How The Andy Griffith Show Made Don Knotts a Movie Star​Don Knotts had already appeared in a half dozen movies by 1965, and he was riding high on the hit TV sitcom The Andy Griffith Show. But he really wanted to make it on the silver screen, and the only starring role he'd had so far was in The Incredible Mr. Limpet, which wasn't a hit. Besides, he was coming up on the end of his five-year contract with The Andy Griffith Show. He needed a hit film, and the only way to do it was to have creative control. That hit was his first film for Universal, The Ghost and Mr. Chicken. Knotts wielded his creative control by recruiting two writers from The Andy Griffith Show, convincing Griffith himself to work on the script, and repurposing a story from the TV show for the basic premise. Then he recruited the director from The Andy Griffith Show, too. The result was a movie that earned back five times its budget and got Knotts a five-year contract with Universal. Read how The Ghost and Mr. Chicken came about at Mental Floss.(Image credit: Jerry) 
 
The Comedies That Roger Ebert Considered the Very WorstThe late film critic Roger Ebert carried a lot of weight among critics, but he didn't always agree with his partner Gene Siskel, and he didn't always agree with the moviegoing public. But he got it right for the vast majority of movies he rated. Ebert never held back when he knew a film was a stinker. That's why there are so many flops that you've never heard of, because it's hard coming back from a Ebert critique with no stars. When a comedy goes two hours and fails to make you laugh, you can bet that Ebert had something to say about it. Collider has compiled a list of comedies that Ebert awarded zero stars to, plus a scathing review of how it wasn't funny. You won't be surprised at how many of them you've never heard of, even though they are Hollywood productions, often with big stars. Read about the ten worst comedies Roger Ebert reviewed, although you may want to argue about number four. -via Fark​(Image credit: Sound Opinions) 
 
A Tribute To Bob Newhart's Character Professor ProtonBeloved comic actor Bob Newhart passed away Thursday at age 94. We remember him fondly as psychologist Robert Hartley in The Bob Newhart Show in the 1970s and as innkeeper Dick Loudon on the sitcom Newhart in the 1980s (legendary for the best series finaleever). He was also known to younger viewers as Professor Proton in the sitcom The Big Bang Theory.Professor Proton was actually Arthur Jeffries, Ph.D. but he had hosted a children's science show that inspired Sheldon and Leonard as children to become scientists when they grew up. They later made friends with their idol. Professor Proton appeared in six episodes of The Big Bang Theory. Now TBS will air all those episodes back-to-back in a tribute to Newhart on Sunday, July 21st. Read about Newhart's Big Bang Theory character at Deadline. 
 
Hand Farting Musical CoversThe German musician der schaelm specializes in the art form of manualism—the art of squeezing air between one’s hands to produce melodious sounds. But back when we (yes, I’m including you) were doing this at eight years old, we called it “hand farting.”There’s a lot that goes into hand farting. The musician must precisely arrange his or her hands and engage differing levels of tightness in order to achieve higher or lower or shorter or longer notes. It can take decades to master the craft and der schaelm has done the work. Here’s his cover of “Losing My Religion” by R.E.M. He also provides covers of songs from the Foo Fighters, Metallica, Slipknot, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.-via Laughing Squid
 
ASL Interpreters Stealing the Show at ConcertsA couple of weeks ago, Tamberly B posted a TikTok video of the American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter at a Ludacris concert. It went viral because her performance was as impressive to the hearing audience as it was to those who know ASL. Watch Nakia Haley-Stuckey perform her magic.
 
Dungeons & Dragons Postage StampsThe Royal Mail issues a wide variety of special stamps commemorating popular culture, such as the X-Men,Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series, Harry Potter, Peppa Pig, and the heavy metal band Iron Maiden. Most recently, the government agency issued a series of eight stamps with some of the most famous and dangerous monster from the world of Dungeons & Dragons. They’re available in enlarged versions suitable for framing and display in tasteful homes, as well as actual stamps that you can use to contact old-school off-grid players. My favorite is the mimic, which has become so common in popular culture that it was central to the anime and manga franchise Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End.-via Boing Boing
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