I started reading comic books when I was about seven years old (1956). It began with Walt Disney comics–Uncle Scrooge was a favorite–then moved to Superman comic books, and sometime in 1957 I discovered Batman comic books.

The Batman comics in the late 1950s intrigued me because they had mystery elements. Batman and Robin were detectives investigating crimes. Sure, the crimes were exotic with criminals like The Joker, The Riddler, and other flamboyant characters pulling off incredible capers. But I loved the crime solving elements of these stories.

So when I saw this volume of Batman comics from the time period I started reading comics, I had to buy it! This volume reprints classic Batman and Robin stories from Batman, Detective Comics and World’s Finest Comics published between 1950 and 1958–a prime time period for me. 

Most of the stories are great Dick Sprang renditions as written by the prolific Bill Finger.  There are some classics here, including the story of the 1950’s Batmobile, the origin of the Batcave, tales of the Bat Signal, as well as Two-Face, The Joker, and other notable villains. 

Are you a Batman fan? Did you read these comic books way back when? GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Batman Annual #1 (Summer 1961)

“How to be Batman” (Detective Comics #190, December 1952 – Origins of Batman and Robin retold)

“The Strange Costumes of Batman” (Detective Comics #165, November 1950)

“Untold Tales of the Bat-Signal” (Detective Comics #164, October 1950)

“The Origin of the Bat-Cave” (Detective Comics #205, March 1954)

“Batman’s Electronic Crime-File” (Detective Comics #229, March 1956)

“Thrilling Escapes of Batman and Robin” (Detective Comics #221, July, 1955)

“The Amazing Inventions of Batman” (Batman #109, August 1957)

Batman Annual #2 (Winter 1961)

“The Underseas Batman” (Batman #86, September 1954)

“The Lord of Batmanor” (Detective Comics #198, August 1953)

“Batman, Indian Chief” (Batman #86, September 1954)

“The Jungle Batman” (Batman #72, August/September 1952)

“When Batman was Robin” (Detective Comics #226, December 1955)

“Batman the Magician” (Detective Comics #207, May 1954)

“Batman – The Superman of Planet X” (Batman #113, February 1958)

Batman Annual #3 (Summer 1962)

“The Mad Hatter of Gotham City” (Detective Comics #230, April 1956)

“The Human Firefly” (Detective Comics #184, February 1952)

“The Mental Giant of  Gotham City (Detective Comics #217, March 1955)

“The Joker’s Aces” (World’s Finest Comics #59 (July-August 1952)

“The Gorilla Boss of Gotham City” (Batman #75, February-March 1953)

“The New Crimes of Two-Face” (Batman #68, December 1951-January 1952)

“The Mysterious Mirror Man” (Detective Comics #213, November 1954)

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, I thought I’d listen to one of the 22 volumes of Time-Life’s The Language of Love. Each volume includes 24 Love Songs.

The mix of songs on this 2-CD set range from “Drive” by The Cars to The Spinners” and Al Jarreau’s “We’re In This Love Together” to Gladys Knight and The Pips’ “Midnight Train to Georgia.”

TRACK LIST:

Robert E. Howard is best known for his Conan the Barbarian stories. But Howard–along with the Mythos circle of Robert Bloch, Clark Ashton Smith, Fritz Leiber, and August Derleth–were encouraged by Lovecraft to write stories using Cthulhu, Azathoth, Yog-Sothoth, Nyarlathotep, Shub-Niggurath, Hastur, and Tsathoggua.

CTHULHU: THE MYTHOS AND KINDRED HORRORS (1987) includes some of Howard’s best Mythos stories. “The Black Stone” provides a creepy artifact. “The Thing on the Roof” shows what can happen if you read a book of forbidden knowledge like Junzt’s Nameless Cults (aka, The Black Book). Very scary!

Howard shows the result of selling your soul to the Devil in “Dig Me No Grave.” “The Shadow of the Beast” has this line: “There are worlds and shadows of worlds beyond our ken, it seems, and bestial earthbound spirits lurk in the dark shadows of our own world beyond their time.” (p. 131) That line could have been part of many of these stories about the mysterious aspects of the secrets of the Mythos.

Robert E. Howard even infused some Mythos elements in his famous Bran Man Morn story, “Worms of the Earth.” If you’re a fan of Lovecraft and enjoy eerie stories with incredible creatures, CTHULHU: THE MYTHOS AND KINDRED HORRORS will delight you! GRADE: B+

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

• 1 • Introduction (Cthulhu: The Mythos and Kindred Horrors) • (1987) • essay by David Drake
• 5 • Arkham • (1932) • poem by Robert E. Howard
• 7 • The Black Stone • [Cthulhu Mythos Tales] • (1931) • short story by Robert E. Howard
• 29 • The Fire of Asshurbanipal • [Cthulhu Mythos Tales] • (1936) • novelette by Robert E. Howard
• 59 • The Thing on the Roof • [Cthulhu Mythos Tales] • (1932) • short story by Robert E. Howard
• 71 • Dig Me No Grave • [Cthulhu Mythos Tales] • (1937) • short story by Robert E. Howard
• 89 • Silence Falls on Mecca’s Walls • (1987) • poem by Robert E. Howard
• 91 • The Valley of the Worm • [James Allison] • (1934) • novelette by Robert E. Howard
• 119 • The Shadow of the Beast • non-genre • (1977) • short story by Robert E. Howard
• 133 • Old Garfield’s Heart • (1933) • short story by Robert E. Howard
• 145 • People of the Dark • (1932) • short story by Robert E. Howard
• 169 • Worms of the Earth • [Bran Mak Morn] • (1932) • novelette by Robert E. Howard
• 209 • Pigeons from Hell • (1938) • novelette by Robert E. Howard
• 247 • An Open Window • (1932) • poem by Robert E. Howard

After watching The Thinking Game on YouTube, I came away with the conviction that Human History is going to be divided into pre-Artificial Intelligence and post-Artificial Intelligence. That moment will hit within our lifetimes…possibly in the next few years at the rate development is progressing.

The Thinking Game is a documentary about Demis Hassabis, a scientist obsessed with solving Artificial Intelligence. For much of his youth, Demis played competitive chess. His family was poor and his winnings help to support them. But then, after Demis lost one of his matches by committing an error, he decides that what he really wanted to do was to solve the Artificial Intelligence puzzle.

Demis applied to Graduate School, but he was told he had to wait until he was 17. So Demis spent a year working for Bullfrog, a European software game company. Demis worked on Theme Park which he infused with AI elements. Theme Park became a worldwide best selling game. Bullfrog offered Demis £1,000,000 pounds to stay–this was in the 1990s–and Demis turned them down so he could go to College.

DeepMind was founded by Demis Hassabis, Shane Legg and Mustafa Suleyman in November 2010. The focus of the company was to develop a working Artificial Intelligence. In 2014, GOOGLE paid $400,000,000 for DeepMind while allowing Demis, Shane, and Mustafa to run it independently in London, England.

This 84 minute documentary shows how DeepMind developed its Artificial Intelligence. If you’re using Gemini as part of GOOGLE Crome you’re already in the AI world. Highly recommended! GRADE: A

I’ve read several books by Walter Isaacson and found him an engaging and profound writer. The Greatest Sentence Ever Written–“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness”–receives Isaacson’s intense focus word by word.

Although drafted by Thomas Jefferson, the Declaration of Independence was edited by Benjamin Franklin and John Adams. Isaacson shows where Franklin impacts the greatest sentence by making some canny changes. “Benjamin Franklin, who emerges here, once again, as a wily, practical intelligence who crossed out Jefferson’s original phrase, ‘We hold these truths to be sacred,’ and replaced ‘sacred’ with ‘self-evident.’” 

This slim little book, only 69 pages!, does a deep dive into America’s most famous document and parses its most famous 35 word sentence almost word by word. With the 250th Anniversary of America approaching, The Greatest Sentence Ever Written brings analysis and historical perspective to our troubled nation. GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

• 1776 — 1
• We — 3
• Self-evident truths — 7
• All men — 11
• Created equal — 13
• Endowed by their creator — 19
• Certain unalienable rights — 23
• Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness — 25
• Common ground — 27
• The American dream — 33
• Going forward — 39
• Appendices:
• The drafting process — 43
• From John Locke’s Second Treatise of Government, 1690 — 48
• From Rousseau’s The Social Contract, 1762 — 50
• From the Virginia Declaration of Rights, June 1776 — 52
• Jefferson’s “Original rough draught” of the Declaration of Independence, June 1776 — 53
• The Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776 — 61
• A NOTE ON TYPE — 69

Since the Buffalo Bills are no longer in contention for the AFC Championship this season, my interest in these games have fallen precipitously. With Bo Nix’s elimination from the Championship game because of his ankle injury, the New England Patriots are favorited by 5 1/2 points. Drake Maye is way better than Jarrett Stidham so my guess is that the Patriots will be headed to the Super Bowl…again.

I like the LA Rams but I’m going to have to go with Cap’n Bob’s mighty Seattle Seahawks–favored by 2 1/2 points–who will be headed for another Super Bowl…again. Who do you think will win these games?

There’s occasion humor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Wonder Man–debuting on January 27–looks like fun. The series follows Simon Williams, who is trying to earn the lead role in a remake film of Wonder Man along with Trevor Slattery.

All eight episodes will be available next week. Given the Grim Times we’re living in, a little humor would be a bit of relief.

As Deuce Richardson points out in his informative “H. Rider Haggard: Imagination, Death, and Immortality,” H. Rider Haggard was one of the most influential writers of the 19th Century. His tales of High Adventure like King Solomon’s Mines and She impacted writers in the 19th and 20th Centuries.

Take Smith and the Pharaohs as an example. Smith becomes interested in the history of Egypt and finally travels there. In his tour of a museum, Smith becomes obsessed with the image of a beautiful Egyptian queen. When Smith is accidentally locked up one night in the Cairo Museum, he falls asleep and dreams that he is put on trial by the ghosts of Egypt’s pharaohs and queens. His crime: robbing their graves. The reader is left with the possibility that what Smith experience wasn’t just a dream.

 “Magepa the Buck” is the ninth story in the Quatermain series and features Haggard’s blend of history and adventure. The story centers around heroic Zulu figure Magepa, detailing his incredible endurance to save a child, showing Haggard’s respect for Zulu bravery.

Haggard brings Africa to life in stories like “Long Odds (The Spring of the Lion),” “Hunter Quatermain’s Story,” and “A Tale of Three Lions.” If you’re looking for classic story-telling with exotic settings and occasional supernatural/ paranormal aspects blended in, give Smith and the Pharaohs and Other Stories a try. GRADE: B

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

H. Rider Haggard: Imagination, Death, and Immortality By Deuce Richardson — 7

Smith and the Pharaohs and Other Stories:

Smith and the Pharaohs –14

The Blue Curtains — 51

Little Flower — 75

Only a Dream — 127

Barbara Who Came Back — 133

Allan Quatrain Stories:

Magepa the Buck –179

Long Odds (The Spring of the Lion) — 190

Hunter Quatermain’s Story — 202

A Tale of Three Lions — 216

The Mahatma and the Hare — 239

Bibliography –285

Every so often I get into a Motown Mood. This 3-CD set from 2008 was perfect for presenting a wide range of Motown songs. Motown’s biggest groups are represented: The Temptations, Diana Ross & The Supremes, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, The Four Tops, and more.

In addition to the great music on these three CDs, Motown Classics: Collector’s Edition includes a booklet that provides additional information on each of the songs. For example, here’s what the booklet presents on “My Girl”:

The Temptations: My Girl (#1 1965) Largely hailed as the most successful and best known R&B act of all time, The Temptations have had an illustrious career both on the charts and on tour for a period of more than 45 years. Beginning with their first hit in 1964, “The Way You Do the Things You Do,” the group has charted more than 50 Billboard singles and earned more than 17 gold and platinum hits. “My Girl” became The Temptations first #1 hit, topping both the pop and R&B charts when it hit the airwaves in 1965.

I do not have the superlative ears of someone like Art Scott, but these songs sound better than they do on older CDs I own. I can only speculate that this set has been tweaked and remastered to enhance the sound. If you’re a Motown fan, Motown Classics: Collector’s Edition would be a delightful New Year’s present…to yourself! Do you remember these songs? Any favorites here? GRADE: A

TRACK LIST:

“This is the fifth summary collection of my short fiction as it came out: Gravity Angels (1991), Tales of Old Earth (2000) , The Dog Said Bow Wow (2007), Not So Much Said the Cat (2016), and the volume you hold in your hands.”

It probably won’t surprise you to learn I have purchased and read all the above Swanwick short story collections over the years. This latest one, The Universe Box, features a wide array of short stories. Take the title story for instance: a dull, boring man seeks the affection of a woman who is about to drop him and together they encounter a box that contains the Universe. And various entities want it.

I liked “The Last Days of the Old Night” where three giants with incredible powers impact a world where the light of the Sun will soon turn everyone into stone.

“Starlight Express” explores the relationship of a woman from the Stars who accidentally transports herself to Earth and the man who falls in love with her. “The Year of the Three Monarchs” shows what happens when treachery rules.

If you’re a fan of Michael Swanwick’s work–like his Nebula Award winning Stations of the Tide (1991)–then The Universe Box is a must-buy. If you’re interested in sampling Swanwick’s work, The Universe Box Is the perfect place to start. GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction: The House of Skulls and Masks By Michael Swanwick — 1
“Starlight Express” — 8
“The Last Days of Old Night” — 20
“The Year of the Three Monarchs” — 41
“Ghost Ships” — 46
“The White Leopard” — 54
“Dragon Slayer” — 66
“The Warm Equations” — 85
“Requiem for a White Rabbit” — 93
“Dreadnaught” — 113
“Grandmother Dimetrodon” — 132
“The Star-Bear” — 158
“Nirvana or Bust” — 168
“Reservoir Ice” — 178
“Artificial People” — 191
“Huginn and Muninn—and What Came After” — 204
“Cloud” — 222
“Timothy: An Oral History” — 233
“Annie Without Crow” — 247
“Universe Box” — 264