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THE FRANTIC FLICKER
"The movie magazine that isn't..."
----Serving nonsense on a golden platter since 2004.----
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Issue #15: May 22, 2004
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www.franticflicker.com
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"Let's get down to brass tacks. How much for the ape?"
- Johnny Depp as Raoul Duke - Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.
IN THIS ISSUE:
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==>Advice For the Modern Gambler
==>Viva Las Vegas
==>Superatomic Giveaway of the Week
==>Whodunnit?
ADVICE FOR THE MODERN GAMBLER
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Don't. Hi, everyone, and welcome to issue 15 of the Frantic Flicker. This is an emergency late
and short issue, since I've been in Vegas all week and didn't find time to devote much energy
to my favorite weekly writing assignment. I did, however, find time to devote plenty of energy
to putting some quarters in some slot machines, going to a crazy naked circus show, and
drinking a fruity tropical cocktail or two. It's been a good little while since I've been to
Lose-Your-Shirt-Central and I was surprised by the trend of turning every conceivable
property into a slot machine. I Dream of Jeannie, Kenny Rogers as The Gambler, Dick Clark's
New Year's Rockin' Eve, Elvis, Frank Sinatra, and The Munsters all have their own slot
machines, but the one that cracked me up the most was called "Winning For Dummies." Crazy
stuff.
Anyway, Vegas was fun. I went with my special lady, checking out sites for our wedding later
this year. We stayed in three different hotel/casinos, and ended up liking one and a half. I
thought up a story, but didn't write it down or get this sucker out on Friday like I meant to. I
didn't forget about you, honest. I just got a bit caught up in the glitz and the glamour and the
ridiculously overbearing nature of that other city that never sleeps. Sorry it's short and late,
but enjoy.
Eric
This is, um, a story...
VIVA LAS VEGAS
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Gregory was sixty-two years old, and he'd been living out of his car for almost a week. He'd
had losing streaks before, but nothing like this.
Elaine was an exotic dancer. She was only nineteen, but her fake I.D. was the best money
could buy. Since she'd been fired by the agency, though, money had gotten tight.
He hadn't held a regular job for more than a month in twenty years. And now he was too old
to get those jobs. He was stuck doing what he did best.
She had been doing private shows for guys in their hotel rooms for about three months.
She'd been working with another girl named Judy, but when Judy had wanted to go the extra
mile for a particularly wealthy gentlemen, Elaine had ratted her out to the agency. The next
day both girls were fired.
He knew that tonight would make the difference between getting a room so that he could
continue to look presentable, and having to start begging on the street.
She was trying not to think about tonight. She'd paid up through the weekend, and then she
would have to start working somewhere or god, something had to happen. It couldn't keep
going like this. She'd had 500 cards printed, just with her picture and her number, and paid
someone to pass them out. She guessed that most of them had ended up in the gutter.
He pulled the card out of the gutter. She reminded him of a girl he went to school with. He
touched the picture with his finger. This is my Lady Luck, he thought to himself, I'll take her
with me. And when I win, I'll give her a call. Sure I will. Why the hell not?
The phone scared her. It had been a long time since it rang, and she was in the middle of one
of her favorite shows. The guy sounded old, but friendly enough. She could tell by the tone of
his voice that he's just won a bundle. She knew he would offer, and she would have to
decide.
He decided to order up some booze, and that arrived first. Not only would he be staying in
the executive suite, he'd had his meals comped for the next two days. Of course, they never
wanted him to stop playing, but he'd really needed the rest, and begged off for the evening.
A few hours ago he'd been destitute, and now he'd had a well-deserved shower, his belly
was full, and in just a few minutes, his muse was set to arrive in the flesh. On top of all that,
he was set up for at least the next month. At least financially.
She found the room easily enough, and he was lying in the doorway. He wore a white hotel
robe. He didn't seem to be breathing. She only had to take a few steps inside to find the
wallet. It was in her pocket and she was down the hall as if nothing had happened. She
hadn't done anything wrong in her mind. Dead people don't need money.
He watched her count the money in the alley. It seemed appropriate to him that she should
have it, and also appropriate that he shouldn't have her. It wasn't conscious thinking exactly,
but it would be the last thing he ever remembered.
She went next door and placed a bet. By dawn she had doubled the money. She could move
wherever she wanted, have nice things, a new life.
By noon, she had enough left for lunch. As she ate, she thought of the stranger in the white
robe, and wondered if he was a creep.
THE END
Of course, there's also a movie with Elvis Presley and Ann-Margret called Viva Las Vegas. It
has a couple of cool songs in the beginning (and Miss Margret being very Va Va Voom), but
the whole second half is about a car race through the desert, and it's boring and it sucks.
SUPERATOMIC GIVEAWAY OF THE WEEK
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Part of my whole reason for being here is to expose people to cool and/or weird stuff that
they might not otherwise know about, and one of the main ways I want to do that is by
giving stuff away for free.
This week's giveaway is a NEW DVD of LAS VEGAS HILLBILLYS, starring Jayne Mansfield!!!
See the website for further details!
To enter, send an e-mail to superatomic@franticflicker.com. Put your NAME (first and last) and
ADDRESS in the BODY of the e-mail, and use the SUPERATOMIC SECRET PASSWORD in a
COMPLETE SENTENCE as the SUBJECT line. Your information will not be used for any other
purpose.
The SUPERATOMIC SECRET PASSWORD for this week is... (gotta subscribe to find out).
Visit the superatomic section of the website (www.franticflicker.com/superatomic) for
complete rules, more details and a photo of this week's prize. Contest ends late Thursday
night, May 27, 2004 (if the message says Friday, that's too late Thursday night), and the
winner will be contacted by e-mail and announced on the site on Friday.
By entering, you confirm that you are 18 years of age or older. US or Canadian entrants only,
please.
WHODUNNIT
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Written, compiled, researched, edited and published by yours truly, King Boss Man Eric
Henderson! Thanks for reading it!
The Frantic Flicker is a weekly e-mail newsletter published by Eric Henderson.
The official Frantic Flicker website is a site to behold. Behold it at:
www.franticflicker.com
If you have any questions or comments, pass 'em on to: eric@franticflicker.com. If you don't
want me to print your letter, let me know. I'll talk at you again next week. Until then, have
fun!
Eric
All content copyright 2004 Eric Henderson. All rights reserved, but feel free to forward this
e-mail or link to my home page. Thanks.
To SUBSCRIBE, visit www.franticflicker.com. To UNSUBSCRIBE, follow the autoresponder
instructions below.
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THE LIVING END
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