premiere Week Schedule (all times are 10:30 a.m.  ET/PT on Nickelodeon):

•Monday, March 8 – “Circus” – Weird Al Yankovic plays the circus ringmaster; Sarah Silverman teaches the “Time to Mime” dancey dance and Black Kids sing the original Yo Gabba Gabba! song, “We Love Clowns.”  The episode also features Jack McBrayer and Paul Scheer telling a “Knock Knock” joke and Mark Mothersbaugh in his “Marks’ Magic Pictures” segment.

•Tuesday, March 9 – “Bugs” – Weezer performs an original Yo Gabba Gabba! song, “My Friends Are All Insects” and Mark Mothersbaugh is featured in his “Mark’s Magic Pictures” segment.  The episode also features a special remix segment arranged by Travis Barker.

•Wednesday, March 10 – “Doctor” – Anthony Bourdain plays the doctor when Toodee gets sick. Of Montreal performs an original Yo Gabba Gabba! song “Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Toast!” and Biz Markie is featured in the “Biz’s Beat of the Day” segment.

•Thursday, March 11 – “Superhero”– Mos Def plays a superhero; Devo performs their song “Watch Us Work It;” Biz Markie is featured in the “Biz’s Beat of the Day” segment and The Aquabats perform a “Numbers” segment.

•Friday, March 12 – Encore of “Circus”

What’s Under Your Mask Print By Adrian Pavek

Click on the image to make larger. Purchase the print HERE for 40 EUR.

Willy Wonka Candy Launches A Real ‘Golden Ticket’ Contest

Willy Wonka (a.k.a Nestle) is launching a new line of chocolates that they hope will live up to Roald Dahl’s classic tale, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.”

The chocolate company has created a new line of treats called Wonka Exceptionals. To create buzz, Willy Wonka has launched a golden ticket contest. The lucky winner does not win a tour of the Wonka chocolate factory but instead the lucky recipient will be awarded a trip around the world.

There are five chances to win the trip plus $12,500 in spending money to purchase delicious chocolates from around the globe. There’s a maximum of 4 consecutive destinations (so you can’t visit every country in Europe or Asia).

The new Exceptional collection includes a Scrumdiddlyumptious bar with toffee, peanuts and cookie pieces; a Chocolate Waterfall bar, which contains white chocolate swirled in milk chocolate; and a Domed Dark chocolate bar studded with milk chocolate drops. Fruit jellies are also being unveiled, with flavors like grapefruit and goji berry.

The new confections cost a pricey $2.39 for a single candy bar and $4.29 for a bag of minis. I want it now!

OK Go’s New Music Video For ‘This Too Shall Pass’ Features Imaginative Rube Goldberg Machine Sequence

Download 10 Musical Artists to Watch in 2010

Spin Magazine picked 10 artists that they predict are set to make big noise in 2010 — and they have compiled a song from each into an exclusive FREE album!

Simply click the “Get It Now” button HERE and enter your email address, then check your email for a message from SPIN Media (please be patient — it may take several minutes.) It’ll have instructions for downloading your free album. Thanks for the tip Don Thompson!

Glee Live! In Concert Tour Announced

Fox announced today that the cast of the jazz-hands-and-pregnancy-subplots phenomenon will take the show on the road, starting May 18th.

Stars Lea Michele (Rachel), Cory Monteith (Finn), Amber Riley (Mercedes), Chris Colfer (Kurt), Kevin McHale (Artie), Jenna Ushkowitz (Tina), Mark Salling (Puck), Dianna Agron (Quinn), Naya Rivera (Santana), Heather Morris (Brittany), Harry Shum, Jr. (Mike) and Dijon Talton (Matt) will all participate.

The four-city, seven-date tour, “Glee Live! In Concert!,”  is slated to include iconic show moments and fan favorites like “Don’t Stop Believin’,” “Somebody To Love,” “Jump,” “Don’t Rain on My Parade,” and “Sweet Caroline.”

Tickets go on sale March 12th (for Phoenix) and March 13th (New York, Chicago and L.A.) at Ticketmaster; American Express cardholders get an exclusive early shot on a March 5 presale.

The dates are as follows:

May 18 Phoenix, AZ Dodge Theatre
May 20 Los Angeles, CA Gibson Amphitheatre
May 21 Los Angeles, CA Gibson Amphitheatre
May 25 Chicago, IL Rosemont Theatre
May 26 Chicago, IL Rosemont Theatre
May 28 New York City, NY Radio City Music Hall
May 29 New York City, NY Radio City Music Hall

The show will also begin airing its first new episodes of 2010 on Tuesday, April 13 at 9pm ET/PT.

The 4D New York City Skyline Puzzle

This 4D New York City Skyline Puzzle ($50) recreates Manhattan’s famous skyline not only in three dimensions using scale-model buildings, but also along the axis of time, spanning 101 years of its architectural history. The puzzle includes 113 plastic buildings that depict the city as it appeared as far back as 1812 through to 1973 with the addition of the World Trade Towers, and into the future in 2013 with the completion of Freedom Tower.

Including icons such as the Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, and the United Nations, the buildings fit into pre-cut holes in a traditional 2D jigsaw puzzle composed of 640 pieces that form the city’s street layout and islands. The streets glow in the dark, emphasizing the city’s insomniac nickname. Includes a guide book that includes a history of the city.

The puzzle company also makes 4D cityscapes of Chicago, Hong Kong, Las Vegas, London, Paris, Toronto and Washington D.C. as seen HERE.

Preview of The Flash #1

A Brightest Day tie-in! Get in on the ground floor of DC’s next epic in the making! The Flash races out of Blackest Night and into his own monthly title as the all-new adventures of The Fastest Man Alive start with “Case One: The Dastardly Death of the Rogues!” Barry Allen runs back to his life in Central City, but when one of the Rogues turns up murdered under mysterious circumstances, it’s up to The Flash to not only solve this bizarre crime, but protect those that are still targeted by the elusive killer. Plus, don’t miss a peek into the future of the Flash universe in this special, extra-sized starting point issue! Flash # 1 is due in comic stores on April 19th and has a cover price of $3.99.  See a preview of the issue HERE.