Latest news with #MelBrooks
The Star
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Star
The year's most addictive mobile game is delightfully absurd
The strange mash-ups in What the Clash?, which could require sliding slot cars past insouciant black cats, are reminiscent of WarioWare microgames. — Apple In the year's most addictive, fast-paced mobile game, a jolly, round-bellied character with a hand for a head uses a green, flopping fish as a table tennis ball. It later shoots arrows at a bull's-eye that pops up from a toaster like an Eggo waffle. Humorous absurdity fuels the fun in What the Clash? The Apple Arcade exclusive was inspired by Nintendo's irreverent WarioWare microgames. Initially, I was terrible at the first three games available in this silly endeavour: twisted table tennis, racing and archery. (Five more games can be unlocked for free.) Yes, there are tutorials, sometimes obtuse. But they do not prepare you for the strange mashups that are to come, which seem like they were created by a mad scientist. The result is more Mel Brooks than Mary Shelley. At the start of each round, three game cartridges are presented at a poker table seen from a bird's-eye perspective by two online players. A green wine bottle spins and randomly chooses, say, the racing game, which is placed into a console that looks suspiciously like something Nintendo made in the 1980s. Each player is then dealt a selection of cards, putting forth the one that may lead to victory – and almost certainly to chaos. The combination of cards is what provides the game's ingenuity. In one daunting fusion, mini slot-car racers are blocked at times by the paws of insouciant black cats. Getting to the finish line requires a sense of timing that must come naturally to some. But not to me. Twisted humor is everywhere in What The Clash? – a sequel to What The Golf? and What The Car? At every milestone, a tortured 'Happy Birthday' is squeezed out on a concertina. I imagined it was played by Clash Handicoot, an older stock character who is a nod to a popular 1996 PlayStation game. What The Clash? keeps your attention by keeping things moving. It's possible to win a best-of-five match during a commercial break, and one game may take 30 frantic seconds. The tense battles are about balanced play and sanguine oddness. There is also strange customisation. I rarely enjoy dressing up a game character, with the exception of placing Astro Bot in retro hero costumes. The items in the store here, though, are fun enough to pique engagement. Using coins earned by winning matches, I bought a bear finger puppet to place atop my middle digit as well as a David Bowie-inspired lightning tattoo. The store sorely needs more humorous pop-culture-inspired options, however, and I'm not sure why a ruby ring costs a mammoth 500 crowns, the in-game currency. Items don't offer extra power or agility. But I still purchased the ring, perhaps to flaunt a luxury item at opponents. One snippet from the lo-fi soundtrack amplified the way I felt about playing to the point of tendinitis. It's a six-note whistling ditty signifying the laid-back comfort of a win. That's how I felt when I emerged as a victor – on top of the world. There can also be a haunting loneliness to the tune. After losing a close match, I felt the lowest of lows. My flexors throbbed in pain. It was time to quit. But then a new card combination appeared, asking me to launch giraffes from a bow to keep away a threatening rolling barrel. It was important to continue at all costs. – ©2025 The New York Times Company What the Clash? Available on Apple Arcade This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
Daily Mail
24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Calls for new Labour mayor to be sacked because he dressed up as Adolf Hitler for charity event
A newly appointed Labour Mayor who dressed up as Adolf Hitler at a charity event is facing calls to resign. Photographs of Seve Gomez-Aspron MBE wearing a German Army uniform, complete with swastika, and a fake moustache, previously surfaced online in 2019 when he was serving as a councillor for St Helens. But, after being installed as the borough's mayor earlier this month, Mr Gomez-Aspron is once again facing backlash. The series of snaps were taken at a fancy dress dinner in aid of Claire House Hospice, which supports seriously and terminally ill children, in 2009, when he was not yet a councillor. Mr Gomez-Aspron said at the time the outfit was inspired by Mel Brooks ' satirical comedy The Producers. He described the decision to wear it as 'clumsy'. But despite his apology, there is still much furor surrounding his recent appointment, with more than 1,000 people signing a petition for his removal as mayor. According to the Sun, 11 councillors also walked out in protest during his swearing in ceremony on May 14. 'He is reviled throughout St Helens for his inappropriate behaviour and attitude. Many feel that he is not fit for public office, never mind the prestigious role as mayor,' a councillor told the newspaper. The councillor told the Liverpool Echo the first time the photos went viral that they were taken in his early twenties, before he was a Labour Party member He added at the time: 'I have matured and learnt a lot since then, and it goes without saying that I would not do this now. 'I know how this could be seen as insensitive and how it could cause hurt and offence. 'That was not at all my intention and I sincerely apologise. I have part-Jewish ancestry and I recently visited Israel to commemorate those killed in the Holocaust and the war.' But, for Mr Gomez-Aspron - who also once appeared on ITV's Million Pound Drop where he scooped £100,000 with a pal - this scandal was not his first. Just last year the then deputy leader of St Helens Council was forced to apologise for 'offensive' comments made towards a councillor during a meeting about a proposed rise in council tax. Mr Gomez-Aspron said the councillor's reasoning for voting against a 4.99% rise as having 'diatribe' and claimed he has 'not a clue what he is talking about'. He later went on to describe the man and another councillor as the 'Earlestown Brain Trust', before correcting himself by saying 'it was wrong to imply there was a brain'. The council Monitoring Officer later said the remarks were 'personally offensive, inappropriate and disrespectful'. Mr Gomez-Aspron later sent a letter of apology to the two councillors. In May 2019, he was issued with the Police Information Notice (PINs) following a complaint from a member of the public accusing him of harassment. However, it should be noted that official guidance states that the notices themselves do not constitute any kind of formal legal action and signing one does not mean the alleged harasser accepts harassment has taken place. Mr Gomez-Aspron claimed at the time that the complainant had a 'history of harassing both myself and my family in a personal capacity in no way related to the council'. He said he would be seeking legal advice on the issue. Then in 2015, Mr Gomez-Aspron was once again under the spotlight when he was found to have used offensive language towards a resident on Facebook. St Helens Council's Standards Committee heard he had ended a conversation with a woman on the social media site, by signing off with: 'C U Next Tuesday.' This phrase is widely know to be a euphemism for an offensive four letter word, although Mr Gomez-Aspron denied he knew the expression could be offensive.
New York Times
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
The Year's Most Addictive Mobile Game Is Delightfully Absurd
In the year's most addictive, fast-paced mobile game, a jolly, round-bellied character with a hand for a head uses a green, flopping fish as a table tennis ball. It later shoots arrows at a bull's-eye that pops up from a toaster like an Eggo waffle. Humorous absurdity fuels the fun in What the Clash?, an Apple Arcade exclusive inspired by Nintendo's irreverent WarioWare microgames. Initially, I was terrible at the first three games available in this silly endeavor: twisted table tennis, racing and archery. (Five more games can be unlocked for free.) Yes, there are tutorials, sometimes obtuse. But they do not prepare you for the strange mash-ups that are to come, which seem like they were created by a mad scientist. The result is more Mel Brooks than Mary Shelley. At the start of each round, three game cartridges are presented at a poker table seen from a bird's-eye perspective by two online players. A green wine bottle spins and randomly chooses, say, the racing game, which is placed into a console that looks suspiciously like something Nintendo made in the 1980s. Each player is then dealt a selection of cards, putting forth the one that may lead to victory — and almost certainly to chaos. The combination of cards is what provides the game's ingenuity. In one daunting fusion, mini slot-car racers are blocked at times by the paws of insouciant black cats. Getting to the finish line requires a sense of timing that must come naturally to some. But not to me. Twisted humor is everywhere in What the Clash?, a sequel to What the Golf? and What the Car? At every milestone, a tortured 'Happy Birthday' is squeezed out on a concertina. I imagined it was played by Clash Handicoot, an older stock character who is a nod to a popular 1996 PlayStation game. What the Clash? keeps your attention by keeping things moving. It's possible to win a best-of-five match during a commercial break, and one game may take 30 frantic seconds. The tense battles are about balanced play and sanguine oddness. There is also strange customization. I rarely enjoy dressing up a game character, with the exception of placing Astro Bot in retro hero costumes. The items in the store here, though, are fun enough to pique engagement. Using coins earned by winning matches, I bought a bear finger puppet to place atop my middle digit as well as a David Bowie-inspired lightning tattoo. The store sorely needs more humorous pop-culture-inspired options, however, and I'm not sure why a ruby ring costs a mammoth 500 crowns, the in-game currency. Items don't offer extra power or agility. But I still purchased the ring, perhaps to flaunt a luxury item at opponents. One snippet from the lo-fi soundtrack amplified the way I felt about playing to the point of tendinitis. It's a six-note whistling ditty signifying the laid-back comfort of a win. That's how I felt when I emerged as a victor — on top of the world. There can also be a haunting loneliness to the tune. After losing a close match, I felt the lowest of lows. My flexors throbbed in pain. It was time to quit. But then a new card combination appeared, asking me to launch giraffes from a bow to keep away a threatening rolling barrel. It was important to continue at all costs.
Irish Independent
28-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Wexford Light Opera Society return with monstrously funny Mel Brooks comedy ‘Young Frankenstein'
There was a degree of expectation around Wexford Light Opera Society as the production team behind last year's award-winning Phantom of the Opera got the band back together for their next production. They certainly managed to keep up with those expectations with the monstrously funny Young Frankenstein by Mel Brooks which enjoyed a wonderful reception from an appreciative audience on opening night at the National Opera House on Monday. Adapted from the 1974 cult film classic, the stage version is packed with laughs, catchy tunes and fantastic dance numbers all performed with gusto by a stellar WLOS cast. Returning to the stage were some familiar faces and voices, including Pat Lawlor, Antonia Close, Brian Kelly, Stephen Byrne, Dylan Walsh and Sophie Blaney-Parslow. This year also features some new faces with Colin Flynn, David Doyle, Kacey Mooney and Keith Flanagan all making their debut with Wexford Light Opera Society. The show also features a visually stunning set, lively choreography and the kind of slapstick humour which tickled the first audiences to catch it. The show runs until May 3 and the last of the remaining tickets can be purchased via or by calling the box office on 0539122144.
Wall Street Journal
11-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Wall Street Journal
‘Eminent Jews' Review: Pushing the Boundaries
The title 'Eminent Jews' naturally evokes 'Eminent Victorians,' Lytton Strachey's takedown of Victorian culture through crushing biographical essays on Cardinal Manning, Florence Nightingale, Thomas Arnold and Charles George Gordon. Unlike the Strachey volume, David Denby's 'Eminent Jews' has been written not to crush but to celebrate Mel Brooks, Betty Friedan, Norman Mailer and Leonard Bernstein. The celebration does not come off. Mr. Denby hopes his book will exhibit 'a composite picture of the ideology and practice of postwar Jewish cultural achievement.' Yet even though Mr. Denby is himself Jewish, his 'Eminent Jews' could as easily be read as promoting antisemitic stereotypes—the book's cover features the prominent, or as I think of them the chosen, noses of its four subjects—emphasizing as it does Jews who specialized in vulgarity (Mel Brooks), intractable leftism (Betty Friedan), relentless self-promotion (Norman Mailer) and flamboyant egotism (Leonard Bernstein). Not, any of this, likely to bring much pleasure in the offices of the Anti-Defamation League. All four of Mr. Denby's subjects were ostjuden, or Eastern European Jews, and thus Ashkenazi. Eastern European Jews, who came to the U.S. in profusion in the last two decades of the 19th and the first two decades of the 20th centuries, were once viewed in contrast to the more determinedly assimilationist German Jews, whom the Eastern European Jews called yekkes—Yiddish for jackets—denoting the formality of the German Jews in never removing their suit jackets. A joke of the time asked, 'What is the difference between a yekke and a virgin? The answer: A yekke remains a yekke.' Mr. Denby devotes roughly 80 pages to each of his four subjects. He begins with Mel Brooks, whose specialty was to go up to the line of bad taste—and cross it. For Mr. Denby, Mr. Brooks 'was a more complicated Jewish clown than the world was ready to acknowledge' and 'a significant figure in Jewish history.' At one point he compares Mr. Brooks to Franz Kafka. Informed of the comparison, one imagines Kafka, not a man given to mirth, would have enjoyed a hardy, falling-off-the-couch laugh.
