Sure, we all know the rockets red glare and bombs bursting in air gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.

But if you were actually fighting the Redcoats 232 years ago, guess what else that bright mortar fire would have revealed?

Blood, guts, brains, and body parts galore.

That’s right, kids. This country didn’t gain it’s independence by outperforming the British in Dance Dance Revolution.

Our freedom was won with bayonets, muskets, cannons, and good-old-fashioned fisticuffs.

Which means red-blooded Americans shouldn’t shy away from violent entertainment, but rather embrace it as a reminder of how our forefathers told King George to shove it.

Luckily for Angelenos, the Silent Movie Theater has the intestinal fortitude to give us exactly what we need.

Starting tonight at 10:00 p.m. and continuing every Saturday throughout July, the Cinefamily presents Holyfuckingshit: Gore Comedies, a series of four films so bloody they’d make the Overlook Hotel blush.

According to the Silent Movie Theater, these films are “so gory that they become hysterically absurd—and funny as all hell. You’ll be screaming with childlike glee watching these pillars of putrid entertainment.”

The series features Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn (1987) on July 5, Street Trash (1987) on July 12, Peter Jackson’s Dead Alive aka Brain Dead (1992) on July 19, and Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky (1991) on July 26.

Consider watching these films your patriotic duty.

Image: Bruce Campbell and screaming woman in Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn.

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Hello Friends! If you go and check out Spaced Invasion, you’ll find some details for two awesome Spaced-centric events happening in Los Angeles! There’s a signing on the 23rd at Jay and Silent Bob’s Secret Stash - West, and a free screening of some choice episodes at the Arclight followed by a Q&A with Simon Pegg, Jessica Hynes and Edgar Wright moderated by Kevin Smith!

What’s Spaced? You mean, you don’t know? Understandable, I suppose, because the  series hasn’t been available stateside, until now! On July 22nd, you and all your friends ought to make haste to your local DVD retailer, throw down some dollars and rush home to experience some of the funniest TV ever! Here’s a more thorough description from the press release:

Spaced: The Complete Series, a 3-disc set from BBC Video, features all 14 surreal episodes of the award-winning show, described by Pegg as “a cross between The Simpsons, The X-Files and Northern Exposure.” Boasting over eight hours of content, the DVD set features bonus material including the original commentary from the UK release plus all-new commentary from Quentin Tarantino (Reservoir Dogs, Kill Bill), Kevin Smith (Clerks, Dogma), Matt Stone (South Park, Team America: World Police), Bill Hader (Superbad, SNL), Patton Oswalt (King of Queens, Ratatouille) and Diablo Cody (Oscar®-winning writer of Juno).

Here’s a rare tweet from Metro:

See stars, stripes and fireworks at the Hollywood Bowl this weekend. Go Metro and the shuttle is free!!

For the full press release, click on this. Happy Birthday, America!

My friend Andrew Pogany, senior editor and chief LA-booster over at Flaunt, is presiding over yet another fantastic event (after curating LA-cultural-stuff affairs at Taix for some time (at one event, Eric Garcetti read an abridged early history of Los Angeles, and, if memory serves, sang a little song)). Now, “Twilight Drinks at the Griffith Park Clubhouse” takes over the historic, FDR-sponsored Spanish revival lounge and supper/brunch joint–and its gorgeous views of the Park’s golf course–every Wednesday night this summer, from 7:30p-11p. All this, and special prizes go to those in the best Caddyshack costume! The fine, fine film itself will be screened weekly on the outdoor patio. So, we’ve got that goin’ for us…which is nice.

Barbeque burgers, veggie burgers, grilled hot dogs & mac & cheese are on the menu, ranging from $6-$10. Full bar with drinks ranging from $4-$10 and beers on tap. Feel free to dress as your favorite Caddyshack character; however no golf attire will be required.*

The info on the event follows behind the jump.

* I love that they decided this was necessary to add

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Today’s LA Times has a review of a young adult book called I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone, by Stephanie Kuehnert. You can read the review here, and check out Stephanie’s website here. And if you’re so inclined you can read the first chapter of the book here.

Steph was my neighbor across the hall in college (for the one year that we both attended Antioch) and we took a creative writing class together. The class was crap, but her writing was always amazing.

Now: Antioch is in Ohio, Stephanie lives in Chicago, and the book is set in Wisconsin. So why do I mention it here? Because she is going to be in town next weekend doing two book-related events.

Saturday, July, 12, she will be doing a reading and signing at Book Soup in West Hollywood at 5:00. Also reading and signing will be local author Alexa Young, whose book Frenemies came out this spring.

Sunday, July 13, Stephanie and Alexa will be joined by other local authors and several local bands at the Virgin Megastore at Hollywood & Highland for their Rock ‘n Read event. I am so excited about this that it’s kind of absurd. Books! And music! Together! I can’t believe this sort of event doesn’t happen all the time. It all goes down at 3:00 and is ALL AGES. Their is an optional $10 suggested donation which will enter you to win a whole bunch of goodies including books and CDs.

See you there?

Foxypar4’s image used via Creative Commons

I’m a fireworks kind of person. First of all, I grew up in DC, where Independence Day fireworks are something of a religious event. Then add to that my pyromaniac tendencies and general fondness for smash-it-up kinds of stuff and you get a fireworks fan.

You probably already know you can find listings of the fireworks displays in LA and neighboring counties at the LA Times. But if you’re looking for something a little different this year, you might want to contemplate an aerial view. Some possibilities after the jump.

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 Bottomfeeders Guide to LA

Berta one of our readers and commenters from Far East LA (West Covina) dropped me a note about a free event they were attending at Hollywood & Highland and how they got there cheap and fast.

She has lived in LA for many years with the exception of a couple of years in New York.  While in New York she and her husband learned to rely on their subways to get around fast and cheap.  When they returned to LA they missed efficient public transportation.

With the price of gas coupled with the time to get into some events as it is too close to normal rush hours she has turned to looking at the train as a way to get around.  With her husband disabled public transit was a bit of a worry.  They found quickly that it was no problem and he got a cheaper ticket in the process.  Her story after the jump.  (more…)

Going to the Venice Beach Ocean Front Walk on a sunny summer Saturday afternoon is nuts.  Going when there’s a festival taking place is twice as nuts.  Well, call me twice as nuts.  Wanting to support my local community and green causes, I walked over to the Venice Eco-Fest yesterday afternoon.

Click here for Eco-Fest recap and photos

Okay, I admit it; I teared up. A little.

Last night was the goodbye party for Antigua Cultural Coffeehouse in El Sereno,my little local coffeeshop just a short walk away from my house. Truth be told, one of the reasons we even made an offer on this house was because of the coffeeshop. We got used to living within walking distance of a coffeeshop when we lived in Hollywood, so it made sense. But Antigua lost its lease due to what sounds like shady shenanigans by the property owner.

When we arrived around 8pm, the place was packed. Julio and his wife Cuauhtli were behind the counter serving up coffee. The until-recently-off-limits patio was open in the back where alcoholic drinks were sold. It was jarring to see the murals and signs removed, along with the counter and the bookshelves. It it hit me that I really have no place to take my kids in the morning any more. I’ll no longer will be able to hop over to Antiqua to talk politics with Cuauhtli, Yancy and some of the regulars.

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If “Name: Ronald or Rhonda Donellson, Game Host; Prop: 3 (or more) Potatoes; and Line of Dialogue:’Leave it to me, I’m a professional’” mean anything to you, then you’re familiar with The 48 Hour Film Project.  If not, it’s a contest held in cities around the world each year, in which teams of filmmakers must write, shoot, edit, and present a film within 48 hours.  This year’s contest recently took place in Los Angeles.  The judges have spoken, and the films judged the best of Los Angeles will be shown at a special screening and awards ceremony next Wednesday, July 2, at the Fairfax Theater at 8 p.m.  And you’re invited!

Click here to find out more about the screening