Friday Five: Top Five Wes Anderson Movies

I watch movies.  There are few movies that I will go to a theater and watch, but a Wes Anderson film is always worth my time.  If you could check out my ITunes movies there are not a lot of movies on my computer, but I think most of the Wes Anderson titles are lingering around in there with a with Quentin Tarantino films.  Here's my favorite five Wes Anderson movies including a few Honorable Mentions: 

Rushmore (1998)- One of Anderson's early movies.  Anderson movies tend to have similar casts and this movie put together Owen Wilson, Bill Murray, and Jason Schwartzman.  Former Devo rocker Mark Mothersbaugh put together the soundtrack.  This was their first run, but this group had better work together.  

Darjeeling Limited (2007)- One of the first movies I ever saw with my wife.  The beginning of the movie is actually a short film, Hotel Chevalier, which is one of Anderson's better short films and connects with the Darjeeling Limited movie.  The soundtrack is awesome, the movie is meh.  

and Hotel Chevalier Hotel Chevalier introduces viewers to the character of Jack from the Darjeeling Limited and his girlfriend/acquaintance played by Natalie Portman.  

Castello Cavalcanti (2013)- Another Anderson short film with Jason Schwartzman 

and my Friday Five.....

5.  Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)- My day job is teaching fourth graders and this book is always fit into my school year at some point.  I love Roald Dahl books and this is a classic.  Anderson took some liberties with the plot and characters, but I think Dahl would approve.  Really well done movie and a little bit different type of film out of Anderson, while still making a very Wes Anderson like movie.  

4.  The Grand Budapest Hotel (2013)- This was the latest full feature Anderson movie.  Recounts the life of hotel concierge Gustave H who works at the famous Grand Budapest Hotel.  It's a great looking film with loads of unique buildings, rooms, and artwork littering the background.  

3. Bottle Rocket (1996)- My favorite early Wes Anderson movie.  The Wilson brothers portray bungling thieves.  

 

2.  The Aquatic Life of Steve Zissou (2004) A classic with Bill Murray and lots of David Bowie tunes.  Lots of the typical Anderson themes with the usual good soundtrack.  Here's a synopsis put together by 8 bit cinema.  

1.  Royal Tenenbaums (2002) The best Anderson movie.  Great plot and storylines with an awesome soundtrack about the three extraordinary Tenenbaum children.  

one final scene.  Have a great evening.  

 

The Original Rayhawk and Friends

I have seen several Cubs fans this week who were excited at the prospect of seeing some of Joe Maddon's fun themed filled road trips and clubhouse antics when he starts working on the north side of Chicago.  There was that hippie weekend, James Bond formal, the white trip to Miami (Don Johnson suits), football uniforms, letterman jackets, and that press conference when he wore a Buccaneers helmet.

One of the earliest "fun" Maddon events took place during the team's World Series run during the 2008 season.  The Rays adopted a "Rayshawk".  They were really Mohawks, but people really seemed to latch on to the fact that all of the Rays players were walking around during the Postseason with mohawks.

The "Rayhawks" were actually adopted from Rays second baseman Akinora Iwamura.  The team's second baseman styled his hair into a mohawk and the "Rayshawk" was inspired by Imamura's unique hair do.  It looked something like this......

Besides inspiring one of the first cool Joe Maddon themed events, I actually had the opportunity to see Iwamura play a few games for the Durham Bulls during an injury rehab and also saw him him play for the Pirates Triple A team towards the end of his North American career.  I always liked Iwamura and have a few of his cards in my collection.  This past week I was able to flip around a few Cardinals cards, including a Marp autograph, to land a nice autograph of the Rays former second baseman.

This card of Aki Iwamura come from the 2007 UD Black set.  One of my favorites from the late 90s. Tons of really cool autographs and loads of cool patches.  This card is just an autograph, but I love the silver signature on top of the black background.  I know that lots of sets use this look now, but seven years ago this was one of the first sets to put this look together.  The card is also limited to just 10 copies.  Really cool card.  

I also picked up a copy of the Chris Archer jersey card from the Gypsy Queen set in the trade and also landed a nice looking black framed Rod Carew jersey card in the trade.  Also picked up a few nice single cards of some Rays players including a Joe Maddon, a sweet David Price Gypsy Queen insert, and a very nice James Shields Bowman refractor.  

Willie McGee's Fabulous Retired Signature

Some of the old 80s Cardinals players can be a little bit tricky to collect.  While the team won a World Series in 1982, and appeared in two other fall classics in 1985 and 1987, the team was devoid of star power outside of Ozzie Smith.  There were some good players on those teams like Jack Clark, Tom Herr, Joaquin Andujar, John Tudor, Tony Pena, and Andy Van Slyke.  While all of these players have signed for card companies in recent years, there are not tons of autographs of these players.  

One of my favorites, centerfielder Willie McGee, has been particularly tough.  He's signed for very few sets and his cards are very popular with Cardinals collectors.  Recently he has signed a little bit more and has a few autographs floating around from Leaf and Panini.  Previously, he had a Fleer Greats of the Game autograph, on a sticker, and a pair of Topps autographs from Fan Favorites and Retired Signatures.  

Naturally the two Topps autographs were on card signatures and fetched some pretty hefty prices.  The additional McGee signatures released in the past year have driven the price of the two older Topps signatures down.  Collectors could have expected to pay around $40-$50 for these two McGee autographs in the recent past, can now find the cards for half the price.  My latest edition:

I took this card off the hands of a trade partner looking to avoid a little bit in Ebay fees.  I have been after this card for a long time and am happy to finally have it checked off of my list.  I love the Topps Retired Signatures set.  It's a great set of on-card signatures of retired players, or as my trade partner called Willie McGee "an older player".  Feeling a little bit old tonight.  I will throw a little something extra out there with this post.  If you are a younger collector, stay a few extra minutes and learn something new about Willie.  If you're an older collector you can relive a few good memories from the past.  

A post in a post.....

THE SNORTING BULL'S BEST OF WILLIE MCGEE

 I coined tossed between the time that Willie McGee won the National League batting title playing for the A's.  I've heard that one too many times, so I will go with my favorite Willie moment that I saw in person:

3. 1997 Cardinals Home Opener Walk Off Home Run 

2. 1985 National League MVP and Batting Title

1. 1982 World Series Game 3

Albert's World Series Trophy

I almost put down an Albert Pujols joke as the title of this post with the answer being in the post.  I will be nice.  Picked up a really cool Albert Pujols card this past week from a local collector who pulled this card out of a pack of cards at my favorite local card shop.  I really like these World Series cards.....

The best part of the card is the fact that the card features Albert wearing his Cardinals uni.  Like he has won anything with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Orange County, California, USA, North America, Planet Earth.  Like the World Series rings in Series 1 and Series 2, the World Series trophies, which are in the update set are limited to just 99 copies.  There are gold copies too with just 25 copies.  Really nice manu card by Topps.

#MyCardMonday

Second #MyCardMonday and this one is a pretty self explanatory one.  Spud Webb was a really good player at NC State.  He was also a really good player in the NBA, but everyone knows Spud Webb for two things:

1.  He's short
2.  He dunks

At NC State, Spud averaged 11 points per game his senior season and averaged just about 10 games in the NBA coming off the bench primarily for the Hawks and the Kings.  His per 36 minutes stats were solid with 14.7 points per game and more than 7 assists per game.  Oh, and he can still dunk.

#MyCardMonday

I am feeling rather proud of my alma mater on this fine day, so the two #MyCardMonday entries will be NC State themed this week.  If you are not a follower of ACC football then you my not be aware of the fact that the last conference win in football for my beloved Wolfpack came in 2012.  The school fired the football coach after the 2012 season and hired Dave Doeren away from Northern Illinois fresh off of an Orange Bowl appearance.

The Wolfpack was winless in conference play last year and started this year with the gauntlet of Florida State, Clemson, Boston College, and Louisville.  Those were four loses.  In rolled a game against Syracuse this weekend and the Pack finally prevailed by a touchdown.  It was a good ending to a bad streak.

I have been working in a few autographs of NC State guys here and there.  I do not post all of them, truth be told, most of them are really really inexpensive.  Yes, there is Russell Wilson and Philip Rivers and Mario Williams.  There are plenty of other Wolfpackers in the NFL, NBA, and MLB that fly under the radar.  Like this guy.....

David Amerson is currently on Washington and is listed as the team's starting right cornerback.  He has started all eight games this year with two picks, including one returned for a touchdown.  State fans got used to seeing Amerson pick off passes during his time in Raleigh.  In fact, in 2011 he set the ACC record for most interceptions in a season with 12.  I am not sure he got a ton of recognition for the accomplishment, but basically averaging an interception a game is a pretty big accomplishment.  I think the record breaker against Louisville was by far my favorite.

One Year. 30 Really Good Cards.

I have had some down time away from my blog over the past week and am ready to get back into my baseball cards.  It's been a busy weekend with family in town, school work, voting, and all sorts of other happenings going on.  However, I wanted to take a little bit of extra time and write a cool post for my local card shop, Big D's Sports Cards, and it's owner Jimmy.  This weekend he is celebrating his store's first year in business.

I did not actually make it into Big D's the first month the store was open, but I have made it in a few times since.  I saw a post Jimmy made on Facebook Friday about the anniversary.  I took a few minutes to flip back through the pages of my blog and checking out some of the cards I had landed on my trips into the store.  I have to say that I am truly amazed at some of the cards I have picked up over the past year and must say that I could not have found half the cards on this list without the help of Jimmy.  

Here's a look back at my best thirty pulls, purchases, and trades from Big D's:

#30- 2011 Topps Pro Debut Leslie Anderson

I picked this card up this summer.  Jimmy has another customer who is great at getting in person autographs.  As a Durham Bulls fan, I love the certified autographs, but that's not always an option.  Anderson was a good player on the Bulls for several years and I was happy to add an autograph of him from a trusted and reliable source. 

#29- 2014 Topps Heritage Derek Jeter Action Variation 

I love Topps Heritage.  It's a staple set of any good card collection these days.  You don't collect sets? You should just buy a complete set of the Heritage cards.  Opening the boxes and putting the set together is a blast.  This was my cool pull from my box this year.  A cool card given it was Jeter's final year in the bigs.  

#28- 2013 Bowman Inception Hak Ju Lee Blue Autograph 1/25 

A current favorite Durham Bull.  I still have great hopes that Hak Ju Lee will play regularly in the Majors.  He's a great defensive shortstop.  If only he could figure out the offense.  This card also comes from one of my favorite sets of the past few years.  Great looking card, low print run, with a cool serial number.  

#27- 2013 Topps Museum Collection Matt Moore Quad Relic with multi-colored patch 

A card from my first trip into Big D's.  It was a Durham Bulls heavy trip.  This was a really cool card.  I look at it often.  

#26- 2014 Topps Stadium Club Koji Uehara 

I really enjoyed the rehash of Stadium Club that Topps put out last month.  Picked up a box and really enjoyed this Koji autograph.  I have a student in my class this year who is a big Koji fan.  He's chipping away I guess.  Cool autograph and a really cool looking photograph.  

#25- 2014 Topps Archives Jose Abreu Printing Plate 

A really cool hit out of an Archives box, which was the most ridiculous box ever.  Not always the biggest printing plate person and I am not overly attached to the White Sox.  Jose Abreu is a nice player.    I actually sold this card, but it is still a cool story.  Right?  More from this box later....

#24- 2013 Topps Finest Matt Adams Autograph/Bat 

Jumbo Pepsi with a bat and an autograph.  Cool looking card.  

#23- 2014 Topps Archives Ron Gant Printing Plate Autograph 

Cool 90s player, former Cardinal, autographed printing plate.  The second card from my Topps Archives box on my list.  It was a really good box.  

#22- 2013 Topps Tribute Terry Pendleton Autograph 

A favorite from the 80s Cardinals.  He's a Brave on the card, but still a really nice looking card.  TP has a great signature.  I picked this card up at a trade night at Big D's.  

#21- 2002 Topps Tribute Ken Boyer Bat Card

A really cool set.  A really cool card.  Boyer is not a guy you see a lot of cards of, but he's a really important player on some good Cardinals teams.  See the 1964 World Series.  

#20 - 2014 Topps Gypsy Queen Giancarlo Stanton Jumbo Jersey 

I really enjoyed the Gypsy Queen product this year.  There are several cards from that set on this list. I picked up two boxes of the product this year and opened them with Jimmy at the shop.  Fun times.  I did not pull this Stanton card, but took it off of Jimmy's hands a few weeks later.  Beautiful card of a great player.  

#19.  2010 Topps Opening Day Topps Vault Blank Back Evan Longoria 1/1

I could make a top 10 list of all the Longoria's I have picked up at Big D's.  This is a cool one.  I have done a little bit with Topps Vault cards in the past, but never a Longoria.  While I am not always a huge fan of 1/1 cards, I like this one.  Company seal, cool case, and a letter from Topps.  

#18- 2014 Topps Stadium Club Shelby Miller Autograph 

While the Uehara might be a better card in terms of rarity and value, I was really happy to pull this Shelby Miller card out of my box of Stadium Club.  First, Shelby has a great autograph.  He signs lots of stuff and his autograph always looks the same.  I love the Sunday hat with the Stan Musial patch on the card too.  

#17- 2012 Bowman Draft Michael Wacha Autograph

It was a lost season for Wacha, but this is an awesome card.  Wacha's early Topps cards offer a few on card signatures, but almost everything within the past two years has been a sticker autograph.  This is my favorite Wacha on card autograph.  Really nice signature.  

#16- 2014 Topps Archives Tom Berenger Major League Autograph 

I like Major League the movie.  Tom Berenger seems alright.  This also came out of my Topps Archives box.  I was try to decide whether the Gant and Abreu plates and this card were better than my Gypsy Queen pulls?  You will have to keep reading to find out.  Snorting Bull secret fact: As a Cardinals fan the Cubs are my least favorite team.  The Indians are right down there with them.  

#15- 2009 Topps Finest David Price Autograph Letter 

Top half of my list.  I re-did about six times.  I am not sure there is a right or wrong answer with the rest of the cards on this list.  I love David Price and this is a really cool card.  One of my favorite Durham Bulls of all-time.  Hope he does well with the Tigers next year.  

#14- 2009 Topps Tribute Evan Longoria Triple Bat Relic Autograph

I could really make a list of just cool Longoria cards I picked up at Big D's during their first year in business.  Longoria cards take up more than 10% of the list and I stopped trying to decided which were the best and just narrowed it down to my favorite three.  I had a hard deciding so I made it four. Can't over look that 1/1 back up at 19.  I love the design of this card and the pieces of bat relic look cool with the bluish/green background and black bottom.  Great contrast and again a cool card.  

#13- 2013 Topps Supreme Chris Archer Autograph 

I had been searching for one of these for awhile.  The 2013 Topps Supreme product was only released in Asian markets, while the cards are available on Ebay, they are a pain to buy.  

#12- 2014 Bowman Platinum Stephen Piscotty Patch/Autograph 

I saw Piscotty this summer at the Triple A All-Star game in Durham.  One of the better Cardinals hitting prospects.  Should show up in St. Louis some time next summer.  Jimmy picked this card up from another customer in his shop and sent it my way.  It's a red colored card with a Cardinals player, an autograph, and a red and blue patch.  It's an awesome card.  

#11- 2013 Topps Tribute World Baseball Classic Ben Zobrist Autograph 1/1 

Another Durham Bulls favorite.  This card would be way higher if it were a Rays card.  World Baseball Classic takes a little luster off, but still love the design and background.  Plus it lists Zobrist as a 2B and an OF, but he's wearing a 1B glove.  Nothing could be more Zorilla than that.  

#10- 2014 Topps Gypy Queen Torii Hunter Jumbo Patch 1/1

Top 10.  Now they are getting really tough.  One of my favorite products this year.  Had to pick up a jumbo patch right?  Here it is.  This is cool.  Jimmy had this in the shop, not pulled out of my boxes.  

#9- 2014 Topps Acetate Parallel Shelby Miller 5/10

Not a huge huge fan of parallels, but I loved the Acetate cards this year.  Picked up a ton of the Cardinals.  Landed the Miller at Big D's. 

#8- 2009 Topps Unique Evan Longoria Autograph 

I've even seen this card in a few years.  Jimmy landed one and sent it my way.  There is one on Ebay right now, but it's $99.99.  Yikes!  

7.  2014 Topps Gyspy Queen Zack Greinke Button Card 3/3

This was a pretty cool pull.  Still not my favorite Gypsy Queen pull.    

6.  2009 SP Authentic Evan Longoria Autograph RC 

I also picked up his Bowman's Best RC Autograph from Jimmy this year too.  It was came in fifth on my informal straw poll of myself mainly because he was wearing an old Devil Rays uniform on the card.  New Rays uniform, it could have been top 5.  

5.  2007 UD Premier Ivan Rodriguez Patch 

One of the first cards I picked up from Big D's.  Jimmy emailed me a picture of this card.  My jaw dropped.  Insane patch.  

4.  2014 Topps Gypsy Queen Shelby Miller Flag Card 

Second favorite Cardinals pull this year.  Gypsy Queen was very kind to me, I did not even put the two printing plates (Kershaw and Utley) that I landed on this list.  A memorable day at the card shop indeed and this card was the icing on the cake.  It is limited to just 5 copies.  Miller and Musial are the only Cardinals in the set of flag cards this year.  I take this card out and look at it all the time.  

3.  2013 Topps Tier One Evan Longoria Autograph/Patch 

Not the hardest Longoria card to find by any means, but it's just a really beautiful card.  Great design and cool patch piece.  I'm looking right past the sticker autograph.  

#2.  2014 Bowman Inception Oscar Taveras Autograph 

This card might have jumped a few during the past week.  Was still in the Top 5.  Jimmy found this card for me, not packed pulled.  Favorite Taveras autograph in my collection.  

#1- 2014 Topps Mark McGwire Autograph 

Just picked up a box of Topps Series 2.  Last box of a product at the store and this is in it?  I did okay.  

It's been a fun first year of having a local card shop in Raleigh and I could not have done anywhere close to this well with adding cool cards to my collection without the help of Big D's Sports Cards and it's owner Jimmy.  A huge thank you for everything you do to help me out with my collection and a congratulations on a great year in business.