The Golem Universe: A Retrospective

The people, places and events that shaped a blog.

Play me off, Keyboard Cat.

Farewell (Almost) from The Golem

I just want to thank everyone who has followed this site for the past year or so. It’s been great fun to do, and I hope you’ve enjoyed it.

I wanted to give this site a proper finish. I didn’t want it to just fade away due to boredom, or because I became "too busy" to update it. So I arbitrarily picked an end date (Super Bowl Sunday) - although I never realized that date would come so quickly!

Feel free to drop me a line, or check out my Twitter account.

Look for a special video tribute coming up later tonight.

Thanks again.

Squirrel Nut Zippers - "The Ghost of Stephen Foster"

Here's the fully-animated video for "The Ghost of Stephen Foster" by Squirrel Nut Zippers from their 1998 album Perennial Favorites.

Animators from The Simpsons did the video.

Bert Parks

Back when the Miss America Pageant still meant something (1976) - host (and old fraud) Bert Parks attempts "Let 'Em In" by Paul McCartney and Wings.

Old Logos

And now, for your amusement, we present a collection of old Golem Universe logos - suitable for framing (or wrapping fish).

The following prototypes were never used:
Eternity
Eternity (wide)
Eternity (wide) minus Eternity
2001 Baby
2001 Baby (left)
2001 Baby (left; nicer font)
2001 Baby (left; nicer font and PBS logo)

The following logos were used, but have since been retired:
First Official Logo
Moon
Moon (Earth moved a bit)

The following are variations on the current logo:
Phillies
NRA
Halloween
Thanksgiving

The Blogs That Got Away

I was browsing my Picasa Web Albums tonight (that's where Blogger stores all the graphics uploaded for its sites), and uncovered a treasure trove of old graphics and folders devoted to this and other blogs I have attempted over the years.

Since it's getting very near the end (of this blog)... here is an overview of others I have considered, started, aborted and/or accidentally deleted.

Marvelous Mondays
Every Monday, I write about a different classic Marvel comic. Never got any further than the logo.

Paul is Dead / I Bury Paul (above)
I take a look back at all the "Paul is Dead" clues. This was the logo I finally settled on.

Superman: As Seen On TV
I write about each and every episode of The Adventures of Superman. I have the complete series on DVD, so why not? Got as far as this logo and an outline of the first episode. Surprisingly, it was not as much fun to do as you might think.

Golem's Incredible Hulk
I write about every issue of The Incredible Hulk. (Have them all on DVD-ROM). Here's the logo.

Golem's Amazing Spider-Man
Kind of like Golem's Incredible Hulk. Logos are here and here.

MacDade Boulevard
I write about a street near and dear to my heart. This was up and running for some time, and then I accidentally deleted it. In retrospect, it would probably make a better Facebook group. (Don't look at me to start one).

The Three Stooges Blog
I write about the Three Stooges. At one point, it was to be called "All the Blog's a Stooge". Actually, I still plan on doing this.

Golem and Company
One of those "me posing as a bunch of fake contributors" blogs. A lot of fun, but a lot of work. Early logos can be enjoyed here, here, here and here.

It's Golem Time
This actually exists (in fact, it's what the redheadedgolem.com URL points to) - but I only update it about twice a year. Early logos can be seen here and here.

Here is a parody ad for Mickey Rooney's Tabas Hotel in Downingtown, and an aborted Spider-Man parody that I really must go back and finish. (I only wish these were bigger and more legible).

Go-Go Golem
Interestingly, this was the original version of The Golem Universe. I really like the logo, except the colors are fixed at red and black.

The New Golem Times
I think this was supposed to be a "funny" take on the news. Graphics indicate I wrote some things about Obama and Mike Huckabee before bailing on it. Here's the logo.

I also attempted two "geek" blogs with (IMHO) great names - "Hour of the Geek" and "Golem: Invasion Earth 2007". These were going to be devoted to computers, comic books and Doctor Who. Never got further than their titles, but here was a proposed graphic from the latter.

Joey Bishop - "Your Cheatin' Heart"

Here's a cut from comedian Joey Bishop's horribly ill-conceived country album Country Western - which I vaguely remember him plugging on 70's talk shows while the hosts looked on in horror.

Not sure if this was some kind of Andy Kaufman-esque joke (doubtful, this is Joey Bishop after all) - but isn't it amazing how many bad records were made in the 60s and 70s by non-singers like Leonard Nimoy, Jack Klugman, etc...? It's almost like they foresaw the Internet, and how much fun sarcastic bloggers would get from posting about them.

Thanks to April Winchell for the MP3, and all the great MP3's over the last few years.