Flicks To Hold You Over
Where can you find movies that capture the spirit of adventure and the style of a bi-gone era. Most movies I review have what I'm looking for, others don't and I try to explain why.

The Rant Archive

2004 - 2005 - 2006 - 2007 - 2008

2004

July 22nd, 2004: COMMISSIONING A WORK OF FICTION - Eric Renderking Fisk asks, What does the 9-11 Commission final report meant to you and who's to blame for September 11th, 2001?”

September 11th, 2004 – “In memorial - Flight 93,” This years September 11th Memorial Article focus on the hero’s of Flight 93 who personified bravery, heroism and self sacrifce.

September 17th, 2004: “John Kerry is losing this election: Here’s why. Eric “Renderking” Fisk discusses John Kerry and his decline in the polls and it’s implications.”

October 12th, 2004: “Media Bias, Oil For Food, and “No” WMD’s. The omnipotent United Nations?”

November 9th, 2004: “And now THAT’S behind us…” With all the name calling and fighting during the 2004 political campaign, Eric Renderking Fisk asks: Who were the real losers this election season?

November 18th, 2004: "In Celebration of The Death of A Terrorist" This week’s Rant from Eric Renderking Fisk, he asks who was Yasser Arafat and what will be his legacy in the years to come.”

November 23rd, 2004: "Thankful For What?" - It’s Thanksgiving… And Eric Renderking Fisk chews on what to be Thankful for, and what not to do this holiday season.

December 3rd, 2004: “Humbug” Eric Renderking Fisk Goes Over The Top This Holiday Season With A Harsh Criticism of The Holiday Season And Tries To Narrow Down What The Season Should Mean.

December 7th, 2004: "Calling For Heroes in 2005." In honor of the Anniversary of “The Day Which Will Live In Infamy”.

December 31st, 2004: "End The United Nations" - Eric Renderking Fisk puts another nail in The United Nations coffin, an organization that should be ashamed for playing politics in this time of need.

December 31st, 2004: “Calling For Heroes in 2005” - For the New Year, Eric Renderking Fisk plays the roll of Motivational Speaker…

2005

January 21st, 2005: "Nazi Prince"- Everyone makes mistakes… but not everyone makes ones in view the public eye and changes people’s perception of you forever. Perfect example is” The Nazi Prince” of England…

Febuary 13th, 2005: Last Minute Valentines Ideas - Eric Renderking Fisk Comes to the rescue of one of his woman readers just before Valentines day…

February 27th, 2005: Chris Rocks The Oscars - Eric Renderking Fisk joins Chris Rock in trashing the Oscars… For Different reasons.

March 31st, 2005: "Saving Social Security by sacrificing the lives of those who are already 'Dead.'" Far beyond what anyone could have pictured in The Golden Age, We're able to do things that are both incredible and horrific in the name of Science and Medicine. Where are we going, and what's on the horizon? (Part Parody over the Terry Shivo incedent…)

April 22nd, 2005: "'Save Enterprise' Equals Trekkies Behaving Badly..." - For the first time since October 1987, there will no longer be any new Star Trek Episodes on Television, nor any new ones in the foreseeable future. Eric Renderking Fisk writes about what this means… and how maybe it’s about time we take William Shatner’s advice about getting a life…

May 14th, 2005: "Trekkies Gone Wild…" - In a second part of his rant about “Star Trek,” Eric Renderking Fisk reviews the final episode of the franchise and the impending doom of the UPN network…

June 14th, 2005: "Michael Jackson: GUILTY! (… of at least having very bad taste.)" Eric Renderking Fisk doesn't just call Micheal Jackson nuts: he paints the parents of his elleged victims with the same crazy brush...

June 14th, 2005: The Passion of The Truth" - Eric Renderking Fisk asks: "What happened to Journalism's dedication to the Truth? Or was there ever such a commitment to the facts?"

September 2nd, 2005: "The Passion of The Truth - Part II" - Mass Media – This isn’t The Age Of Aquarius. Eric Renderking Fisk believes the news in the Mainstream media is generated just to rekindle the over romanticized era of protest and anarchism… and diminishes those who are trying to have a legitimate debate on both sides about what’s happening in the World today.”

November 10th, 2005: "France Is a Riot!" Are The Riots in France a problem that stands alone, or is it a symptom of a greater problem... as the world becomes more apprehensive and concerned - Eric Renderking Fisk details the cause and what little we have to look forward to...”

2006

August 24th, 2006: "Kneeling At The Altar Of 'The Great Bird Of The Galaxy? I don't think so..." Did Gene Roddenberry Die on The Cross and rise from the dead a few days after? Did he ascend into heaven on a Flying Horse? Part The Red Sea? No? Then why is this man who's been dead for 15 years being remembered as a Saint, Prophet or a Deity... even after he denounced faith in God or Gods?

December 22nd, 2006 - "Almost 2007? Where Did The Time Go, Anyway?" Sometimes in the best interest of everyone - including yourself - the best answer to give is "no." That's the hardest thing to say and knowing when to say it is the hardest lesson to learn.

December 28th, 2006 - "Remembering Gerald Ford - Before And Beyond Watergate..." Who was this guy, Gerald Ford? What was the rest of the story behind this American President? Is there more to this character besides Watergate? What's the whole picture and why should we care?

2007

January 23rd, 2007 Eric Renderking Fisk revisits "Science Fiction Age..." "Nobody is able to know for sure what tomorrow brings and what the future holds. The Best any of us can hope for is an educated guess..."

February 10th, 2005: "Super Bowl and the Two Minute Hate…" Here's the text of The Fedora Chronicles Radio Show for February 10, 2007...

February 14th, 2007: Cynical About Valentine's Day? Don't Be. News Flash: Valentines Day isn't about What you Buy... but how you feel.

March 1st, 2007: Oscar 2007 - Gore’s Hollywood: "As I mentioned on The Fedora Chronicles Hollywood home page, here are my comments about the Oscar Award ceremony that was held at the end of February. I’m disappointed on a few levels.

March 12th, 2007 -"How Much Freedom Do you Really Need?" This topic is just too important to leave to just the forum. But that's where this topic was brought up. Sunday night one of our members "Kan Smiley" started a topic about Jim Zumbo, a former writer for "Outdoor Life" who was fired for his comments about hunters using Assault Rifles.

April 10th, 2007 - Career Ending Comments: Don Imus and "The N-Word" - Currently there's an explosion about this same topic all over the media - how one comment can ruin a career... Last week when Don Imus was talking about Woman's Basketball, he called the Rutgers University women's basketball team "nappy-headed hos." Now, people every where are either asking for MSNBC and Westwood One to fire him, or lambasting his employers asking why did it take something like this for them to see Imus for what he really is...

April 26th, 2007: "Rosie O'Donnell: Cake Owner - Cake Eater" - Let me just head some of you off at the pass - the title of this rant isn't a dig or a jab at Rosie O'Donnell's weight. It's a play on the old phrase, "Having your cake and eat it, too." Ok? So shut down Outlook and put your "I hate Renderking" stationary away.

June 15th - 18th, 2007:: Eric "Renderking" Fisk goes on "Safari" with Steve Jobs and come back empty handed and frustrated...

August 16th, 2007: 30th Anniversary Of Elvis Presley's Death: "Death Of One King, Fall Of One Princess." - "As I was in the Grocery Store this morning, and saw how one publication observed the Anniversary of the death of one celebrity while another chronicled the continued fall of another, it wasn't too easy to imagine that 30 years from now one of my sons will be an a grocery story, watching a clerk stock a commemorative magazine observing the three decades since the death of our former Pop Princess."

August 24th, 2007 - Our Names Will Be Synonymous With "Adventure." Eric Renderking Fisk writes: "Someone on another forum asks this question - now that we have vendors that are supplying perfect replicas of the fedora worn by Harrison Ford in "Raiders Of The Lost Ark," (and countless other heroes from The 1930's and 1940's - real and imagined.) "What's Next?" Here's my answer...

September 5th & 15th, 2007: "What happens when we chose to be lied to?": "There's an storm brewing out in the open seas of The Internet... it's called "Yellow Journalism" and we've faced it before in other medias... There are some people who think this storm has come and gone, but I'm telling you that it's only been building, just touching the coast line of reality with deadly consequences before heading out back into the Cyberspace ocean for warmer water and hot air to build and gain strength..."

October 3rd, 2007: "Brit-Brit Kids shipped Fed-Ex." "This would be a great time for Ms. Spears to get her act together and focus on two important things, and in this order - getting her kids back and raise them better then her mother raised her, and to focus on her career. And when I say this work on her career, I'm not talking about being getting attention by being a public train wreck and the poster child for under-education over paid white trash... I'm talking about producing an album that's successful with out relying too much on over-dubbing and folks will actually be able to listen to.... be sure to send her a copy of Audrey Hepburn's biography. She'll have plenty of time to read while behind bars if she's not to busy singing "Jailhouse Rock." Spears needs to learn what it means to be a performer AND a lady who cares."

October 11th, 2007 - John Edwards Caught Cheating? The media should be hammering away at both parties with the same intense scrutiny, not pick sides or over-report some stories and under-report others. That's just common sense. But from even the casual observer can tell you, the news media isn't about reporting the news any more, the goal now is to alter perceptions and entice people to think, act and eventually vote in ways that will benefit their favorite partisans and party, just as William Randolph Hurst did with his publications during the first half of the 20th Century.

October 30th, 2007: How did the slaughter of one goose bring up issues about our collective mortality, the disproportionate way that nerve and courage has been distributed to the men in our culture, World War II and September 11th... and overcoming difficulty? "Making A Killing."

November 30th, 2007: I remember the day that I hosted Luis Muñoz's article, wondering what the reaction to it would be. I had no idea that this would later become one of the most debated articles on The Fedora Chronicles and there would still be people talking about this more then 2 years later. A lot of people wrote about it, a lot of people commented on it, and over 2 years later it's still the centerpiece of a decisive and long-running debate. "'That Gay Article' And It's Debate That Just Won't Die..."

Winter Storm Warning (2007) - December 13th -14th, 2007: No need for panic when The Weather Forecast Calls for Light Armageddon and a 90% Chance of Mild To Severe Natural Disaster when it's just a heavy storm. You can actually enjoy yourself if you're prepared and have the right state of mind...

Dishwasher Confidential - : New Year's Special: "Working on New Year's for the particular restaurant I write about was one of the worst things that I've ever had to endure since I started to draw a pay check for slave's wages. I hated it. More then 15 years have passed, and when I look back on it I'm filled with this fond bitter-sweetness."

2008

Remembering Asimov: By Eric Renderking Fisk: "... Asimov didn't 'write down' to his audience, he didn't needlessly uncomplicated the subject matter - it's a difficult thing to try and explained how he treated his readers as if they were intelligent while at the same time taught anyone who was willing to read what he wrote. That was part of his genius, you felt smarter then you really were just by reading what he had to say." Read More...

Book Review: "Write It When I'm Gone..." By Thomas DeFrank. "Many of the members of this cast in the Shakespearian tragedy that was Nixon's Watergate are veterans of World War II and members of the Greatest Generation. These political titan's fight and clash over the rule of law and concepts that are beyond the grasp of some but are embodied in others.

January 28th, 2008: Thanks For The Memories, George... I Wish I could Say It's Been Fun. Did you catch George W. Bush's final State Of The Union Speech? No? Check this rant out to read about what you missed, and what those of us missed who also heard it. Something huge was missing, and the Main Stream Media didn't catch on...

Biggest Losers Super Tuesday 2008: "...It's a wonderfully dysfunctional way to pick a leader, entertainment for civics nuts, and I wouldn't want it any other way... the question isn't about who the big winners are, the question is: Who are the losers?

These Are The Moments..." Eric Renderking Fisk debates the Relevancy of The Oscars this year was over-shadowed by moments not captured on Film... February 25th, 2007

Have Movie Fans Come Along Way in 10 Years? - February 28th, 2008. "There are some classics like "The African Queen" that haven't released on DVD format. With each new format, fewer classics are released as form of cinematic entropy. That bothers me a lot. These issues have created a "Catch-22" for Classic Movie Fans and Studios alike."

"Dishwasher Confidential: Food Poisoning" is the story of one Vintage Aficionado's survival in the culinary underbelly of one small college town. This rant contains harsh language and intense descriptions of bodily functions and is a frank, honest and genuinely disturbing account of filthy restaurants and the desperate employees who work in them. Do Not Read This Rant If You Are Easily Offended or Grossed-Out! Read this rant at your own peril!

March 12th, 2008: "Eliot Spitzer Suicide Watch," By Eric 'Renderking' Fisk: "My anger towards Spitzer isn't some holier-then-thou rhetoric or a mask to cover up my own misdeeds. I feel horrible for his wife, his children and his sycophantic supporters who blur the already grayed line between "Right" And "Wrong." Men should love, treasure and adore their wives as I do mine, never do anything that would blatantly break their hearts or violate their trust no matter how powerful they are."

March 25th, 2008: Eric 'Renderking' Fisk asks: "Do you really want to attack your opponent with words and terminology that reminds everyone else about the character flaws that your candidate has?" "Hillary, Barack... And The Judas Factor."

March 31st, 2008: "Don't Turn This Into A Religion." - "I was reminded of the saying when Doug "Webhead73" Palumbo started the thread: Girl Dies After Parents Pray for Healing. This prompted me to get some things off my chest about faith, religion and the cult of pop-culture... hence the name of the title..

April 3rd, 2008: "What's a Parent's 'Worst Nightmare'?" One of the things they don't tell you before you become a parent is that you'll be plagued with strange dreams about your children for a very long time... much the same way they don't tell you before you graduate from high school that you'll still have nightmares about showing up for class unprepared. - Since becoming a parent, I've had the occasional dream or nightmare about some danger that threatens my boys..."

April 22nd, 2008: Eric Renderking Fisk has been working on this rant about how we need to do more to help each other out in The Retroverse and what we need to do to prevent the tragedy that occurs to many different people when one person takes their own life. "Celebrities Of Suicide."

Walking With Dinosaurs: The Experience. "If you have the chance go to "Walking With Dinosaurs: The Experience," then absolutely go and be prepared - the pictures I took and posted here just don't do this event justice. Review by Eric "Renderking" Fisk.

Pizza Haven: Here I'm going to lay out my argument why you should almost always frequent your friendly neighborhood pizza joint. Not only because you should support non-corporately owned business and support your neighbors who own local restaurants, but because they're simply better most of the time." Review by Eric "Renderking" Fisk.

May 15th, 2008: Eric Renderking Fisk rants: "Painfully Young Siren Strikes A Pose..." "new 'jail bait' has been manufactured by Disney and is now in the middle of a controversy involving a proactive photo which now brings back the topic "how young is too young?"

June 4th, 2008 - Democracy's Apocalypse 2008: Hillary Refuses To Quit. The important issues in the National Presidential Campaign are being ignored while the nation's media obsesses about what the former First Lady is going to do next in her campaign to undermine the 22nd Amendment...