Amazon orders Alpha House, Betas, Tumbleaf, more

The Garry Trudeau-created Alpha House, the Silicon Valley-set Betas, call-and-response kiddie show Creative Galaxy, science-centric Annebots, and Tumbleaf.

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Google Announces New Music Streaming Service

Google announced its subscription streaming service, Google Play Music All Access (wow that’s a mouthful), at Google I/O Wednesday. It’s all about harnessing the power of Google to provide you with stellar music recommendations, on your phone, tablet, or on the web.

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The surprisingly subversive album that changed stand-up comedy forever

The 1950s were the last gasp of old-school stand-up comedy, “a time in which comedians, clad like band leaders in spats and tuxes, sporting cap-and-bells names like Joey, Jackie, or Jerry, announced themselves by their brash, anything-for-a-laugh, charred-earth policy and by-the-jokebook gags,” writes Gerald Nachman in Seriously Funny: The Rebel Comedians Of The 1950s And 1960s. The performance was quasi-vaudevillian with a barrage of one-liners—think Milton Berle, Joey Bishop, Henny Youngman, or even Abbott And Costello.

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Star Trek’s History of Progressive Values — And Why It Faltered on LGBT Crew Members

The equality on the U.S.S. Enterprise’s bridge was a watershed moment, both in television history and in Americans’ understanding of social equality.

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Kickstarter Founders Address Critics of Zach Braff, 'Veronica Mars' Projects

In a post on the crowdfunding site, co-founders Yancey Strickler, Perry Chen and Charles Adler explain how projects like Braff's $2 million Wish I Was Here film and Rob Thomas' $5.7 million Veronica Mars movie can be good for everyone else. Their reasoning: celebrity projects drive more people to contribute to other Kickstarter dreams.

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McCain Announces Bill to Address Pay-TV Channel Bundling, Aereo

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) on Thursday announced proposed legislation titled The Television Consumer Freedom Act that would pave the way towards an à la carte system of pay television as well as penalize broadcasters who abandon public airwaves in the wake of digital TV upstart Aereo.

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YouTube Adds Paid Channel Subscriptions

YouTube will let you pay to subscribe to channels with a new pilot program that includes a limited number of channel partners for now. The company listed Jim Henson Family TV and Ultimate Fighting Championship as initial members.

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Sony Is Screwing Up Game Streaming on PlayStation 4

Sony Is Screwing Up Game Streaming on PlayStation 4


So you’re watching a friend’s stream, totally enamored with what’s going on, thrilled to be seeing this game even though you don’t have a PlayStation 4 yet, thinking of getting one maybe, and then right when the game gets to the good part, the stream drops.

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Visual Effects Pioneer Ray Harryhausen Dies at 92

Visual Effects Pioneer Ray Harryhausen Dies at 92



Revered for his cutting-edge effects work in the '50s and '60s on such fantasy classics as The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958) and Jason and the Argonauts (1963), Harryhausen developed the technique of projecting footage from the front and rear, one frame at a time. He dubbed the technique “Dynamation” and used it to bring to life mythological figures and prehistorical creatures.

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Brooklyn Park Dedicated to Beastie Boys' Adam Yauch

Brooklyn Park Dedicated to Beastie Boys' Adam Yauch



One day before the first anniversary of the death of Adam Yauch, (a.k.a. MCA of the Beastie Boys), Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz and Brooklyn Parks Commissioner Kevin Jeffrey, along with Beasties member Adam Horovitz, parents of Adam Yauch, Noel and Frances Yauch, gathered to dedicate and rename Palmetto Playground in Brooklyn Heights in honor of musician and Brooklyn native, Adam Yauch. The park is located in Brooklyn Heights on Columbia Street at State Street.

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Marvel movies' Phase 2

New images and revelations from Marvel's Phase Two



With Iron Man 3 opening Friday, Marvel launches Phase Two – another ambitious expansion of its superheroes’ cinematic universe. Though much of it remains secret, producer and studio president Kevin Feige talked to EW to declassify a few new details.

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R.I.P. Chris Kelly of Kris Kross

R.I.P. Chris Kelly, the "Mac Daddy" of rap duo Kris Kross



Chris Kelly, one-half of ‘90s rap group Kris Kross, has died. Kelly was found unresponsive in his Atlanta home on Wednesday evening. The Fulton County Police believe Kelly’s death may have been the result of a drug overdose, though it won’t know for sure until after performing an autopsy scheduled for Thursday morning. Kelly was 34.

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Iron Man 3 Director: Hollywood’s Hottest Screenwriter

Why Iron Man 3 Director Shane Black Was Once Hollywood’s Hottest Screenwriter



Though his scripts are practically soaked in ironic distance, Black knew when to snap to attention and surprise the reader (and the audience) with something authentic.

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What We Learned About Technology From 1995′s The Net

What We Learned About Technology From 1995′s The Net



The movie is more about how the rise of technology impacts our lives, and our changing ideas and concerns about privacy.

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