Daily Tube Blog

Does Sexual Horror Captivate Audiences?

Austin Keenan — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 12:57:59 EDT

Sex: a sure way to captivate an audience. Media and entertainment industries have exploited our fascination with reproductive processes and, sometimes, perversions of that routine. This video, titled "Porn", takes a mix of clips from the 50s, 60s, and 70s. Check it out:

It's kind of weird to look at this vinatage stuff sometimes, because you really have to wonder just how much the perception displayed in this mashup has really changed. In terms of mainstream media, the idea of sexual horror is still draws a crowd. Take Megan Fox's new movie, for instance:

Now, maybe these are related on the level of disturbing sexyness, but the trailer for Jennifer's Body suggests that we can sort of mock the concept of a murderous, monstrous vixen who kills every guy she screws. Some other movies haven't been as tongue-in-cheek:

Species attempted to take itself very seriously, as a genetically-engineered hybrid human/alien attempts to reproduce in order to create a beachhead for an alien race bent on killing humankind. And to wrap this post up, let's go only slightly further back in time and remove science fiction from the equation:

Is Buffalo Bill all the more frightening because of his sexual ambiguity? What is more frightening: the thought of an innocent girl getting murdered, or the idea that her killer will be using her body as material to become a cross-dresser in human flesh? Clearly the questions of how sexual horror is used to captivate audiences and what it says about us as a collective audience is one that can't be answered immediately by a blog post. Still, they are ever-present, and therefor worth considering.

The Many Meltdowns of Glenn Beck

Austin Keenan — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 12:57:59 EDT

(post by Rema Rahman)

Glenn Beck may be a cable news staple but one thing is very clear – he is no journalist. Instead, the man flails himself around Fox News as an actor, a nonsensical lunatic, a raging bull wedged behind the confines of a camera lense. So what better way to celebrate this poor excuse for a pundit than to countdown the top five videos of classic Glenn Beck moments. It was hard to narrow it down for there are just so many! Here’s what stuck out to us most:

5. HIT-ON GOES HAYWIRE

This is arguably Beck’s first coming-out of crazy. It was back during his CNN days, when he was pretending to be more of a democrat and in doing so, creeps out an US Weekly reporter by inviting her to take some nudie pictures for him after the interview, in the name of an American Idol scandal. Was he kidding? We’d like to think not.

4. MISS MARY WACK, WACK, WACK

Playing like a 3rd grader on the school playground, Beck takes a moment to make fun of President Obama’s disabled aunt, silently mouthing that he stole her cane and giving himself bunny ears.

3. GET OFF MY PHONE

More than his constant crying, we love it when Beck shrieks like a hysterical teenager that just won concert tickets off the radio. Except, he’s talking about important things like the country’s deficit. The beauty of the internet also bought us the remix. PS – Why do these guys love to scream?

2. PRETTY FUELISH

Is all that making fun of Barack Obama just a huge ploy because Beck is really just jealous and wants to be president himself? Because here he actually pretends to be, literally pouring gasoline on a guest and fellow Fox News employee, which is somehow supposed to symbolize what Obama is doing to the country. Yay, we’re all on fire!

1. THE 9/12 DEBACLE

The infamous 9/12 project produced Beck’s best signature moment complete with his aforementioned crying and empty stares into the camera. Here, Beck calls out to the people – you are not alone! – to stand up for their country, surround “them” and act the way they did the day after the tragedy of 9/11. Perhaps Glenn himself should’ve go back to that thinking as well.

The Best Out of San Diego's Comi-Con '09

Austin Keenan — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 12:57:59 EDT

The California stop of Comi-con '09 has just passed us by with even more nerdy glory than ever before. Actually, it might be fair to say that with the advent of big-budget comic book cinematic adaptions and sci-fi hitting great television ratings Comi-con is becoming more and more mainstream every year. Today, we'll take a little trip through some of the more interesting developments and previews of this year's Cirque-De-Sci-Fi:

If you've never seen the Showtime original series, then you should. It follows a serial killer named Dexter, who also happens to chase serial killers as a member of the Miami Metro Police Department. Total sickness, at it's best.

TR2N is a really weird way of saying "Tron 2". This trailer is something of a lower quality, but we like it because you really get the excitement of the crowd. The original Tron is so classic that even today there are little Tron cults all over that like to pretend like the original had really great special effects. TR2N will probably PWN all over it.

This bizarre and vintage-looking trailer is for a film named Mutant Swinger from Mars, which captures some of that old school cult-classic vibe we've come to expect from the sci-fi portion of Comi-con. Variety is the spice of life, don't ya know?

Okay, okay! Here's the mainstream portion of our post! After the huge success and critical acclaim of the first Iron Man movie, the world will be expecting a whole lot from the sequel. Alas, no official trailer for Iron Man 2, just yet. This one is for the official video game, slated for release right alongside the movie. Sorry, guys.

Naturally, we couldn't let you get away without exposing you to what Comi-con is REALLY all about. That is, gawking at weirdos that use the event as an excuse to dress up rather inappropriately for days. Quote of the Year: "I am never normal at the beginning of a photo." You ain't kidding!

Video Emergency: Weird Al Yankovich Returns

Austin Keenan — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 12:57:59 EDT

This makes more sense than anything in the viral video world that has ever been circulated. Weird Al returns to his parody rocker calling with a Doors spoof called "Craigslist". The director of the video also did Tenacious D, and it seems like Weird Al totally went nuts trying to make something crazy awesome with this song. But you can read about it some other time. For now, let's watch:

Viola! Now that's some serious internet meme-age. Weird Al should totally do more internet-themed stuff like this. He'd be pretty successful at it. Thanks to URLesque (@urlesque) and Twitter for alerting us to this masterpiece. Until next time, happy tubing!

The Best of E3

Austin Keenan — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 12:57:59 EDT

Not that we were lucky enough to attend, ourselves, but E3 always causes such a rucus on the internet that it's hard to ignore. Every year stunning new game trailers and promises of fantasy to carry us outside of the living nightmare that is the recession, and remind us that even if banks can't spend money on us anymore, we can still waste our rent money on such wonderful treats as these (as soon as they're available, of course). Here's to the nerd in all of us as TheDailyTube brings our favorites from E3 into one beautiful blog post!

Star Wars: The Old Republic

The big joke is that this trailer looks better than all three of George Lucas' prequels put together. For serious, Bioware is making this look like the MMO to end all MMOs, once and for all, until something better comes out. If you go to the official website, you can get a great look at all the conceptual art, which apparently isn't being changed as they program it into the game's engine, as well as plenty of behind-the-scenes looks at how they create a totally virtual, interactive and cinematic experience taylor made for internet nerds like you (and me).

Ruse

HAHAHAHAHA NO! This game is not played as the video depicts, you n00b. Actually, there is a level of similarity between this conceptualized teaser and the type of gameplay that you'll experience in Ruse, just without the touch screen. The game aims to redefine the real-time-strategy genre on a level that hasn't really been achieved since the days of Warcraft 2. You can find actual gameplay videos all over for this one, but just imagine how crazy it will be when you can finally control the whole army of a nation in this fashion, rather than just a scenario?

Project Natal

Project Natal is Microsoft's answer to Nintendo's Wii, basically. Physically interactive gameplay is what they're aiming for, and they add facial recognition, voice recognition, and a whole bunch of artificial intelligence to try and one-up Nintendo's smashing success. Of course, this is Microsoft we're talking about here. Who knows if all of this will play out as well as this contrived little teaser lets on. The real seller is the artificial intelligence, which you can check out over at the official site.

Ghostbusters: The Video Game

For some it was Scribblenauts. For some, it was the new Super Mario Bros. for Wii. In fact, besides the last three games mentioned, there doesn't seem to be a real consensus as to what are the other games to keep an eye on this year and next. For us, it was a charming 3D remake of a precious, precious classic franchise that we actually featured in Web Stars back when it was first mentioned. The most awesome thing about this E3 pick? You don't have to wait half a year to play a demo. In fact, Ghostbusters: The Video Game comes out this month, so once you finish reading this, you can give it a try and admit to yourself that bustin' makes you feel good.

Play Him Off, Keyboard Cat!

Austin Keenan — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 12:57:59 EDT

Keyboard cat is making a comeback! There's so much to love about this video meme, from the lovable face of a feline in passion with catchy melodies to the inappropriate use of his performance to play off certain tragedy. It's hard not to love keyboard cat, and in light of his triumphant return to the viral scene, we present you with a quick list of his most memorable appearances.

So inappropriate! There's no good reason to laugh at a person in a wheelchair falling down an escalator! You should be ashamed of yourself for taking this gig, keyboard cat!

Way to bring it back, keyboard cat. This conversation is way too serious. Mom just needs to chill out a little about Christmas and all that. The kid probably just didn't feel like going to church on Sunday.

Don't get too excited. It's just keyboard cat. Yea, he's an international superstar, but you need to keep your footing while you're on televsion so you can get your message about volleyball across. Play her off!

Wanting to get in shape is just fine. We commend you for it. But don't think you're better than your friend who can't get out from in front of the computer even when you steal his chair from him. He's hacking that thing to make it go a million miles per hour.

Yet there's so many more keyboard cat videos to share! Please enjoy these, our favorites, and send us an email to play 'em off in your own special way. Maybe we'll even have a part 2 of this post if we get enough good responses. Until next time, stay away from treadmills, volleyball tournaments, escalators, and say your prayers! Happy tubing!

Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus

Austin Keenan — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 12:57:59 EDT

Are you feeling a little bit giddy about the idea of two mythologically huge animals fighting each other? Do you want to see brilliant CGI effects that make it seem real? Well, with the straight-to-DVD release of Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus, you probably won't get much in the way of special effects, but people are excited nonetheless. The fact that this video sits high on the chart of "most viral videos" currently is a testament to the mentality of internet users. Remember how Alec Baldwin said they're all aliens that are going to turn our brains into mush? Well, it seems to be working. Check out what the internet viewers think is cool nowadays:

It's probably a fair assessment to say that the premise of this film is derived from some kind of inner-child in all of us that likes to see giant animals take each other on. Film makers and advertisers alike have tried harnessing primal emotions like this many times before, kinda like in Snake on a Plane. But you know what? Snakes on a Plane didn't make that much money! The 'B' in 'B-Movies' doesn't stand for 'BOOMING'. Maybe this tactic isn't really ever going to work the way everyone thought it would. Still, this is going to be a great film for all the children and adults that still wear their G.I. Joe underwear. Yes, that includes some of us at TheDailyTube. Don't judge us.

The Best of the 100 Million+ Views Club

Austin Keenan — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 12:57:59 EDT

On this luxurious edition of The Daily Tube blog, we will give you a look at YouTube's most esteemed viral video professionals. With the advent of the fabulously popular Susan Boyle, we thought it best to bring you a list at some of the very best of YouTube, without counting the promotional trailers, music videos, and Disney television spots.

Jeff Dunham first brought this charming and hilarious ventriloquism sketch to YouTube in September of 2007. The sketch caught viral fire, and to date, "Achmed the Dead Terrorist" has been perched at #4 on the all-time views chart, trailing Mariah Carey, the Twilight movie trailer, and Soulja Boy.

Just behind is Susan Boyle, the ugly duckling you've come to know over the past two weeks through the glowing smile and stunned reaction of Simon Cowell on Britain's Got Talent. With 186,000,000 views according to True Reach, Boyle has a lot of internet fame to deal with, whether or not she continues on in music.

The legendary "Evolution of Dance" is next on our list, with a True Reach valued at 147,000,000. The video is not only a viral video legend, but it is, even today, sitting proudly as the #1 most-viewed video on YouTube of all time.

"Charlie bit me!" This quote starts off a video that will bring back memories of the cutest two brothers the internet has ever seen. The video also ranks both among the top most-viewed of all time on YouTube as well as True Reach.

Finally, there's Lezberado, the chit-chatting fan of the Showtime's The L Word. Her video, "Revenge Fantasies", has attracted the attention of Showtime's marketing team, who purchased the video and now keeps it on their own YouTube channel.

That's our trip through the best of the Viral Video Hall of Fame, with a special thanks to Tech Crunch and True Reach for bringing this new method of reach assessment to our attention. Until next time, happy tubing!

Obama's First 100 Days in Office

Austin Keenan — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 12:57:59 EDT

Our commander-in-chief has been in office for 100 days now, and it's time for that 100-day-review thing that the media has been waiting for. In honor of the occasion, TheDailyTube presents a look back at the best videos that have defined Obama's presidency since Inauguration Day. There's a ton of great Obama-related videos out there, so this might take a while. Are you ready? Let 'er rip!

Inauguration Day:

1. 2. 3.

4. 5.

Closing of Guantanamo Bay:

1. 2. 3.

4. 5.

Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Act:

1. 2. 3.

4. 5.

Socialism:

1. 2. 3.

4. 5.

...and then there's the swine flu, Korea's missle crisis, some low-flying planes, and a bunch of other things that have happened in the past 100 days since Obama took office. Some aren't as happy as others. Check out this humorous (but serious) roundup of it all:

What do you think of Obama's presidency so far? Failure? Triumph? Let us know, and check out the Politics channel for current viral videos on the Obama presidency. For the next 100 days and many more, TheDailyTube will be there to suffer through 2009 along with you!

Bea Arthur Dies at 86

Austin Keenan — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 12:57:59 EDT

From Maude to The Golden Girls, the world is sure gunna miss Bea Arthur. The actress died from cancer on Saturday, and in showing our appreciation for the late comedienne, we wanted to share with you a few of our favorite Bea moments.

Who could forget this classic appearance, where Bea sings in The Star Wars Holiday Special? The program first aired in 1978 to some nasty reviews, but we still love it.

Roast of Pamela Anderson

Bea Arthur Uncensored

Here's another unforgettable clip of Bea Arthur going completely uncensored in a roast of Pamela Anderson. This one's kinda NSFW so be warned.

Finally, here's the classic "Sniff Swig Puff" featuring Bea and Rock Hudson. Can't argue with a little relaxation, and we can take a little comfort in knowing that they're back together singing in that big night club in the sky.

Fairwell, Bea Arthur! You brought a good laugh to many people over your seven decade career. Have a ball with these happy memories, and pass them along to all your friends. Also, if you'd like to call attention to your own favorite Bea Arthur moment, be sure to leave us a message.