But given that their marketing direction seemed to be a simple iconic image with a hip summer vibe that calls out the soundtrack, the t-shirt cover probably would've been the most successful option in both territories.

The red art also could've worked well for the US! Then they would've had a somewhat unified look.

I take that back. The magazine art doesn't fit well into the PS1 EU template, but could've worked for the US if they'd wanted to make it look dark and mysterious. The red art could've worked for the EU by just sending the fourth guy further into the background using a simple color trick.

I think this promo piece was commissioned primarily for a magazine ad, but this is the image they should've gone to for the cover art:

If there's a "true" cover it's prob the US art which I think Mad prob designed first because his sketches indicate he wasn't yet thinking about the fact that he had to leave room for the big black Playstation logo bar. I roll my eyes at the sexy one but I do like the idea of the logo being on a tee.

A few observations: I don't think either piece of art is the "true" cover, I think the US and UK might've had art directors who wanted different things, one wanted a striking image and one wanted a group. The UK designer prob didn't know where to put the logo and remixed the illo from this:

Walking out of a stall in a bathroom with lighting very different from my home bathroom, and my brain going “Oh, there’s a hot girl in here. Wait, the hot girl is me. I am the hot girl.”

The irony that I had to go to the Internet Archive to find the context for this comment because the account was removed.

Remember when Google Earth introduced a Carmen Sandiego game in 2019 that I pointed out was the only Carmen game officially "in print" and playable? And the Google Earth account responded to a comment that was skeptical about how long it'd exist for? That game quietly broke in an update in 2023.

Turns out it was Spirit Of ‘76, created for the bicentennial.

My copy finally arrived! Would anyone be interested in reading about what went into designing this box and manual?

I decided to try eating gluten free for a few weeks just to say I did, and I hate to say I do feel a little more focused and less fatigued. So that sucks, I guess I need to stick with it now. In related news, I visited the Mall Of America yesterday and discovered Wahlburgers has a gluten free bun.

In Batman: The Complete History, historian Les Daniels misremembers the Bob Kane passage saying it took place at the Playboy Mansion, which spread to the internet due to the ubiquity of the book. And that's how it happens. My biggest fear when writing is introducing similarly widespread errors.

When Batman's blowhard co-creator Bob Kane released his autobiography Batman & Me in 1989 to capitalize on the Tim Burton movie, he similarly conflated the event as a marathon at the Playboy Club, but now he claimed it was both the '43 and '49 serials, and that somebody from ABC was present.

An entertainment reporter for the Cleveland Press clearly remembered reading about the Playboy Theater showing, but misremembered the details when referencing it in a news people about An Evening With. Now it was a marathon showed at the Playboy Club.

But according the dated production documents, Batman '66 was already in development at ABC before the Playboy Theater showing. In November 1965, Columbia re-edited the films into a 4.5 hour marathon called An Evening With Batman & Robin, perhaps to capitalize on news of the upcoming TV show.

In 1962, Columbia Pictures reissued a few old film serials, including Batman. Theaters that reran it discovered that local college kids were especially entertained by the old-fashioned silliness of it. After the Playboy Theater ran it during the summer of 1965, the Chicago Tribune did a write-up:

The first thing you need to know is that there were three different Playboy facilities in Chicago: 1) Playboy Mansion - Where Hugh Hefner held private parties. 2) Playboy Club - The first in a chain of clubs with bunny servers. 3) Playboy Theater - Prev the Surf Theater until Hef bought it in 1964.

A lot of historical errors are the fault of assumptions, misunderstandings, and games of telephone. To give you an example of how this sort of things happens, let's take a look at the persistent myth that Batman '66 happened because a TV producer saw a showing of Batman '43 at the Playboy mansion.

Just says it looks like one? The cartoon had one that looked like one:

Cracking up at this: imgur.com/gallery/gram...

It’s honestly unreal how quickly my entire outlook on life changed once the reflection in the mirror changed.

Oh, you mean these?

It was a two night goth event. This time I tried to give my best “a character in Addams Family.”

A local music night had a goth theme and encouraged dressing up. How’d I do?

Anyways, dude was quite a character. I mostly went down this rabbit hole because I was trying to find examples of his illustration work outside of video games. He said he intentionally failed his art exams because he didn't want to be put in a box. His preferred medium was felt tip markers.

Of all his aliases, his real name sounds the most like it was made up. A drummer named Drummond? Too on the nose. His first project was The Far Side with Paul Stevens and Tony Barber, the latter of whom would become the bass player of punk group The Buzzcocks from 1992-2008.

FB reminding me that 9 years ago today I turned this real photo into a fake album. Imagine how horrified I'd be if I were told he's still in office. "How did he manage to get a third term??"

According to Google translate, the author says that this game resonated with him more than F1, Xevious, Balloon Fight, or Bungling Bay.