Category Archives: Reviews

Movie Insider: “Every Starfighter In Star Wars Explained By Lucasfilm” (WIRED Video)

Wired Magzine logoLucasfilms’ Doug Chiang and Amy Beth Christenson explain each and every type of starfighter from the Star Wars movie franchise. These small, combat-focused spacecrafts have become a canvas for some of the most iconic designs in all of cinema.

Tie Fighter The Galactic Empire Star Wars A New Hope

Ever wondered why the “snout” of the X-Wing is so pronounced, or why the Y-Wing’s paneling is so bare? Amy Beth and Doug offer all these insights and much more!

Presidential Politics: Current Debates Still Have “Game Show” Format Of 1960 Kennedy Vs Nixon

From a TheConversation.com online article:

Between 1955 and 1959, America’s prime-time television schedule became dominated by quiz shows.

…(Television executive Frank) Stanton got both Vice President Richard Nixon – who had been a champion debater at Whittier College – and Senator John F. Kennedy to accept invitations to debate live on television. That’s when the really difficult negotiations began.

The Conversation

…Every detail took a long time to agree on, as the election drew ever closer in the late summer of 1960.

…Sure enough, the time pressures pushed everyone to agree on an established TV format Americans were familiar with: the quiz show. The required studios were easily available, the production staff already knew what to do, and journalists could easily moderate discussions in which candidates agreed not to directly question or answer each other.

To read more: http://theconversation.com/think-presidential-debates-are-dull-thank-1950s-tv-game-shows-128764?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Latest%20from%20The%20Conversation%20for%20December%2017%202019%20-%201490714165&utm_content=Latest%20from%20The%20Conversation%20for%20December%2017%202019%20-%201490714165+CID_10078ebfd36a6e9fdea1cc84ba4bc83e&utm_source=campaign_monitor_us&utm_term=Think%20presidential%20debates%20are%20dull%20Thank%201950s%20TV%20game%20shows

Classic Car Nostalgia: “1939 BMW 328” Is One Of The “Cars Of The Century” (Classic Driver)

From a Classic Driver online listing:

1939 BMW 328BMW’s 328 is recognized as one of history’s most important sports cars, and examples are proudly displayed in leading museums such as the Revs Institute and the Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum. The model emerged victorious in its debut race at the Nürburgring in 1936, won its class at the 1938 Mille Miglia and the 1939 Le Mans, and won the Mille Miglia outright in 1940. With over 200 victories, 328s were competitive until well into the 1950s.

This incredible 328 was purchased in 1945 in Germany by decorated fighter pilot and American Air Corps Commander Edward B. Giller, who was stationed there shortly after the war. Retaining its matching-numbers engine, the 328 here has remained in the Giller family for over 75 years and has never undergone a comprehensive restoration. Offered for sale for the first time since 1945, it is a remarkable piece of history that enthusiasts of preservation-class cars will admire and respect.

Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMW_328

To read and see more: https://www.classicdriver.com/en/car/bmw/328/1939/724625

Hospital Care: How Improved Design Of Emergency Rooms Can Save Lives (Video)

Decentralized Nurse Workstations Hospital Design Wired Video December 2019Produced by WIRED Brand Lab with American Institute of Architects | How can design transform emergency rooms from one of the most stressful and chaotic places into a place of healing? Dr. Bon Ku and architect Billie Faircloth, AIA, break down the science behind designing a better work environment for hospitals.

Architects: Stanton Williams’ “Fitzroy Park House” Best English Home 2019 (Modern House)

From a The Modern House online article:

 Fitzroy Park, London N6
Stanton Williams Fitzroy Park House London interior 2019A stunning 6,200 sq ft space, this remarkable and sprawling house rises up through its surrounding landscaped gardens. Described by the Architects’ Journal as having a “beguilingly cave-like relationship to the outside world”, it is a bold vision of contemporary architecture in which the natural world has been thoroughly entwined with the design.

https://www.stantonwilliams.com/projects/fitzroy-park/

Stanton Williams Architects LogoRecline by the pool, listen to the artificial stream winding its way through the gardens, meander across the footbridge: this home was conceived for those long, dreamy summer days.

Stanton Williams Fitzroy Park House London sketch 2019

The Modern House logo

To read more: https://www.themodernhouse.com/sales-list/fitzroy-park/

Top New Camper Trailers: All-Electric “ERV” From Retreat Caravans

Electric RV - ERV logoNow with an energy-efficient thermal rating construction and revolutionary energy supply, you can live in your caravan just like you would at home! Use what you want, when you want, where you want!

ERV-interior-2

ERV solar panels on roofWith an unprecedented 2033* watts of factory-fitted PV Solar, integrated automotive-grade 14.3KW/Hr battery, coupled with a 5000-watt Smart Inverter, this holistically engineered, self-generating, battery energy storage system will revolutionise your “truly off-grid experience”.

Website: https://www.e-rv.com.au/

Top Graphic Designers: 88-Year Old Seymour Chwast “The First Postmodernist”

Excerpts from The Revolutionary Seymour, By Steven Heller:

Seymour The Obsessive Images of Seymour ChwastSeymour’s art was postmodern long before the term was coined. Yet it was resolutely modern in its rejection of the nostalgic and romantic representation, as in the acolytes of Norman Rockwell, that had been popular in mainstream advertising magazines at the time. Instead of prosaic or melodramatic tableau, Seymour emphasized clever concept. What makes the very best of his art so arresting, and so identifiable, is the tenacity of his ideas—simple, complex, rational, and even absurd ideas.

Illustrator Seymour Chwast Archives

The illustrations for magazines, posters, advertisements, book jackets, record covers, product packages, and children’s books that he created after founding Push Pin Studios with Milton Glaser and Edward Sorel in 1954 directly influenced two generations (statistical fact) and indirectly inspired another two (educated conjecture) of international illustrators and designers to explore an eclectic range of stylistic an conceptual methods.

To read more: http://seymourchwastarchive.com/about/seymour/

Homebuilding Trends: Japanese Prefab “Yō no Ie (Sun House)” By MUJI Is Durable And Efficient

From an Interactiongreen.com online release:

MUJI-House-yo-no-ie-inside image from Ryochin Keikaku 2019the Yō no Ie re-imagines a life in suburban-rural areas, rather than urban-suburban. This reflects quiet yet significant social changes – or rather, shifts in life priorities of people and how they define happiness. In the 20th century, when society was excited about economic growth, everyone dreamed of living in cities, working at big companies by navigating a world of fierce competition, either spending an eye-popping amount of money on a small urban condo that quickly became a norm, or traveling hours to commute from a more affordable home in rapidly sprawling suburbs.

MUJI House released the “陽の家 (Yō no Ie, or Sun House)” in September, 2019, its 4th product since it debuted the “木の家 (Ki no ie, or Wood House) in 2004. Upon the release, they opened its model house at a glamping site called “Forest Living” in Isumi-City, Chiba which is about a 2-hour drive from Tokyo.

To read more: https://www.interactiongreen.com/muji-house-yo-no-ie-model-home/

1960’s Classic Cars: “1963 Chevrolet Corvette Split-Window” (Classic Driver)

From Wikipedia:

1963 Chevrolet Corvette Split-WindowThe 1963 Sting Ray production car’s lineage can be traced to two separate GM projects: the Q-Corvette, and perhaps more directly, Mitchell’s racing Sting Ray. The Q-Corvette, initiated in 1957, envisioned a smaller, more advanced Corvette as a coupe-only model, boasting a rear transaxleindependent rear suspension, and four-wheel disc brakes, with the rear brakes mounted inboard. Exterior styling was purposeful, with peaked fenders, a long nose, and a short, bobbed tail.

While Duntov was developing an innovative new chassis for the 1963 Corvette, designers were adapting and refining the basic look of the racing Sting Ray for the production model. A fully functional space buck (a wooden mock-up created to work out interior dimensions) was completed by early 1960, production coupe styling was locked up for the most part by April, and the interior, instrument panel included was in place by November. Only in the fall of 1960 did the designers turn their creative attention to a new version of the traditional Corvette convertible and, still later, its detachable hardtop. For the first time in the Corvette’s history, wind tunnel testing helped refine the final shape, as did practical matters like interior space, windshield curvatures, and tooling limitations. Both body styles were extensively evaluated as production-ready 3/8-scale models at the Caltech wind tunnel.

To see more photos and listing: https://www.classicdriver.com/en/car/chevrolet/corvette/1963/724523