Columnist, Vault #13
Found online at
FrankieThirteen.com (coming soon)
Tell me about your column and your latest projects.
Vault #13 is just an excuse for me to write about works of popular, geek and trash culture that I've enjoyed in my lifetime. I like to share my interests with others, and this seemed like a great way for me to do so on a larger scale than just talking to everyone who'll listen. It is not to be confused with Todd Sokolove's In Defense Of, because some of the works I like are indefensible.
As future projects go, I'm working on and off on a couple of scripts (a short film and a comic), though I'd rather not go into detail just yet. Outside of writing, I can be heard on YRockOnXPN.org every Thursday at noon (under my actual name, Andre) playing alternative and indie rock.
I'll also appear in the next episode of the live-action anime webseries, "Fighter's High," and will be in an upcoming film by Mark Mackner of Sickening Thud Productions, so you can look for me there. I'm always game to get beaten up or killed on film when needed.
Who or what are the biggest influences on your work and If you could pick one person to collaborate with living or dead, who would you pick?
I don't know if I want to tarnish any superior creators by claiming their influence on my work!
That said, it is with most sincere apologies that I mention Stan Lee, Neil Gaiman, Bryan Lee O'Malley, Vince McMahon, David Letterman, David Bowie, Wayne Coyne, Dick Valentine, Shotaro Ishinomori, Toei Productions, the specific creative teams behind the "Super Sentai" and "Kamen Rider" series, Takashi Miike, Spike Lee, Jack Lord, Bettie Page, and Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale for making "Back to the Future."
Cliché as it may sound, the one person I would love to collaborate with above all others would have been Michael Jackson. Not only did he give birth to modern pop culture, but he was an avowed movie lover who sought to work with marquee talent on ambitious projects that transcended music videos and short films. His imagination was always geared towards multimedia, and still ripe for plumbing even in his final years. The fact that no one collaborated with him on a film (that Edgar Allen Poe biopic he was looking to direct, perhaps?) or an animated series is, to me, a real shame.
What album had the most influence on your adolescence?
It would have to be Green Day's "Dookie." I was in eighth grade when it came out, and up until then, all I knew of music was easy listening and top 40...whatever my parents had on the radio. I loved Michael Jackson, Hall and Oates, Elton John and Billy Joel, but when I saw the "Basket Case" video for the first time, it was like a switch flipped in my head.
I suppose what I'm describing is nothing new, but when I tell people that Green Day changed my life, I mean it. It opened me up to other genres, got me watching MTV (which was still watchable at the time), and likely had a hand in the friendships I've made since.
What were your favorite toys or games from your childhood?
The Nintendo Entertainment System, hands down.
What is your pop culture guilty pleasure? (What movie, tv show, band, etc. do you love that you know is awful, but you love it anyway?)
I don't feel guilt over anything I enjoy, but if I did, it would be over "Breakin' 2: Electric Boogalooo," which is a terrible movie to many. Like the first "Breakin'," the dancing and soundtrack are top-notch, but the acting is even worse and there are scenes that only seem logical when I attribute them to magic powers. And yet, I love it.
If you could own one piece of artwork by any artist, who would you choose and why?
John Byrne's original pencils of the last page to The Man of Steel #1.
What are your favorite television shows that you feel ended too soon?
Profit, Eyes, Vengeance Unlimited, and Cupid. And even though Veronica Mars did get three seasons, it could have gone at least a couple more.
Who is your favorite super hero?
Superman.
If you were to have dinner with 5 people living or dead, who are they and what would you serve?
I'm not a foodie by any stretch, so I'd leave people with more educated tastes to determine the menu. The guest list, however, would likely consist of Stan Lee, Wayne Coyne (lead singer of the Flaming Lips), Neko Case (indie country artist, sometime member of the New Pornographers), Shane Black (screenwriter of Lethal Weapon) and Jackie Chan.
What fictional character do you identify most with?
Quite a few of those...but mostly Ted Mosby (from How I Met Your Mother) and Scott Pilgrim.
What 5 movies could you watch again and again?
Back to the Future, Ghostbusters, Robocop, Star Wars, Old School
What book or author do you regularly recommend?
Often, I recommend anything by Neil Gaiman, especially Neverwhere and American Gods. There are a couple of other novels I recommend to people that I find incredible: It's Superman! by Tom DeHaven, and The Boy Detective Fails by Joe Meno.
What are your favorite web sites?
Forces of Geek, duh.
Wikipedia, Facebook and Twitter suck up so much time for me, it isn't funny. Also, Newsarama, Comic Book Resources and Bleeding Cool. Y-Rock on XPN and BBC 6 Music. The official Pabst Blue Ribbon Philadelphia Rock Paper Scissors City League Championship Series site. Hulu.
What are you most looking forward to geeking out over in the coming year?
Where the Wild Things Are. David Tennant's final Doctor Who specials and the new season starring Matt Smith. Kylie Minogue in North America (sold out, yes, but I believe in miracles). The 2009 World Rock Paper Scissors Championships in Toronto. An economic upswing. Daria on DVD. Scott Pilgrim volume six.
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