Previously on Wainy Days...

The New Year just started, but the latest season of Wainy Days is almost over! Next Monday, January 9, 2012, is the Season Finale!

I know, right?!

Here's a quick recap to get you all caught up:

• *David went on a date with Kelly (Erinn Hayes)-- a theater critic for the New York Times(!), but she had a thing for David's next-door neighbor, a TV star named "Chez," played by Ken Marino


• *David met Arielle (Lizzy Caplan), who was reading a book called "Rosewood Junction" that David pretended to know all about.


• *At the suggestion of a co-worker at the sweatshop (Jorma Taccone), David tries to find "Rosewood Junction" as a book-on-tape so he'll know all about it before his date with Arielle! The nice old lady who runs the bookstore has an interesting relationship with her landlord (Steven Weber)


• *David got his book-on-tape, but he needs Zandy's Walkman to listen to it, and she left her Walkman (seriously?!) at her ex-boyfriend's (Thomas Lennon), who happens to be a BIG Derek Jeter fan...


• *David goes on his date with Arielle, but she wants to talk about more than just "Rosewood Junction!" Go figure.

Which brings us to this week's episode, in which everyone meets again... at a dramatic reading of TV dialogue by Ken Marino.

You're caught up now. Don't say you don't know what's going on because it would be a lie. Next thing you know you'll be saying that you know what "Rosewood Junction" is about:

Nice try, guys. Nice try.

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Marc Maron and My Damn Channel: WTF

I started my career in radio and I started My Damn Channel as a response to getting tossed out of radio in 2006.

Podcasts are not new, but in the past few years, a number of brilliantly talented people with brains and balls decided to head to their garages and go punk - bringing new shows to the masses on the Internet - without any of the soul-killing, corporate execs able to stop these brave rebels from creating completely original "radio" that puts the "F" back in Freedom.

I created Free FM back in 2004 to give awesome talent like Adam Carolla a radio show that harkened back to the earliest days of freeform radio....a form never done better than the way it's still being done today by Howard Stern.

When I got "shit-canned" as Adam loves to say - and could no longer protect him from the devils - he got "shit-canned" too. Adam took to his garage to build a monster audience for his podcast and My Damn Channel continues to put our cash where our heart is as a paid sponsor.

Today, we pony up again to become a proud sponsor of WTF with Marc Maron. If you know this show, then you simply need to know that I could no longer sit back and cheer for Marc without jumping in to support him. If you're uninitiated, then his words will be better than mine and I encourage you to watch the video of Marc's recent keynote speech given at the premiere comedy festival, Just for Laughs in Montreal.

Like with Adam Carolla, you'll hear My Damn Channel artists and comedians on WTF with Marc Maron. From time to time, Marc will tell you about the good shit we're doing here to premiere original series with great talent and without any of the corporate red tape that used to get in our way.

And we've now got a whole new Marc Maron channel to check out regularly when you're on My Damn Channel, featuring his podcasts, videos, extras and excerpts with a link to subscribe and donate like we did to a rare talent taking the truth by the horns.

Rob Barnett
Founder/CEO, www.MyDamnChannel.com

www.MyDamnChannel.com/WTF

www.MyDamnChannel.com

www.MyDamnChannel.com/SizzleReel

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Wish I Knew How to Quidditch You

A young George Costanza?

Maybe you've seen the ads on billboards, in bus shelters, or projected onto the insides of your eyelids.  Maybe you've seen Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, or the Other One making the rounds on the talk show circuit.  Or maybe you need only to consult your very own "Mug Life" abdomen tattoo to be reminded that today--yes, today!--marks the release of the final Harry Potter movie, Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows, Part Two: Stagnetti's Revenge.

Yes, after a decade's worth of yeoman-like service at the multiplex, it's finally come time for this iteration of Harry Potter to power down, be put out to stud, and other such mixed metaphors.  It's a bittersweet day for fans, but hopefully the release of the final film in the franchise will at least provide the answers to some longstanding mysteries, like "What's the deal with the smoke monster?",  "Whatever happened to that Russian Paulie and Christopher let escape into the pine barrens?" and "So did A and X meet at this place last year, or what?"

Okay, so maybe I don't know anything about the Harry Potter franchise.  But our very own Daily Grace does...

And today, she bids a tearful adieu to the Boy Who Lived.  But if you want to avoid the waterworks, you can check in on Ms. Helbig in happier times, watching Part 1 of Deathly Hallows, or over on her Tumblr, wherein she ups her Hogwarts cosplay game considerably.

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A Part Of Me Just Died

According to "the internets", there are no 2011 year model cars that come with tape decks. How am I supposed to listen to my cassette single of Aerosmith's "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing" without a tape deck??? This must have been how my Dad felt when he found out they stopped making LaserDisc players (which was surprisingly only in 2009).

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The Internet Is Over

It's like Y2K all over again! And what I mean by that is nothing will happen at all but now you have a five-year supply of bottled water and duct tape. 

Here's the thing - the internet has run out of IP address for websites. Weird, right?

The first website ever made launched in 1991. Twenty years later, we're out of the numerical IP addresses that run behind the name of the website to track all the information. Good thing we got ours already, suckas!

Don't worry though. A new format is being introduced that will allow for trillions more IP addresses. Holy craps, that's a lot of webjunk.  

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My Damn Channel Oscar Predictions

Movie geniuses everywhere, including the amazing Roger Ebert, say this year's Oscars are more predictable than ever before. My Damn Channel opens our Hurt Locker full of fun to reveal the full list of winners you'll need to pick to take home the Oscar pool cash at tonight's viewing party. We'll be ready to be attacked or thanked in the morning:

Actor:   Jeff Bridges*

Supporting Actor:   Christoph Waltz

Actress:   Sandra Bullock

Supporting Actress:   Mo’Nique

Best Picture:   The Hurt Locker

Director:   Kathryn Bigelow

Foreign Film:   The White Ribbon (Germany)

Animated Film:   Up

Art Direction:   Avatar

Cinematography:   Avatar

Costume:   The Young Victoria

Documentary Feature:   The Cove

Documentary Short:   China’s Unnatural Disaster

Editing:   The Hurt Locker

Makeup:   Star Trek

Original Score:   Up

Original Song:   The Weary Kind (Crazy Heart)

Animated Short:   A Matter of Loaf and Death

Live Action Short:   The Door

Sound Editing:   Avatar

Sound Mixing:   Avatar

Visual Effects:   Avatar

Adapted Screenplay:   Up In The Air

Original Screenplay:   Inglorious Basterds


* Note: An inspiration for Jeff Bridges' character in "Crazy Heart," and the man who wrote most of the songs in the film, is the great Texas musician, Stephen Bruton. Stephen died last May, just two weeks after finsihing all his work on the film with T Bone Burnett.  You can see two of Stephen's songs produced by Don Was on our music destination at My Damn Channel. They're on Stephen's site linked above as well.

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FOX and MY DAMN CHANNEL

Fox has chosen us as one of their premium distribution partners for original web series they've produced, and we plan to start developing and producing original new series together as well.

Our new best friends at 15 Gigs said way too many nice things.  Rachel Webber, Director of Digital Strategy and Development at Fox Television Studios said: "We've been huge fans of My Damn Channel and we couldn't be more excited to get this partnership going.  We love the My Damn Channel audience and are eager to hear what they think of our shows.  It's an honor to be standing beside the likes of 'Easy to Assemble,' 'You Suck at Photoshop' and 'Wainy Days,'  and we're very happy to be bringing the talent we work with -- especially Drama 3/4, creators of Iceman Chronicles -- into this mix."

My Damn Channel Founder/CEO, Rob Barnett says, "THANK YOU. We take our partnerships seriously. We've always been insanely selective about finding the best people and the best series to bring to our audience. 'The Iceman Chronicles' is the first of a lot more goodness we have up our collective sleeves. We're excited to have Fox in the family."

We're launching today with a series called, "The Iceman Chronicles." Think 'Twin Peaks' - with more murder - but funny. It's a dark comedy that follows coroner/veterinarian Russell Coldpalm (played by David Fickas) as he navigates the sins and secrets of Blythe, Arizona.  Coldpalm and a motley cast of locals discover horrible truths through a series of comedic twists on the hunt for a mysterious serial killer...the Iceman. The show comes from Drama 3/4, the creative minds behind MSN's "Mr. Robinson's Driving School," VH1's "I Hate My 30's," and web shows including "Anakin Auditions" and "No Football for Old Men."

OK. Stop reading about this love fest and watch the first 2 episodes with new shows rolling out every Thursday.

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MY DAMN CHANNEL IS "TWO"

 

Two years ago, on 7/31/07, we declared independence from everything old. We launched our new show business battleship on a mission to deliver the best original video series to your fingertips n’ eyeballs. We set sail for a new world free from the ridiculous, red-tape creating ways of radio, TV, & film.

 

In two years, we’ve built a new studio to produce the entertainment – a network to showcase the goods – and a syndication business to help it all fly far and fast.

 

We knew if we avoided idiotic start-up mistakes, we’d have a shot at building a creative and financial win. The past two years have been about building our brand, signing talent, co-creating hit series, finding a mass audience, and finally making real revenues from multiple streams.

 

Our advertisers keep fueling this fun because they know that we’re one of the new companies who can deliver three essential must-haves for new media messaging to make sense for brands:

 

1)    highest-quality, star-driven entertainment

2)    customized distribution to any digital platform

3)    guaranteed traffic

 

As we start our next trip 'round the sun thanks go to our ARTISTS. The musicians, comedians, filmmakers, actors and revolutionaries who believed in us when we were schmucks with a PowerPoint now have a safe haven to produce and distribute video directly to fans. Most of our first famous friends are all still here. And thanks go to the newest members of the My Damn Channel line-up for signing on to put us to work on their behalf. We’re getting ready to announce a handful of mind-blowing deals with more stars from da movies and da teleevision.

 

Special thanks to every one of you who watch and share My Damn Channel videos. The minute we start screwing up, you stop watching, and it’s game over. Thanks for teaching us how to serve at your pleasure.

 

If you’ve worked inside our small, determined crew, please accept a personal thank you for putting in the brains, sweat and passion to prove this all works. Warren and I are forever mindful of what you’ve brought to this picnic.
 

Warren Chao is the Co-Founder & COO of My Damn Channel turning ideas into action. I’ve never seen anyone combine so many skills to make up the super-human-management sensation that Warren embodies. The man is awesomely inspiring and the essential ingredient inside this thing.

 

We share our My Damn Channel birthday with Mark Cuban, J.K. Rowling, and a visionary named Marc Averitt. Marc is our Board Director, and the Co-Founder and Managing Director of Okapi Venture Capital. We pay tribute to the man who first believed in our vision. And we mark our two-year milestone honoring every investor who helped put technology to work for our content creators, our audiences, distribution partners, and advertisers.

 

We’re about to make an announcement about new investment, new revenue deals, new series from our current stars and a few jaw-droppers if tonight’s midnight emails are to be believed.

 

Our next new pilot may be live within hours of this post…

 

Thanks for being here.

 

Rob Barnett

Rob@MyDamnChannel.com 

 

 

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Animation Block Party this Weekend

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CAPTAIN'S BLOG: THE COLLECTIVE

It's been a week since we relaunched My Damn Channel. We're 90-95% of where we need to be with the new redesign. We're attacking that last 5-10% with the help of loyal co-cons writing and attacking us with ideas to fix last fixes. We're also gathering your hit lists for additional ideas to make your house and this new Enterprise more 'be all.'

The new Star Trek entered our brains the same night as our relaunch.

The amount of online communication bout our fave TV franchise is staggering.

Full disclosure - before we continue - somewhere here - in a box - there are 79 memorex audio cassettes - the ones with the 2 little white things in 'em - holding the recordings of every single original episode of the series - taped by a little fat white kid - off the speaker on the tiny TV in our kitchen back in Fort Lee, NJ. When you listen closely - you can hear Mom YELLING: "DINNER!" And you can hear me YELLING back: "SHUT UP! I'M TAPING "STAR TREK!!!'"

If you published any form of digital media in the past week, you're likely part of a mass collective of humans who are 'one' with the 43 year-old phenom of Star Trek.

Here then - a list - to ask ourselves WHY:

Star Trek Assumptions:

 1.  We need to believe in heroes and in the possibility that we are capable of heroic acts.
 2.  The future needs an organizing principle to deliver answers we seek.
 3.  We long for the past while embracing the future.
 4.  Obama reminds us of Spock.
 5.  Kirk represents the ideal leader (or father figure, brother, husband, best friend, lawyer, coach, boss, starship captain.)
 6.  We want to have sex with a green-skinned goddess.
 7.  We like to see things explode.
 8.  We like to sit in dark rooms and fantasize with an about others.
 9.  J.J.
10.  Nerd is the new black.

Found this amazing video yesterday of William Shatner being made to watch the new movie trailer. Watch his face:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDEJXdEcV7U

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