“The Lewis Black of Oscar bloggers” —Patrick Goldstein, “The Big Picture”, L.A. Times
Team Elsewhere

I'm slightly partial, but I must say two things: (1) the new Hollywood Elsewhere looks pretty good so far, and (2) there are reasons for this. Five, to be exact.

Hence, a background, work history and contact rundown on the very good fellows who helped me do the re-designs, expansions and upgrades -- Jon Rahoi, Brian Walker, Alex Stanford, Matt Daniels and Harry Webber.

I owe a particular tribute to Harry, who very generously gave of his time in guiding me through those first crucial (and intimidating) steps. I've been writing an online column for nearly six years, but I didn't know very much about what it actually took to sit down and slap it together, file by file. An L.A. mensch of the first order, Harry offered the first helping hand.

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Jon Rahoi is a software consultant, freelance writer, photographer, and graphic designer, based in San Francisco. His website is http://www.rahoi.com. Jon is not so much a "web designer" as a human machine gun. I hesitate to think where the au courant Hollywood Elsewhere would be without his input.

Jon is also an Alaskan polyglot specializing in Asian languages. He teaches White Eyebrow and Dragon Styles of kung fu (http://undergroundkungfu.com) and imports Foreign Baseball Jerseys ( http://latinojerseys.com) when time permits.

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Brian Walker is a freelance web designer and writer living in Athens, Ohio, where he spends most of his free time taking care of two rambunctious dogs and a wife who's slowly going crazy completing her doctorate in clinical child psychology. Contact Brian here.

Adjectives like "bright," "inventive," "resourceful" and "tireless" have been used before in describing this or that web designer, but they truly apply in Brian's case.

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Alex Stanford is a web developer based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. He loves to write about himself in the third person. He has created websites and designs for private and commercial clients in North America and abroad. Fast and intelligent at all times, Alex has been more than gracious in assisting me over the past few weeks. Contact Alex here.

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Matt Daniels is a graphic designer and photographer based in Parker, Colorado. His non-Hollywood-themed design & photography website is http://www.getoutanddrive.com. His e-mail address is matt@getoutanddrive.com. His work is steady, exacting and first-rate.

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Harry Webber is a Clio Hall of Fame creative director of some of America's most memorable advertising campaigns. His entertainment industry clients include Disney, Warner Bros., UPN, Fox Cable and NBC. As a pioneer in the development of branded entertainment, Harry is currently developing reality-based programming for the producers of Survivor, Restaurant and Casino. He writes a column about creativity in advertising called "Madison AveNew" for this website. Harry's work can be viewed at his portfolio site at www.harrywebber.com and his company site at http://www.BrandedFilm.com Harry can be reached at harry@HarryWebber.com


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Discland
edited by Jonathan Doyle
Mafioso (The Criterion Collection, 3.18.2008) Nino Badalamenti is a supervisor in a car manufacturing plant who hasn't taken a vacation in over two years. On his way out the door to visit his beloved childhood hometown of Sicily -- with his blonde wife and daughters -- Nino is handed a package by his boss and asked to deliver it to a powerful and influential Sicilian gangster named Don Vincenzo. Once in Sicily, Nino has a hoot seeing friends and family, but his wife has trouble fitting in and is unfairly dismissed as a snob by Nino's family. Even more worrisome, Nino finds himself entangled in an intricate web of secret mafioso dealings and is eventually sent on an unexpectedly... elaborate errand. (continued)


American Express


Inside Elsewhere...

The Barenaked Critic

Michelle discovers a couple of comedy films thanks to the power of Netflix.

The Silver Spotlight

Adam joins the Elsewhere crew from the Windy City and hits the ground running this week.

Upcoming


July 2

Hancock

July 3

The Whackness

July 4

Diminished Capacity

Gonzo: The Life and Work of Hunter S. Thompson

Holding Trevor

Kabluey

We are Together

July 9

Full Battle Rattle

July 11

A Man Named Pearl

August

Eight Miles High

Garden Party

Harold

Hellboy II: The Golden Army

Journey to the Center of the Earth

Meet Dave

Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired

The Stone Angel

July 18

A Very British Gangster

Before I Forget

The Dark Knight

The Doorman

Felon

Lou Reed's Berlin

Mad Detective

Mamma Mia!

Space Chimps

Take

Transsiberian

July 22

Two Tickets to Paradise

July 23

Boy A