Am I the only one who always imagined a sort of Tyrion Lannister from Newt when I read the book? I quite liked his character.

I gotta say, I'm siding with Michael on so many of these pronunciations

It wasn't Jack's hobby shop that was a front, Frank left to work in a similar shop in Florida, that Florida shop was the front that got Frank in trouble.  Not to be persnickety.

I see Charlie Heaton (Stranger Things) as Frank!

In the same vein as Cat's Cradle,  I'd also like to recommend "A Canticle for Leibowitz" by Walter M. Miller, which features similar themes as Cat's Cradle:  namely, the inevitability of mankind's self-destruction by its own curiosity.  Truly a heart-breaking story (if slow at times).  There's a great (and FREE) rendition of it here:  http://www.oldradioworld.com/shows/A_Canticle_for_Liebowitz.php

I'd like to mention here that Strauss (author of 'The Game') is a lot more self-aware than most people give him credit for. He eventually realises that the life of a pick-up artist is shallow, and the PUA ends up objectifying women while simultaneously being dependent on their attention. As he writes in the final chapter: "The goal of the Game is to stop playing."

Alex Schmidt and Michael Swaim, the original Kurt Vonneguys, are back to break down the new 'Slaughterhouse-Five' graphic novel! If this isn't nice, what is?

The graphic novel is by writer Ryan North and artist Albert Monteys. Publisher page: https://shop.boom-studios.com/collections/slaughterhouse-five

Also here's a link to a *VIDEO VERSION* of this podcast episode (it's the same audio, plus some photos of what we're talking about): https://youtu.be/5BghQzkY0iE

Vonneguys news: we're returning once more, in 2022, for a new episode about 'The Writer's Crusade' by Tom Roston. Find out more about that book here: https://www.abramsbooks.com/product/writers-crusade_9781419744891/

SEGMENTS:
Franken-Time (00:03:55)
Plot Time (00:24:55)
Kurt Blurt Redux (00:43:45)
Recurring Characters Redux (00:51:45)
Kurt Cameo Redux (00:58:05)
VonneWHAT Redux (01:00:30)
The Meat (01:04:20)
Ryan North and Albert Monteys-grades (01:17:25)
Related Reading (01:21:25)
Vonnegut News (01:26:00)

LINKS for Related Reading:
'Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid On Earth' by Chris Ware: https://bookshop.org/books/jimmy-corrigan-the-smartest-kid-on-earth/9780375714542
'Bone Sharps, Cowboys, and Thunder Lizards' by Jim Ottaviani and Big Time Attic: https://bookshop.org/books/bone-sharps-cowboys-and-thunder-lizards/9780966010664
Quote from Tennessee Williams: https://www.themarginalian.org/2018/07/30/tennessee-williams-love/
'Synedcoche, New York' (2008 movie): https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0383028/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0

LINKS for background about this graphic novel:
ComicsBeat.com interview with Ryan North: https://www.comicsbeat.com/interview-adapting-slaughterhouse-five-with-ryan-north/
Publisher interview with Ryan North and Albert Monteys: https://youtu.be/BU5xv4AhoCc
Article about Albert Monteys leaving 'El Jueves' over censorship: https://www.thelocal.es/20140606/spanish-comic-censored-jueves-king-joke/
Image Comics page for the 'Solid State' graphic novel by Jonathan Coulton, Matt Fraction, and Albert Monteys: https://imagecomics.com/comics/series/solid-state
Vox.com article citing new Dresden statistics: https://www.vox.com/culture/2019/3/31/18287062/slaughterhouse-five-50th-anniversary-kurt-vonnegut
January 2018 'Dinosaur Comics' strip that quotes 'Slaughterhouse-Five': https://qwantz.com/index.php?comic=3236
August 2021 news from Deadline.com on Noah Hawley's adaptation of 'Cat's Cradle': https://deadline.com/2021/08/noah-hawley-cats-cradle-not-moving-forward-at-fx-tca-1234814354/
Review from The AV Club: https://www.avclub.com/slaughterhouse-five-is-a-near-flawless-adaptation-that-1845419158
Review from Polygon: https://www.polygon.com/comics/2020/9/15/21438090/slaughterhouse-five-comic-graphic-novel-kurt-vonnegut-ryan-north-albert-monteys
Review from MonkeysFightingRobots.co: https://monkeysfightingrobots.co/review-slaughterhouse-five-is-a-perfect-graphic-novel-adaptation/

LINK to a Google Sheet with all of Alex and Michael's past Vonnegrades: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1F2juhwV4ia1MzdQC8krE0yiV9e7rdrpkbMguGL037uo/edit?usp=sharing

Slaughterhouse-Five (graphic novel)

Alex Schmidt and Michael Swaim, the original Kurt Vonneguys, are back to break down the new documentary 'Kurt Vonnegut: Unstuck In Time'! If this isn't nice, what is?

The documentary is by co-directors Robert B. Weide and Don Argott. Here's its website and how to watch: https://www.vonnegutmovie.com/

Vonneguys news: we're still returning once more, in 2022, for an episode about 'The Writer's Crusade' by Tom Roston. Find out more about that book here: www.abramsbooks.com/product/writers…_9781419744891/

SEGMENTS:
Franken-Time (00:02:15)
Summary Time (00:26:00)
Highlight Reel (00:37:57)
Vonne-MEH (00:56:30)
The Meat (01:03:55)
Robert B. Weide-grades (01:17:15)
Related Reading (01:22:45)
Vonnegut News (01:35:07)

LINKS for Related Reading:
'Life Itself' documentary: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2382298/
'Meeting People Is Easy' documentary: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0195909/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0
'Too Funny To Fail' documentary, streaming on Hulu: https://www.hulu.com/movie/too-funny-to-fail-the-life-death-of-the-dana-carvey-show-c6c29995-0c40-4442-aed6-156bd11e2d9e
'The Brothers Vonnegut' by Ginger Strand: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780374536534
'The Century Of The Self' documentary series: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0432232/

LINKS for background about this documentary:
Library Of America interview with Robert B. Weide: https://www.loa.org/news-and-views/1917-kurt-vonnegut-at-100-with-robert-weide
transcript of the "Why a duck?" scene in 'The Cocoanuts' (1929): https://www.marx-brothers.org/whyaduck/info/movies/scenes/whyaduck.htm
IMDb listings for Robert B. Weide: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004332/?ref_=tt_ov_wr
IMDB listings for Don Argott: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0034531/?ref_=tt_ov_dr
'Kurt Vonnegut: Letters', edited by Dan Wakefield: https://bookshop.org/books/kurt-vonnegut-letters/9780385343763
'The Brothers Vonnegut' by Ginger Strand: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780374536534
Review from RogerEbert.com: https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/kurt-vonnegut-unstuck-in-time-movie-review-2021
Review from Variety: https://variety.com/2021/film/reviews/kurt-vonnegut-unstuck-in-time-review-robert-b-weide-1235115093/
Review from NPR: https://www.npr.org/2021/11/17/1056477983/kurt-vonnegut-unstuck-in-time-remains-faithful-to-the-authors-spirit
Review from the Los Angeles Times: https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2021-11-18/review-kurt-vonnegut-unstuck-in-time-robert-b-weide-don-argott

Kurt Vonnegut: Unstuck In Time

Alex Schmidt and Michael Swaim, the original Kurt Vonneguys, are back to break down the new nonfiction book 'The Writer's Crusade: Kurt Vonnegut and the Many Lives of Slaughterhouse-Five'! If this isn't nice, what is?

The book is written by Tom Roston, and published by Abrams Books: https://www.abramsbooks.com/product/writers-crusade_9781419744891/

Vonneguys news: this is our last episode of this new run. Thank you all so much for re-forming this karass for another round of Vonne-joy.
Enjoy Michael's new show 'Like Razorblade Pie' at Small Beans: https://www.patreon.com/SmallBeans
Enjoy Alex's show 'Secretly Incredibly Fascinating': https://linktr.ee/sifpod

SEGMENTS:
Franken-Time (00:02:35)
Summary Time (00:13:10)
The Meat (00:36:15)
Tom Rosto-grades (01:07:25)
Related Reading (01:10:30)
Vonnegut News (01:17:35)

LINKS for Related Reading:
'The Things They Carried' by Tim O'Brien: https://www.arts.gov/initiatives/nea-big-read/things-they-carried
"Ahab’s gift: Herman Melville’s Moby Dick and the meaning of pain" by Xi Chen: https://hekint.org/2020/06/23/ahabs-gift-herman-melvilles-moby-dick-and-the-meaning-of-pain/
The Autobiography Of Mark Twain: https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520267190/autobiography-of-mark-twain-volume-1

LINKS for background about this book:
'Kurt Vonnegut: Letters', edited by Dan Wakefield: https://bookshop.org/books/kurt-vonnegut-letters/9780385343763
Tom Roston's website: https://tomroston.com/
'The Most Spectacular Restaurant in the World: The Twin Towers, Windows on the World, and the Rebirth of New York' by Tom Roston: https://www.abramsbooks.com/product/most-spectacular-restaurant-in-the-world_9781419737992/
'I Lost it at the Video Store: A Filmmakers' Oral History of a Vanished Era' by Tom Roston: https://books.google.com/books/about/I_Lost_it_at_the_Video_Store.html?id=TpzmsgEACAAJ
Review from Kirkus Reviews: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/tom-roston/the-writers-crusade/
Review from Publishers Weekly: https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-4197-4489-1

Full spreadsheet of Alex & Michael's "Vonnegrades" plus other grades: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1F2juhwV4ia1MzdQC8krE0yiV9e7rdrpkbMguGL037uo/edit?usp=sharing

Homepage for the Kurt Vonnegut Museum & Library: http://kvml.org/
Their next annual 'Night Of Vonnegut' is April 10th, 2022.
Kurt Vonnegut's 100th birthday would've been November 11th, 2022.

The Writer's Crusade: Kurt Vonnegut and the Many Lives of Slaughterhouse-Five

From the Group! (01:00)

Plot Time! (07:45)

Kurt Blurt! (11:40)

Kurt Cameo! (1:53:20)

Recurring Characters! (1:54:40)

VonneWHAT! (1:57:15)

The Meat! (2:07:15)

VonneGrades! (2:12:20)

Movie Time! (2:16:00)

Related Reading! (2:26:10)

Vocab Quiz! (2:33:50)

Vonnegut News! (2:37:00)


Related Reading:

Article: Scientific American: Let's Colonize Titan: https://goo.gl/KP4dx0

Song: 10cc - Sand in My Face (Dynamic Tension): https://goo.gl/S0UbEP

Movie: Synecdoche, New York: https://goo.gl/h6AV1Z

Book: Ginger Strand - The Brothers Vonnegut: https://goo.gl/zIYN0X

Short Story: Ray Bradbury - The Fire Balloons (in The Illustrated Man): https://goo.gl/ihH8r9

Book: Will Self - The Book of Dave: https://goo.gl/ApmVV4

Song: Ambrosia - Nice Nice Very Nice: https://goo.gl/m6xlA3

Short Story: Harlan Ellison - The Deathbird (in Deathbird Stories): https://goo.gl/neeVyS

Short Story: Harlan Ellison - The Executioner of Malformed Children (in Shatterday): https://goo.gl/b1koGV

Book: Robert Heinlein - The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag: https://goo.gl/fdU6RM

Book: John Brunner - The Traveler in Black: https://goo.gl/unBNQG

Book: Margaret Atwood - The Handmaid's Tale: https://goo.gl/Sf4rdn

Book: Lois Lowry - The Giver: https://goo.gl/1PPIWv

Music: Ice-9 Ballads: https://goo.gl/CQc5jS

Cat's Cradle

Join reader-comedians Alex Schmidt and Michael Swaim for a fun, digressive trip through the Kurt Vonnegut canon. It’s a book club, a comedy show, and a cavalcade of smart, entertaining segments. Discover Vonnegut works you’ve never read! Rediscover your Kurt favorites! And cure the terrible disease of loneliness by going on a K.V. appreciation deep dive with a friendly karass of your fellow listeners.

Cat's Cradle

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