Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Alan Ball finds true blood six feet under

from Times UK Online
2 more years ????

It’s one of those too-good-to-be-true sunny days in Los Angeles, and Alan Ball is sitting in a dark, chilly office, talking about death. Not just death, actually, but grief: the unbearable pain; the torment of knowing that we’ll all end up as wormfood. It’s the kind of thing that passes for everyday conversation with Ball, as you might expect from the man responsible for creating hit television shows entitled Six Feet Under and True Blood, which starts on Channel 4 next week. “As much as we pretend we don’t get old, that we don’t die, it’s something we all have to face,” Ball says. “That’s why we have this instinct to rubber-neck at car wrecks. Death is the ultimate mystery." Ball knows of what he speaks. When he was 13, he was a passenger in a car driven by his older sister — it was her 22nd birthday — when she was killed in an accident. “She drove off the highway, there was a blind spot, and she pulled out,” he recalls, still flinching slightly. “The impact broke her neck. It was very bloody. At that impressionable age, Death came and stuck its ugly old face in mine, and said: ‘Hello, here I am.’ ” Ball escaped without a scrape.

It was that terrible event perhaps more than any other that shaped Ball, who ultimately went on to become a playwright, sit-com producer and Oscar-winning screenplay writer — he was responsible for the 1999 Kevin Spacey masterpiece American Beauty — and at the age of 52 has emerged as one of the most unusual and unsettling creative forces in American television.

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TV Squad Ten: My favorite HBO shows


TV Squad picks their favorites

HBO has slowly become my favorite network over the past few years. I don't know if it's because the mainstream networks have turned to lots of reality programming or what, but HBO just seems to get better and better. Just about every show on the premium channel is feature film quality (if not better), and I've got some favorites listed below.

I know I'm missing a few biggies, like Rome, Deadwood, Flight of the Conchords, and Extras, but it's only because I either haven't watched these shows or have only watched a few episodes -- not enough to make an informed opinion. I'm sure they'll make my Jane After Dark column at some point in the future. So I hope you'll tell me your favorites in the comments below.

1. True Blood. This vampire series is one of my favorite new shows of the past few years. Not only does it pack just about every emotion into every episode -- love, lust, joy, sadness, and terror, to name a few -- but the characters are fun and unpredictable. Alan Ball is a master at setting the bar high, and he continues to do that with True Blood. While I liked season one a little better than season two (didn't really go for the Maryann storyline), I can't wait to see what happens in season three. Read my interviews with Alan Ball and Stephen Moyer, who plays vampire Bill Compton.

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This Vampire Thing Has Gone Too Far

From Buzznet

Okay guys, I'll be the first to admit, vampires are awesome. I've been into the whole thing since long before a sparkling poster child for abusive relationships rekindled it by romantically telling his girlfriend how easily he could kill her. I love me some vampires.

But it needs to stop. Because it has officially gone too far. Particularly the marketing.

Okay, so, Vampire Wine has been around for awhile. I highly recommend it, particularly the merlot and Cab-Sauv. There's also Vampire Vodka and Vampire Energy drink...both of which I've been seeing around for years.

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‘True Blood’ actor returns home Trammell finds ‘true’ roots in West Virginia


On the HBO original series “True Blood,” Sam Trammell plays a shape-shifter, changing from man to animal and back again.

On Oct. 30, Trammell will be transforming back into a West Virginian.

“I really am thrilled to be coming back to Charleston,” he said. “I consider Charleston home. My mom and dad still live there. I really miss it, and I’m excited to see all my friends and family. It’s great to be coming home.”

But the main focus of Trammell’s Charleston visit will be supporting the work of East End Main Street, a program of the Charleston Area Alliance dedicated to the promotion and preservation of Charleston’s oldest and most diverse neighborhood.

Trammel will be the highlight of EEMS’s inaugural HallowEast fundraiser, participating in “Inside the Main Street Studio,” a sit-down, “Inside the Actors Studio”-style interview, at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 30 at Kanawha Players, 309 Beauregard St.

David Wohl, dean of arts and humanities at West Virginia State University, will be asking the questions, and a Kanawha Players performance of “Dial M for Murder” will follow Trammell’s appearance.

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True Blood behind the scenes: Bon Temps Motel









This is where we see Tara living in Season 1 and where Andy is hold up during the MaryAnn take over of Bon Temps in Season 2.

We see the naked Sam show up at Andy's hotel room in Ep. 9, I guess we actually see 'Naked Sam' in both seasons at this motel ;-)


















You can see how the motel appeared last weekend above left. You can briefly see the hotel sign in Season 2 Ep. 9 The motel is : La Crescenta Motel / 2413 Foothill Blvd La Crescenta, CA


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Thanks again Robi !

True Blood does the Rocky Horror Show

Bloodoracle over at IwantowriteForTrueBloodblog is having some fun with TB and Rocky Horror!

This blog post started when I woke up to Triple J this morning and Marike Hardy was telling listeners how, at the Chinese production of the musical Cats, a child did a poo in the theatre aisle and the performance had to be stopped. Wow, do they have harsh critics in China! Usually you just get hecklers.

Now this is pretty much my reaction to Cats as well. That's not to say I dislike musicals - there are some I love: Singing in the Rain, Les Miserables, The Singing Dectective, Cabaret (and lots of others).

A particular teenage obsession of mine was The Rocky Horror Show - both stage and cinema versions. When I was in the shower this morning (my best place for thinking) I had a vision/fantasy/delusion (call it what you will) of the characters in True Blood being cast in The Rocky Horror Show. Here are my suggestions.

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True Blood Music Video of the Day: Awakening by The Damning Well



Awakening by The Damning Well LYRICS

Thanks, kelseylovesJJ