Ology World

A Facebook Friend pointed me toward a fun website to check out called Ology World.  Warning: Your time will be well-worth-wasting here!

Disney's Maleficent - "Dream" Trailer

From the Disney Movie Trailers YouTube channel, here comes the Disney's Maleficent - "Dream" Trailer.  Jolie is a charismatic performer and perfect for this role.  Enjoy!

Potential Female Superhero Movies

Over on Newsarama.com the other day, they mused about "10 Female Superhero Movies the Studios Need to Step Up and Make." See more here!

Fulbright-National Geographic Digital Storytelling Fellowship

Here's an opportunity for an aspiring storyteller called the "Fulbright-National Geographic Digital Storytelling Fellowship." More info is here!

Happy 40th B-Day, D&D!

Well, yesterday was the 40th anniversary of the first time Gary Gygax had folks over on a Sunday to game *after* Dungeons & Dragons became commercially available.  (Certainly, he had folks over to game during playtesting for quite some time before that!)  There were many tributes and remembrances, and a general hullabaloo was raised by nearly all RPGers everywhere.  Some of the highlights of which I was aware included:

An Ask Me Anything on Reddit set up by Gygax Magazine with Jon Peterson, author of Playing at the World, a book on the origins of D&D.  Read it here!

Kobold Press had Part One of a fine interview packed with the insights of many luminaries like David “Zeb” Cook, Bruce Cordell, Jeff Grubb, Colin McComb, Wade Rockett, Robert Schwalb, and Margaret Weis.  Read it here!

Yahoo News ran an article by Chris Morris here!

Ed Greenwood spoke briefly in a YouTube video here!

Mike Selinker wrote "A Love Letter to Dungeons & Dragons" on his Schrödinger's Blog here!

Eric Lofgren did a fine piece of artwork a little while back but colored it specifically as tribute to the occasion here!

And Justin Andrew Mason created a wonderful composite art piece for the day which he Shared on his Facebook page here!

Of course, GM's Day has a contribution to the madness that I will share here -

Think Geek Valentine's Gift Guide

If you're not sure what to get for your valentine, who might just be a geek, then check out the Think Geek Valentine's Gift Guide here!

2014 One Page Dungeon Contest

The 2014 One Page Dungeon Contest has been announced and more information can be found here!

A History of D&D In 12 Treasures with Jon Peterson

Jon Peterson, author of Playing at the World, has a new video on YouTube titled "A History of D&D In 12 Treasures." Jon is further quoted extensively in an article yesterday on the USA Today website here.  Jon will also be available for questions at an online event this Sunday afterneen from Gygax Magazine called "Celebrate the 40th Anniversary of D&D." Details for the event are here on Facebook!  Enjoy!

The Science of RPGs

Over on the Discover Magazine blog, there is a new article titled "12-year-old uses Dungeons and Dragons to help scientist dad with his research."  Read more here!

Ethan Gilsdorf on D&D

Over on Salon, Ethan Gilsdorf has a new article titled "All I needed to know about life I learned from 'Dungeons & Dragons.'" Read more here!

Miniature Movie Sets

A BuzzFeed article from late last year focused on "24 Famous Miniature Movie Sets That Will Blow Your Mind." See more here!

Brian Malow on Philip K. Dick for Time

Facebook Friend and Fantasy/SciFi/Sword & Sorcery author Ted Fauster, his books are available on Amazon here, recently reminded me of a short video from about a year ago on the Time YouTube channel by author/comedian Brian Malow titled "The Movies, Philip K. Dick and You."  Enjoy!

Free Books

Over on the JustEnglish.me blog, there is an article from about a year and a half ago titled "Free books: 100 legal sites to download literature." Read more here!

Requiem for a Dungeon Master, a Stage Play

If you happen to be in the Madison, WI, area and have the chance, perhaps you can take in a stage play titled "Requiem for a Dungeon Master" at the Broom Street Theater  For showtimes and performance dates, read more here and see their Facebook event page here!

Warhorn for Gaming Events

If you are not familiar with it, there is a website for gaming events that you should check out called Warhorn.  Take a look here and for more info their blog here!

Batman TV to Video

It is being reported at HitFix.com and elsewhere that the "Batman TV show is finally set for home video release." Read more here!

Magic: The Gathering to the Big Screen

Yesterday's big news on The Hollywood Reporter website included "Fox to Bring 'Magic: The Gathering' to the Big Screen." Read more here!

Two Monthly Gamedays in Wisconsin

There are two monthly gamedays, mostly boardgaming but not exclusively, happening in Wisconsin the third weekend of each month.

On Saturday, at the Plymouth UCC in Burlington, WI, Steve Sullivan and Kiflie Scott co-host gaming from 11 am through 5 pm (and later if things are still going!). There is no charge for the Burlington gameday.

On Sunday, Wayne "Von Deekin" Targo, President of the South Lakes Area Gamers (S.L.A.G.), organizes A Gathering of Gamers at the Pizza Ranch in Elkhorn, WI.  This gameday requires a buffet charge plus the cost of an extra soda, but the food and beverages are available all day for attendees.

Game of Thrones Season Four Trailer

The Game of Thrones season four trailer is now available on YouTube.  Enjoy!

Paizo Hiring

A handful of positions have opened up at Paizo. So if you ever wanted to work in the game industry, these spots might be for you.  See more here!

Living Star Trek

Someone has spent $30K making their home into a starship and ViralNove.com has tons of photos.  See more here!

Disney Princesses in Oil by Heather Theurer

Over on imgur, Heather Theurer has a number of the Disney Princesses rendered as oil paintings. See more here!

Bernard Cornwell's The Pagan Lord Available in the USA

For those who have been waiting for the seventh book in Bernard Cornwell's Saxon Stories series, The Pagan Lord, it is now available in the US market.  If you don't already have one, perhaps it is time to sign up for a free trial of Amazon Prime or even Audible.  See more here!

Dr Who Update

The BBC is keeping us updated on how the new Dr Who is settling in with their article titled "Peter Capaldi begins filming on Doctor Who." Read more here!

Batman vs. Superman plus Wonder Woman

So, we've all heard the news that Wonder Woman would be a part of the upcoming Batman vs. Superman, and we even know  Gal Gadot will portray the Amazonian, but the latest news has to do with her origins.  Read more here!

Bilbo's Adventure - Contest Winning Video

Over on YouTube, there is a video of the "grand-prize-winning submission for the Denny's Hobbit Fan Video Contest 2013." Enjoy!

Melanie Holcomb at TEDxMet

Melanie Holcomb at TEDxMet addresses iconography including some particular Medieval examples. (Warning: Some religious discussion though mainly in a historical context.) Enjoy!

Old-Fashioned Play Builds Serious Skills

A friend recently reminded me of a story on NPR from about six years ago titled "Old-Fashioned Play Builds Serious Skills." Read and hear more here!

Naomi Mitchison's Forgotten Novel

A contemporary of Tolkien, Naomi Mitchison, wrote a children's story that io9.com suggests is "The book we all wish we could have read as children." Read more here!

Colbert in Hobbit

Many folks know that Stephen Colbert had some part in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug but Buzzfeed has given us the details.  See more here!

Message from GM's Day

Don't forget to "March Fo(u)rth for GM's Day!" in just nine short weeks and please do "Like" GM's Day on Facebook here!