Ultra Swank - Retro Adventures
Jazz for the Jet Set
Written by Steven Padal in Music

Jazz for the Jet Set

Dave Pike has created this swell recording for all those swingin’ bachelors. Herbie Hancock plays the keyboard along side Dave Pike’s vibraphone. Bobby Hebb had wrote “Sunny” and introduced it in this album, which was later released for hundreds of additional recordings. This album reminds me a little of Cal Tjader, who was the creator of Acid Jazz. Some of my favorite recordings are “Blind...

Our Friend the Atom – Part 1
Written by James Vaughan in Science

Our Friend the Atom – Part 1

No modern technology has ever had such a schizophrenic and complicated identity as Atomic Energy. It is often presented in mystical terms. A Pandora’s Box of knowledge that cannot be unlearned. The magical Genie that can do both help or harm but cannot be returned to his bottle. Nuclear Power is the ultimate parable of modern science. With the use of atomic bombs at the...

Charles Schridde’s Vision of the Future

Charles Schridde’s illustrations from the early 1960s for Motorola is a great example of the future that never was. The ads were often featured in Life Magazine and depicted a lush, comfy and elegant future, conveniently centered around various Motorola products. I for one, wouldn’t mind living in a pad like the ones Mr. Schridde envisioned. I guess the closest thing would be Disney’s House...

Parker Graphic Novels
Written by Baron von Swankenstein in Readable

Parker Graphic Novels

“When a fresh-faced guy in a Chevy offered him a lift, Parker told him to go to hell.” – Richard Stark, first line from The Hunter On one side of a coin is James Bond, a suave secret agent with a license to kill. A connoisseur of many things, Bond enjoys fine food, fine women, and martinis shaken not stirred. A champion for Queen and...

Video

Since the turn of the 20th century, Coca-Cola and Pepsi have been fighting to capture the hearts and taste buds of America’s youth. Fifty years into the great carbonation beverage battle, cola companies decided to look for new opportunities and target demographics. In an attempt to lure in diabetics, the cola companies began developing and marketing low-calorie, sugar-free alternatives. As early as the 1950s, Royal...

Maurice Binder – Title Designer
Written by Katharine Miller in Film

Maurice Binder – Title Designer

The name’s Binder, Maurice Binder. You may not recognize the name but you’d know his work if you saw it. The opening sequence of James Bond looking down a gun barrel is one of the most iconic moments in film history. Through saturated colours and tantalizing silhouettes, Maurice Binder created the most memorable, eye-catching title credit sequences of the 20th century for the James Bond...

Retro for the Professional
Written by Steven Padal in Design

Retro for the Professional

For all those photographers out there, the time has come. A high-end retro camera is in your near future. The Fujifilm FinePix X100 not only has a beautiful retro design, it also contains classic features that many will appreciate. It will sport a hybrid view-finder, which will have a window-type “bright frame” optical viewfinder similar to classic 135-size cameras incorporated with an electronic viewfinder system....

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