The Wholphin Blog

March 19th, 2007

Wholphin T-Shirt

Not only does this shirt depict the miraculous interspecial love connection that spawns the half-dolphin, half-whale wholphin from which our DVD quarterly draws its name, but it is also a paean to May-December relationships. The spritely young male dolphin (left) is an old soul, who has always found comfort in the flippers of the elderly. Yet, dolphin life expectancy being considerably shorter than that of the majestic whale, it was only when these two met did our dolphin see the full potential of age-disparate love.

Buy it here.

March 18th, 2007

TV Sheriff and the Trailbuddies

and their new dvd: “Not 4 $ale: A Vidjoe Rodeoe”

The Westworld robot, a video ape and Don Knotts started a pirate TV station. Not a metaphor, this is science fact. They have the finest video switching equipment but only cable TV footage and disco technique. All hail TV Sheriff and the Trailbuddies, who mine old VHS tapes and make golden nuggets.

More realistically, the Sheriff is a guy in LA who takes tons of found footage, from commercials to rare TV to Arnold to music videos and mashes them together to make new crunchy vids. His live shows at Star Shoes in Hollywood made him an underground legend, and this DVD collection of 30 videos is pretty killer.

TV Sheriff’s style is reminiscent of Animal Charm’s transgressive feel with more recognizable sources, and with the speed and techno vibe of EBN (Emergency Broadcast Network – remember them??) and even some of their politics. If Vice magazine’s TV Carnage wasn’t laid up in the hospital, but religiously healed by E, you would get TV Sheriff. Is there a name for this genre yet? Can I make one? Channel Knobs. No that sucks. Knob Surfers? Toaster Heads?

Because, there used to be this primitive home video switcher thing called Video Toaster and…screw it. See – its hard to mash ideas together. But the Sheriff pulls it together in a funny way, always entertaining but also with some social and political observations in there. YES, it is easy to say TV is twisted and sick and the evil tool of rich people. But it’s hard to show that and not be condescending. All hail TV Sheriff and the Trailbuddies.

Slick DVD production is great, easy to navigate and tons of extras, include “collaborations� with Coldcut, DJ Q-Bert and VJ V2, and an introductory essay by Gerry Casale (from Devo), which is like a blessing down from the heavens.

March 17th, 2007

Wholphin Film, “The Contest,” A Failure!

FAILURE WONDERFUL TERRIBLE RIDICULOUS

A presentation of video and performance-based artwork by:

My Barbarian
Sam Green
Julie Lequin
Emily Roysdon
Wholphin (Brent Hoff)

Organized by Nicole Antebi, Robby Herbst, and Irene Tsatsos

Opening March 10, 6-10pm, UCLA

Park Projects is pleased to present a group exhibition that explores the positive aspects of failure. “Failure Ridiculous Terrible Wonderful” features works that can be characterized as privileging a heartfelt appreciation of the effort expended to realize a goal, even if the goal itself remains elusive or even unattainable, rather than the goal itself.

Like the 1970s New Games phenomenon, it celebrates effort over effect, engagement over outcome.

“Failure Ridiculous Terrible Wonderful” is being mounted in conjunction with the book Failure! Experiments in Aesthetic and Social Practices published by the Journal of Aesthetics and Protest Press.

www.joaap.org

March 12th, 2007

Wholphin Screening in Washington D.C. Wednesday, March 14th!

Please forgive the late notice, but if you live near our nation’s capital and can tear yourself away from _INSERT LATEST D.C. SEX SCANDAL INVOLVING DICK MORRIS HERE_ , we will be screening fresh politically-infused Wholphin shorts at The Center For American Progress this Wednesday. Please come!

The details:

Wednesday, March 14,

Center for American Progress
1333 H St. NW, 10th Floor
Washington, DC 20005

Program: 7:00pm to 9:00pm
Admission is free.
Light refreshments will be served.

The screening will start at 7:00 pm sharp.
SPACE IS EXTREMELY LIMITED
RSVP Required. First come, first served.

RSVP to pfitzgerald@americanprogress.org with the subject line: WHOLPHIN RSVP - Brent sent me

Please let us know in advance if you have accessibility-related needs so that we can be sure to accommodate you.

Nearest Metro: Blue/Orange Line to McPherson Square or Red Line to Metro Center
For more information, please call 202.741.6246.

March 8th, 2007

playing talent agent, part 1

Why does everybody want Tom Hanks? Need a good actor? Here is your man.

Jay. Jay Rondot.

He stars in some comedy shorts, lovingly made for the internet by funny guy Ross Novie. The spy ones don’t even seem like a parody, since James Bond is so ridiculous in the first place. Jay is superspy Jack Butterscotch, who I think is poor, coz those aren’t gloves, he painted his hands black.

Hit up the Treasure Trail series and then… The Rascal. You don’t need to watch them in order, it ain’t brain surgery.

Jay also has a series of christmas cards over the past ten years chronicling a life. Beautiful. He says they’re not about him.