Almost Worth Knowing: While some of you might have guessed...

The plural of deer is... obviously, not deer, because that's the same thing as one deer. It's a common mistake, I know. It's also not deers, or deeres or doves or anything like that.

Actually, the plural of deer is doxen...

Almost Worth Knowing: I will not apologize for not blogging

Did you notice my absence for the past two days? So did I...

So, anyway, for those of you who do not already know, I frequent this gym-type establishment called Work Out World, also known as WOW. This morning, I received this funny email from them; the subject line was: "Are You a Ninja?"

I immediately thought to myself... "how did they know" and "what could they want with me?"

WELL, I was disappointed to see that the body of the email only said something along the lines of this:

"I didn't think you were... So what are you waiting for?

You only have 3 days left and without the lightning
fast speed of a ninja you are about to miss-out
on your up to $10 / mo dues reduction..."

Blah, blah, etc.

Well, guess what, WOW? Maybe you haven't heard, but I AM a NINJA, so I guess I'm not going to be taking advantage of your dues reduction. What do you think about that? No Answer? That's what I thought...

Almost Worth Knowing: New Jersey's Favorite Neighbor

It's Monday morning everyone! Hope all is well? On Thursday last, I pondered out loud about my backyard neighbors and nighttime visitors, the deer.

here's an interesting question that was raised tonight, and one I did not know the answer to myself. Deer... do they sleep standing up or laying down? in the same place every night? how often at a time? have deer dreams?

Curiously, that side note generated the most responses I've had in some time. Fortunately, the question was important enough to me that I had already found this interesting and informative article: Are You Likely to See a Whitetail Sleeping? The article is from the Quality Deer Management Association website, and based on interviews with Charles Alsheimer and Dr. Leonard Lee Rue III (who are "household names to whitetail hunters throughout North America") so I suspect the information is reliable.

New Jersey Deer

In short, deer sleeping habits are peculiar and difficult to observe because they sleep for very short periods at a time and often with their eyes open. Alsheimer reports "when their eyes are closed it is generally for periods of less than five minutes." I hope his observations are not based on his short term memory.

As far as nesting is concerned, "Deer sleep anywhere they bed and may do so singly or in groups. According to Charlie, they are creatures of habitat and they may bed in the same location day after day and month after month. Dominant bucks have favorite bedding spots, and they’ll even kick subordinate bucks out of a bed." Moreover, "Deer may lay with their front and back legs tucked under them, their back legs tucked and front leg(s) extended and even on their side with all of their legs extended." I totally would have thought they slept standing up, like cows, but I guess I was wrong.

Finally, sleep only occurs in short bouts of rest followed by an alert period, in a 30-minute cycle. In between cycles, deer may stand up, stretch, urinate, or defecate, before laying back down. Specifically, "Dr. Rue has observed bucks curling their lips while sleeping. He also has video of eyes fluttering and contends this is REM sleep and that it suggests deer can dream."

For some reason, this image came up when I did a
Google Image Search for New Jersey Deer.
Contrary to the wisdom of Google, it is not a deer...

Well, there you go... all about deer. On a personal note to Tony, the sound deer make is "deeeeer!" This is contrary to the belief of Mrs. Malone, who once tried to poison our adolescent minds with the notion that deer sound like cows. Of course not... they don't even sleep standing up like cows!

Almost Worth Knowing: I Wonder If He Regrets Not Walking on the Moon...

Answer: Two days ago, in my post on Buzz Aldrin's reporter altercation I asked for the name of the third astronaut in the historic first man-made landing on the surface of the moon. Katie, without use of the internets (she read it in TIME magazine) discovered the correct answer. Points to her...

Following the events of July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong became an instant household name and unforgettable piece of history. For generations of boys who aspired to the final frontiers of space, he was likely the most iconic astronaut. Similarly, the second man to set foot on the moon, Buzz Aldrin, will also be immortalized for his part in the historic Apollo 11 mission. Yet, curiously, and perhaps a little sadly, few remember the third adventurer on that important voyage.

Michael "Handsome" Collins

Michael Collins was born October 31, 1930, in Rome, Italy. His first space flight was Gemini 10, which was an in space docking mission, in 1966. Due to medical reasons, Collins did not participate in Apollo 8, as was originally planned. Ironically, his removal from Apollo 8 may have allowed him to be back in the list of possible pilots for an important subsequent flight. In 1969, due to the volume of his experience, Collins was selected to be the Command Module Pilot of Apollo 11. For his part in the first manned lunar voyage, Michael Collins was as indispensable as either of his partners. While Aldrin and Armstrong set foot on the moon's surface, Collins orbited the moon, often out of radio contact. In this quiet seclusion, he contemplated, "not since Adam has any human known such solitude." He would later remark in his autobiography, "this venture has been structured for three men, and I consider my third to be as necessary as either of the other two." In my opinion, Michael Collins' role was that of a silent guardian over his fellow astronauts. He performed his duties admirably and his experience in rendezvous procedures and re-entering Earths atmosphere allowed him to bring his fellows home safely. For that, as much as anything else, Michael Collins deserves a place our collective memories of the historic first lunar landing.

The Apollo 11 Mission Insignia Which Collins Designed

Side note: I received a few complaints about the images in my previous post: ABE Horror: More Won Ton Baby Coverage. The fault was not mine, but in the source page where the images were displayed. Shame on you Bloody Disgusting.com. Nonetheless, I managed to locate the pictures and have proceeded to address the problem. The pictures can, again, be found where they belong in my 7/21/09 post. Check it out... the picture of Chris Clemens, in particular, is pretty cool.

Almost Worth Knowing: More Won Ton Pics, plus an interesting question...

Tonight, we come back with some more pics for Won Ton Baby. Katie actually gets credit for bringing these to my attention, with a comment she left on my second Won Ton Baby post. These pics also come to you from Dread Central.com.

You can find all of the pictures here: Exclusive Pics: Won Ton Baby Rampages Out of Womb! A note of caution: one of the pictures features a very disturbing shot of Won Ton Baby's "Bo Staff."

This is a good one of the film's title character

On a side note, here's an interesting question that was raised tonight, and one I did not know the answer to myself. Deer... do they sleep standing up or laying down? in the same place every night? how often at a time? have deer dreams? Tell me what you think the answers are to these questions, and I'll be sure to get back to you with a decisive response in a few days time. Beware; the truth my shock you!!!

Almost Worth Knowing: Buzz Aldrin Rock'em Sock'ems a Reporter

Tonight, I'm taking a break from my Won Ton Baby coverage. In the meantime, check out this video I found of Buzz Aldrin delivering a good old-fashioned knuckle sandwich to a highly deserving individual:

Buzz Aldrin (Edwin Eugene Aldrin, Jr), as I hope everyone knows, is the famous pilot and astronaut of Apollo 11, crew mate of Neil Armstrong, and the second man on the moon. The reporter in the video is Bart Sibrel, a shameless film maker and publicity stunt seeker, who ambushed Aldrin and accused him of participating in a staged lunar landing. With a film crew at hand, Sibrel attempted to have Aldrin swear on a Bible that he really did walk on the moon. In the video, you can hear Sibrel say, "You're the one who said you walked on the moon when you didn't." The video also has some awesome replays of Aldrin's response. I just wish the camera guy was keeping a better eye on the action...

In other news, I mentioned Punch Out in the title, as a play on the game Mike Tyson's Punch-Out (which I've actually commented on in a previous post). The game played an important part in my childhood, teaching me concepts like pattern recognition (bad guys blink before they hit you) and to attack a problem at its weakest point (King Hippo had a big X over his belly button). Recently, a sequel (entitled Punch-Out!!) was released for the Wii, which I've had the opportunity to play. It was not bad and very reminiscent of the original. Of course, in that regard, it's also hard enough to make me cry myself to sleep in fury and frustration...

Challenge: Well, today I mentioned Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong, the famous first and second men on the moon. Of course, there was one more individual on the famed Apollo 11 flight. He never set foot on the moon, but his job was important all the same. Without use of the internets, can you name the third individual?

Update: I also forgot to mention... and I knew this but it slipped my mind... this past Monday, July 20, 2009, was the 40th Anniversary of the Apollo 11 Lunar Landing. Stupid me...

Almost Worth Knowing: Action Bay Entertainment and Bloody-Disgusting.com Have Some More Coverage and Stills for the Upcoming Future Cult Classic

Action Bay Entertainment Horror News featured a quick line about the upcoming Won Ton Baby, with a link to the write up over at Bloody-Disgusting.com. The article, and stills, for the upcoming film can be found here: First Photos, Talk on Won Ton Baby! As you may have already surmised, ABE stands for Action Bay Entertainment, and not for me... Abe Tran... Despite not being my own website, it is nice to see Won Ton Baby find its way into more and publications. Below are two of my favorites from this new batch of pictures.

Suzi Lorraine and Debbie Rochon in their roles as Lily Won Ton and Madame Won Ton


Justin Derry in the role of Chris Clemens (he doesn't look so good!)

Again... Keep checking back for more!

Almost Worth Knowing: On YouTube... On Here... The Teaser Trailer...

Of course, there's more news everyday, so don't forget to check back for updates!

Almost Worth Knowing: New Pictures and Coverage!

Dread Central.com has recently covered some more aspects of the upcoming horror movie Won Ton Baby!

The article, Exclusive Stills: Won Ton Baby, delves into the characters a little bit more, and includes a number of shots from the movie, including two of yours truly, in the character of Benjamin Won Ton. I've re-posted those pics below, but definitely check out the article for the rest of that great content.

I'm holding a Bo Staff for my Big Show Down!


Here I am, being strangled by an umbilical cord

Don't forget to keep checking in for more updates on Won Ton Baby, as well as other interesting facts... here at AlmostWorthKnowing.com!!!

Almost Worth Knowing: Shamefully Plugging My Feature Film Debut!!!

Yes, I know I shouldn't be doing this, but I'm quite excited to announce that the teaser trailer for my upcoming feature film debut has been posted online. You can check out both the trailer and a nice little article about the movie here: First News, Exclusive Trailer for Won Ton Baby!

Unfortunately, I am not in the trailer, but I do make a nice appearance in the last paragraph of the article. I'm so proud of it, I'll quote it for you.

That ensemble also includes Abe Tran, who played Lily’s sister Ben in addition to overseeing the stunts, Lou Martini Jr. and Nick Raio as detectives, Harry Terjanian and KNOCK KNOCK’s Sal Sirchia. “Every actor on the shoot was phenomenal,” Morgart says. “As always, Debbie brought her A-game, and since she was the lead, everyone attempted to maintain her level of professionalism and talent. Abe, though a newcomer, impressed everyone on set with both his acting talent and his stunt ability. He’s the first actor I’ve worked with who was able to produce real tears for a scene, and then 15 minutes later land a somersault with a bo staff in his hands.” In charge of the makeup FX was Ingrid Okola, while the creature work was done by Paul Mafuz and Wicked EFX.

Don't forget to look out for the film, coming out later this year!!!

Update (7/20/09): I managed to find and embed the teaser trailer in a later post. Check it out here: "Won Ton Baby Teaser Trailer!"