The Black Bottom

I love youtube. I really do. I don't know anything about this video except that it claims to be clips of the black bottom from 1919 and 1927. What really blows me away is the little backless fringed romper thing that woman is wearing... it is amazing, don't you think?

She and Him - Why do you let me stay here?

I've been working towards graduating, so I haven't had a lot of spare time to write good blog posts. I'm sorry. To entertain you today, check out this utterly charming music video with Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. No, this is not a particularly new video, but it has such a cute dance routine. Enjoy.

Dick Turpin on Horrible History

When I was young, I went to England for a week with my family. While there, I discovered the coolest book series for 12 year olds EVER. It was called "Horrible Histories," and it was these really funny illustrated books fully of silly or absurd facts about different historical time periods. They all had great alliterative titles (like the Ruthless Romans or the Terrible Tudors). They were really charming and silly books.If you pay any attention to this blog, you may have noticed that I also adore Adam Ant, a fabulous 1980s British pop star. Of particular note is his song "Stand and Deliver," a great song with an amazing music video starring Adam And as a fashion-conscious romantic highwayman. Fantastic!

Just recently, I've discovered that the Horrible Histories have become a television show! Which features skits ranging from gross (clearly aimed at the 12 year old audience) to absolutely brilliant. Among the very best? Check out this music video about Dick Turpin, a totally unromanticized look at the life of a highwayman.
For comparison, here is Stand and Deliver. Oh, this is no accident.

White Uniforms and Tchaikovsky

I love these uniforms, and I love this music. I wish I knew more about men's military uniforms - if anyone knows more than I do, please please tell me! I absolutely love the red-lined tails on Prince Andrei's smashing uniform in War and Peace (the 2007 miniseries). I adore the shape of the jacket and the trousers with a red stripe on Count Vronsky's uniform in Anna Karenina (the 1997 movie). I also love the Tchaikovsky Swan Lake music. It is so sweeping and romantic (and in a movie, nobody gives you dirty looks for throwing in irritating retards that trip up ballroom dancers). By the way, I am putting these up because they are pretty, not because I condone the dancing. Don't even think about that. Just admire the pretty music and the gorgeous uniforms (although who knows if I would still like them if I knew more about men's uniforms - but if they are wrong, ignorance is bliss, because they look so pretty! Epaulettes!).

Zeffirelli - Noi Siamo Zingarelle

Well, here are the gypsies that started it all. By which I mean, the party scene that convinced me that we need gypsies. If you haven't seen the Zeffirelli film of La Traviata, go do so. It is beautiful and dramatic and romantic and tragic and all things lovely. But mostly, check out the scene with the gypsies.

By the way, any matadors that want to come to the ball are also totally welcome. Bring it on.

March of the Emperors

Do you remember when March of the Penguins came out? Well, this is a very old but very hilarious french advertisement from approximately then. So hilarious that, even now, I remember it fondly. Enjoy.

CAKE!

I think it is time for a break from regency, and all the fascinating historical things I have in mind. When I take a break, I like to listen to Cake. This is because Cake is a fantastically cool band. Have some Cake. Short Skirt Long Jacket is one of the more brilliantly constructed songs ever, and the music video for The Distance is very clever. Enjoy.

Why Mr. Darcy, I had NO IDEA!

No. This is not precisely how the dancing will go at the Sense and Sensibility Ball. But it will still be fun!

Morgan and Destiny's Eleventeenth Date: The Zeppelin Zoo

I once posted about Morgan M. Morganson's date with Destiny. Since then, they have made a sequel. Check it out for some bizarrely narrated but entirely charming and vaguely Steampunky loveliness. Good for Joseph Gordon-Levitt - I'm glad to see him doing well with Inception, but I'm glad he also has time for adorable projects like this.

Giant Mechanical Spider

Oh. I want one. Oh please, may I have a giant mechanical spider vehicle? Please? I would ride it to classes, and take it on trips... PLEASE.

This reminds me a great deal of the second book in the Mortal Engines series. If you haven't read them, you certainly should. Anyway, there is a plot line with an underwater city of lost boys who steal from towns and cities (which are mobile and eat each other for resources... municiple darwinism!). These lost boys travel from town to town in limpets, large mechanical ship-type-things, which can move in the water, but extend spider-like legs to walk around on land or ice.

Anyway, the spider's name is La Princesse, and although she was walking around Liverpool, she was operated by FRENCH engineers. See? The French own steampunk.

The Mysterious Explorations of Jasper Morello

This is not French, but it is the epitome of beautiful haunting steampunky loveliness. Seriously, invest the 20 minutes in watching it. The animation style is incredible. The whole thing is just ridiculously beautiful. I can't even say anything more than that. Watch, now.

Emily Loizeau

I say it again - the French are good at Steampunk. If you live in a super mechanical old fashioned looking carousel, you might be Steampunk. If you sound like a demented music box, you might be Steampunk.

This is another song of Mother's, but I have stolen it! Seriously, I think this would make the best dance choreography. Listen carefully - it is part normal waltz (3 or 6 steps, depending on how you think of it... we say 6, usually), but also part 5 step waltz. So bizarre, but wonderful! This means you could never use this music for social dancing. People would get very confused by the transitions, even if they knew five step waltz (not something I would count on). But you could do it as a performance, with dancers who knew the transitions were coming. I have a number of ideas for a choreography, but as yet no dancers to do these choreographies. I will continue looking for them, I suppose.

I turn everything into dance terms. If you don't care, then this is wonderful listening music. If you do care, you will just have to hold your breath until I unleash this as a Steampunk dance performance. Well, don't literally hold your breath... but figuratively. One day...

Tais Toi Mon Coeur

More evidence that Steampunk is French. Not all of the songs by this band (Dionysos) are what I would call Steampunk. Actually, some of them sound very Elvis inspired, except a hilariously awkward French-accented Elvis. Fantastic.

Regardless, there is no doubt in my mind that this song is Steampunk, with a capital S! It is all clanky and mechanical sounding, and has a lovely accompanying video with fashions pillaged from history, a parasol, and gears. If that is not Steampunk, please tell me what is. And don't tell me that it is Particularly-Well-Dressed-Ex-Goth-Bands-That-Claim-To-Be-Steampunk-But-Have-Only-A-Couple-Songs-With-Genuinely-Steampunk-Styling-Rather-Than-A-Recycled-Goth-Bellydancing-Sound. I really mean no offense to such very well dressed and no longer Goth bands, but I feel very strongly about the necessity for clank-ines or a little historical inspiration in my Steampunk music, not just a lovely wardrobe for performing. Steampunk music ought to sound like a demented music box. At least, that is what I say. I have heard some lovely individual songs that are intended to be Steampunk (or, like this one, not explicitly intended but pretty clearly so), but I am not convinced that the world has any truly Steampunk bands. Yet. I will keep my eyes peeled.

Isn't that just wonderful, though? Really lovely. By the way, credit to my mother for finding this. It is sometimes embarrassing how cool she is, or at least embarrassing that she finds cooler things than I do. She's had more practice, I guess.

Morgan M Morgansen's Date with Destiny

This is... weird. But pretty. The narration is truly strange, but entertaining, and the settings look positively steampunk to me. I mean, anything that starts with a dirigible in the sky is going to be somewhat steampunk. Pay attention at about 4:28. It is really quick, but take a look at the moon. Familiar?


As for other observations, I like the word "personette." This should be adopted into normal speech.

Also,
"For me, the body of a bunny baby, if you please."
"And how would you preferate your bunny baby, sir? Black, brown, or bleedy?"

OH NO! NOT BLEEDY BUNNY BABY BODY!

Steampunk is French - "Le voyage dans la lune"

"Le voyage dans la lune" is generally regarded at the first science fiction film. It was made in 1902 by a french filmmaker, Georges Melies. It is based loosely on two novels by Verne and Welles (From the Earth to the Moon, and The First Men in the Moon), and it is wonderfully old fashioned. Therefore, I would argue that it counts as some of the earliest Steampunk as well. Or at the least proto-steampunk, the way that Jules Verne and H.G. Wells are themselves not exactly steampunk, because they come by their victorian-isms so honestly.

My mother has said that the French have been doing Steampunk longer than anyone else. I do not think she really meant this throw-away comment to be seriously argued, and I'm pretty sure she didn't have a voyage to the moon in mind, but there it is. Very early Steampunk. And for the record, Jules Verne, one of the ultimate inspirations for Steampunk, is French. Stay tuned for more French Steampunk in the next couple of days... As well as non-French Steampunk.

Anyway, as the oldest science fiction movie (and oldest Steampunk movie? Yes?), it is an important educational experience to watch this film. Plus, it is adorable.

Muppets!

Alright, the Muppets may not be elegant, but they are cool. One of my classes always starts with a totally unrelated music video. Really... they choose something completely random to play before class starts. I guess it is to get our attention.

For one of these, my professor choose this, which he found hilarious. I must agree. Start with the actual music video for Bohemian Rhapsody, by Queen.

Ok. Now watch this version.

Have you noticed how excited I am that I've figured out how to put youtube videos into blog posts? Yes, it is ridiculously easy, but I am so technologically inept that I count this as a great victory!

Also, that last comment about video conferences makes me think of most meetings. I wish all unproductive meetings were that much fun to watch. For that matter, I wish all science classes were that much fun to watch.

Playing Diabolo

This is a 1868 painting by Cesare Felix dell'Acqua called, "Angel and Devil," or "Playing Diabolo The-Devil-on-Two-Sticks." Cool, right? I don't have a diabolo, but when I was in a contact juggling phase and buying acrylic spheres in New York, my parents got one for my little sister. To the best of my knowledge, she's never practiced with it enough to do anything particularly cool, but it would be a worthy endeavor. This is not something I know much about, but apparently you can do very impressive things. Go look on youtube... this is some guy on Japanese television, and I can't even understand what he is doing.