The final Gong:

RIP Chuck Barris, author and TV show creator, died aged 87.

I’ll remember him best as the host of the talent show spoof: The Gong Show.

It was crazy and hilarious: the contestants … the panelists … Gene, Gene, The Dancing Machine … The Unknown Comic … 

... and Chuck himself:

 “We’ll be right back … with more STUFF … after this message!”

James Franco To Narrate Stephen King's THE DEAD ZONE Available For The First Time As An Audiobook:

News provided by

Simon & Schuster Audio

Mar 18, 2017

NEW YORK, March 18, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Academy Award nominee James Franco will narrate the audio edition of THE DEAD ZONE by bestselling author Stephen King.

Simon & Schuster Audio will publish the King classic, which has never been available as an audiobook, on April 25^th, 2017.

This isn't the first time the author and actor have collaborated; Franco recently starred as Jake Epping in Hulu's 2016 miniseries 11.22.63, based on King's novel of the same name.

"James is a terrific actor," said King. "I knew that he would perfectly capture the vibe and voice of THE DEAD ZONE."

Franco added, "I've been a fan of Stephen King's work for a while now. He's one of the most pleasurable authors to read or listen to. He just guides you along so well. Even though we're from different generations all his influences and things he references and subjects he's interested in seem to be all the things I'm interested in."

Set in the fictional Maine town of Castle Rock, THE DEAD ZONE was made into a 1983 film starring Christopher Walken and Martin Sheen.  The story follows Johnny Smith who awakens from a five-year coma to discover that he can see people's futures and pasts when he touches them. While many consider his talent a gift, Johnny feels cursed. When he encounters a ruthlessly ambitious and amoral man who promises a terrifying fate for all humanity, Johnny must find a way to prevent a harrowing predestination from becoming reality.

"We're thrilled to fill this black hole in Stephen King's audiobook universe," said Chris Lynch, President & Publisher of Simon & Schuster Audio. "James Franco's narration is simply superb."

ABOUT SIMON & SCHUSTER AUDIO:  Simon & Schuster Audio is a leading publisher of general interest audiobooks including bestselling fiction, nonfiction, business/finance, self-improvement, inspiration, language learning programs, original audiobook productions, and children's titles. In addition to a list that includes such unparalleled authors as Mary Higgins Clark, Vince Flynn, Ernest Hemingway, Stephen King, Michael Lewis, and David McCullough. Simon & Schuster Audio has produced audiobooks that have won eight Grammy Awards and earned forty-one Grammy nominations since 1989. For more information about Simon & Schuster Audio, visit our website at:

www.audio.simonandschuster.com

Simon & Schuster, a part of CBS Corporation, is a global leader in the field of general interest publishing, dedicated to providing the best in fiction and nonfiction for consumers of all ages, across all printed, electronic, and audio formats. Its divisions include Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing, Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, Simon & Schuster Audio, Simon & Schuster Digital, and international companies in Australia, Canada, India, and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit our website at:

www.simonandschuster.com

SOURCE: Simon & Schuster Audio

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/james-franco-to-narrate-stephen-kings-the-dead-zone-available-for-the-first-time-as-an-audiobook-300425755.html

#MSAwarenessMonth: Do You Know About the MS Iceberg?

by Wendy Henderson

March 16, 2017

In Social Clips

Multiple sclerosis is often a confusing disease to others, since very few of the symptoms MS patients experience are visible to others. This “iceberg” effect means that many are misunderstood and their suffering vastly underestimated.

Find out more about Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Month here:

https://multiplesclerosisnewstoday.com/2017/03/03/ms-awareness-month-can-help/

What is the tip of the MS iceberg (i.e., the symptoms of multiple sclerosis that people see)?

Some of the obvious symptoms people notice in MS patients tend to be difficulty walking, tremors, problems with speech and maybe that they tend to scratch themselves a lot.

But what about all the unseen symptoms lurking beneath the surface?

For MS patients, there are far more invisible symptoms than visible ones. A few of the more common symptoms include fatigue, pain, numbness, spasticity, problems with vision, dizziness and vertigo, bladder issues, cognitive problems, emotional changes, and difficulties in breathing and swallowing.

Read about seven strange and weird symptoms of multiple sclerosis:

https://multiplesclerosisnewstoday.com/2017/02/17/seven-strange-and-weird-symptoms-of-multiple-sclerosis/

https://multiplesclerosisnewstoday.com/2017/03/16/msawarenessmonth-know-ms-iceberg/?

In support of Multiple Sclerosis research:

http://www.nationalmssociety.org

http://msfocus.org

https://multiplesclerosisnewstoday.com

http://mymsaa.org

http://positivelivingwithms.com

http://facebook.com/msmemesandmore

https://mssociety.ca

https://stumblingprincess.com

Twitter hashtags:

#MS

#MultipleSclerosis

#fums           

#mseducation

#msawareness

#curems

#mymsme

#MSwarrior

#MSstrong

#fightms

#MSAwarenessMonth

#stumblingprincess

#OMS

#WalkMS

#WalkTogether

#WeAreStrongerThanMS

#mssucks

#movingmountainsforms

#lesion

#myelin

#demyelination

#disease

#brain

#vertigo

#cure

NEVER GIVE UP!

It can only be attributable to human error …

Sadly, to the date of this writing, author Arthur C. Clarke’s classic science fiction quartet is an Odyssey half-filmed: 2001: A Space Odyssey was directed in 1968, by Stanley Kubrick. 2010 in 1984, by Peter Hyams.

The epic evolved from Arthur C. Clarke’s short story, The Sentinel:

… to: 2001: A Space Odyssey, 2010: Odyssey Two, 2061: Odyssey Three, and 3001: The Final Odyssey:

I love the full picture artwork for 2010 and 2061, by Michael Whelan:

This is an alien contact story that goes for realism rather than spectacle … until the Star Gate sequence. Evolution is the main theme: of humans, from ape-men to space pioneers, along with technology and artificial intelligence. What set it apart and made it admirable, for me, was the concept of the enigmatic Monoliths and the unseen alien intelligence behind them, the use of classical music, slow and deliberate pacing, accurate representation of space travel, and minimalist dialogue.

There is also a good subject for discussion in the strand of the plot dealing with what happens when man puts too much reliance on artificial intelligence, and then faces disaster when conflicting orders cause the A.I. to malfunction, with tragic results; the reason made clear in the sequel: 2010. This is a technology turning on mankind theme that would later be explored in movies like Westworld, Demon Seed, The Terminator, I Robot, Tron … and many others.

A timeless classic and easily one of the greatest science fiction movies ever made.

Sun, Earth and Moon in perfect alignment:

Dawn of Man and the push towards evolution:

The bone-to-satellite jump-shot to the year 2001:

The space station:

Deflection:

Zero-gravity:

Heywood Floyd and the second monolith:

Discovery and the mission to Jupiter:

HAL 9000:

"I don’t think there is any question about it. It can only be attributable to human error. This sort of thing has cropped up before, and it has always been due to human error."

In error of predicting the fault:

 

Suspicion, paranoia and murder:

Disconnection:

The journey through the Star Gate:

Frozen moments in time:

Neoclassic containment cell:

Age, death and rebirth:

Quite a journey!