A few days late, but for the record, Hec:

When Chuck Norris has sex with a man, it is not because he is gay, but because he has run out of women. [note: Why does this make me think of Shrift?]

Never, ever think that again!

So, copyright crime doesn't always make you stupid?

Having never read The Glass Key, this is news to me. In my defense, I used the words "inspired by" in the same way that movie studios do. Seems like the right thread for that, y'know.

Oh, and to Strega: What heart?

So, copyright crime doesn't always make you stupid?

I've had quite a few conversations about plagiarism lately.

Jumping on the bandwagon in my own Special way.That second thing about "literary Sherman" is quite possibly the most awful thing I could personally imagine anyone saying. If I wrote it, I'd still be hanging my head in shame...and I know there are many things about Southern culture that still make me think "Wtf?" But, dude, why not just call his mother a whore and have done with it? Ouch. I hope you know I was just joking.

Saw producer Gregg Hoffman dead at 42, after complaining about neck pain.

Be paranoid--be very, very paranoid.

Fangoria has a rave review of King Kong.

Bottom line: If any movie in recent memory deserves the too-often inappropriately applied label of “instant classic,” it’s this one. KING KONG is everything that so many genre/FX spectaculars promise, and so few deliver. It’s enough to wash away any lingering bad memories of failed megapictures and get you believing in the transportive power of movies again. The only down note: It’ll likely be quite some time before another film of this type comes along to outdo or even match it.

X Men teaser. The web site also has character pics.

Still think it'll suck, but I know I'll see it in the theatre.

Nutty, I think that your definition of plagiarism must be quite different from mine. I don't agree with the implication that the Coens just barely avoid violating copyright, or that they're deliberately tricking their audience. Nearly everything they've done is an adaptation or pastiche of some kind. If there are people who are surprised by that... I dunno, life must be constantly astonishing for them.

I read The Glass Key knowing that Miller's Crossing was based on it (so it's hardly a secret) and afterwards I still had to see the 1942 movie to understand how one could become the other. The situation is the same, definitely. The plots are different. The Glass Key is a mystery. When the murder is solved, the story's over. In Miller's Crossing, a murder sets the plot in motion, but it's essentially trivia. Tom eventually finds out whodunnit and why, in a couple of casual conversations, but nobody cares. That's not what the story is about.

There's a decent quick summary of the book here, if anyone is curious.

Corwood -- Nobody knows anybody. Not that well.

Up is down. Black is white.