Posts tagged America
Toyota Display at the 2013 Denver International Auto Show
Mar 26th
We visit the Toyota Display at the 2013 Denver Auto Show and look at the all new 2014 Toyota models, some still in production. The Avalon, Tundra, Rav-4. Prius cars and the Toyota Sienna Denver Zoo Elephant Passage special model.
Toyota Avalon is a pinnacle of full size sedans with standard V6 power, lots of interior space and a reputation for reliability, the redesign for 2013 Avalon brings an even more premium look and feel.
1794 Toyota Tundra, This special edition is a icon of toyota’s long time presence in the farming industry and the start date of their ranch in San Antonio where the Toyota factory is today. The All-New 2014 Tundra Reworked inside and out is a force to be reckoned with. Tundra’s have loads of features and haul more than 2000 lbs. and tow over 10,000 lbs.
Toyota Rav4, From its efficient engine to its new 6-speed automatic transmission and updated suspension, RAV4 is every bit a driver’s machine. Let’s rediscover our sense of adventure, the inspiration behind the completely redesigned 2013 RAV4. Toyota built a vehicle that is the perfect partner for fun with friends and family. With a sculpted, sleek exterior and soft, inviting materials on the interior. It has room for all your stuff, enough power to get you there, and offers all the latest technology to keep you connected.
Toyota Prius, Cutting-edge. User-friendly. Undeniably eco-sensitive. The 2013 Prius is all of these things. In its third generation, Toyota’s iconic hybrid has elegantly demonstrated that there can be harmony between man, nature and machine. Prius has also shown that there can be consensus among many different types of drivers. Those who demand fuel efficiency, and those who like to take the fast lane. Those intrigued by highly advanced technology, and those who insist on proven reliability. Those interested in reducing their carbon footprint, and those who are hesitant to sacrifice practicality in order to do it. With all that Prius has to offer, it may well be the one form of transportation that we can all agree upon.
Toyota Sienna, Family life can keep you on the go. Luckily, there’s a vehicle that can help you keep up. Meet the Toyota Sienna. The minivan that’s designed for parents as much as it is for kids. With its wide stance and streamlined profile, it looks and handles more like a performance car and less like a people mover. And it’s loaded with advanced technology that will impress the little ones without frustrating the grown-ups. Plus, it’s assembled in America, with some of the highest levels of North American content in the segment.
Chevy Display at the 2013 Denver Auto Show
Mar 25th
We visit the Chevy Display at the 2013 Denver Auto Show and look at the all new 2014 Chevy Silverado, the Chevy Cruze, Chevy Corvette the Chevy Camaro.
2014 Chevrolet Silverado – Silverado pulls is weight and then some with over 10,000 pound towing capacity and Chevy’s Ecologic fuel saving features, the All new Silverado is strong , smarter and more capable, With Power, Pulling, and Payload for Both Work and Play, It’s the truck built to get you through the day.
Chevrolet Cruze Diesel – has estimated 42 mpg on the highway with 2.0L turbo diesel, With a 5-Star Overall Vehicle Score for safety the Chevrolet Cruze offerd up to 42 MPG hwy which is the best fuel economy of any gas engine in America, Cruze offers everything you need for a life on the move. Everything you’d expect from a Chevy, in one compact car.
Chevrolet ZR1 Corvette – The fastest production model ever offered by General Motors, with a top speed of 205 mph, the ZR1 is the ultimate expression of Corvette’s technology-driven performance legacy. Even more exciting than its production specs is the fact that customers who opt for the Corvette Engine Build Experience can participate in the assembly of their engine at the General Motors Performance Build Center in Wixom, Michigan.
2013 Chevrolet Camaro – In the Chevrolet Camaro’s case, “cool” is exemplified by its exterior design, which not only pays homage to previous generations of the vaunted pony car, but also thrusts it in a futuristic direction. Your $25K won’t get you much more than the base version, but that version includes a 323-horsepower direct-injection V6, 6-speed manual transmission and a 6-speaker audio system with Bluetooth — plenty of reasons to consider the Camaro cool.
“The Force That Changed America”
Mar 25th
Star Wars was changed, as you know, and in 1997 could also have been changed to “Twenty years ago in a Hollywood universe far, far away a young man named Lucas fulfilled his vision and managed to make a sappy space opera filled with mythological overtones, innovative special effects and filmmaking techniques that were a throwback to Saturday matinee serials, and young Lucas was also farsighted enough to keep all the merchandising rights for his creation, which became so successful that it changed how we look at movies, how Hollywood makes movies and society itself, which became seduced by the Dark Side of merchandising and greed.”
On May 25, 1977, Star Wars opened in a little over 30 theaters and went on to do blockbuster business, earn obscene amounts of money, spawn many equally successful sequels, make George Lucas a wealthy man and an unequaled force in the entertainment industry and perhaps “single-moviedly” create movie fan clubs and people obsessed with collecting every collectible associated with the movies they could get their hands on.
However, Star Wars is more than just a sappy space opera filled with mythological overtones, innovative special effects and filmmaking techniques that are throwbacks to Saturday matinee serials. It is also a transference of power and importance from one generation to the next, and it might not just be coincidence that the “special edition” came 20 years later, the time of one generation.
If you were one of the millions who stood in line at one of the 1800 theaters in which Star Wars (Special Edition) opened January 31, 1997, you might have noticed how it was not as interesting if you already knew everything that happens and what everything means. Wait! We already knew that from the many, many times we had already seen it, whether in theaters the first time around long, long ago or on TV from either broadcast showings, movie rentals or our own private collections.
We already know that Mark Hamill was a wooden actor, that the story is sappy at the beginning when Luke Skywalker is with his aunt and uncle and that scenes go on way, way too, too long to show us the razzle-dazzle of special effects rather than advancing the story. And we already knew that the superficial banter between Han Solo and Princess Leia is just a cover-up for their mutual attraction.
Yes, we knew how the movie begins, how it middles and how it ends. So, why were we so fascinated to want to see it again when it was already etched in our brains like a historical myth?
Well, that depends on who “we” is. Some of us were (ahem) old, old enough to have seen it the first time around, which means we were probably Baby Boomers and didn’t want to grow any older and were reliving that experience again, which helped us to think we were still that age of 20 years earlier.
Some of us were just old enough to have children, and we probably wanted to see it again with our kids, sort of like passing a sacred totem on to the next generation.
And some of us were (ahem) young, young enough to have never seen it on a large screen, where Lucas maintained it was meant to be seen.
Lucas said he was only 50% to 60% happy with the film 20 years earlier and later he was 80% happy with it. He said, “The only thing I joke about now is it would be fun–and we can’t do this for another 10 years or so–to go back and digitize the entire movie and clean it up.”
May the Force help us!
Was this how we wanted Hollywood to treat our icons? Was this how we wanted movies made and remade as new technology allowed filmmakers to ignore the limitations of their raw material?
Think of Independence Day. Think of Plan 9 from Outer Space. Heck, think of Mars Needs Women.
Star Wars created Hollywood’s obsession with the blockbuster, it created the phenomenon in which merchandising earns more than the box office and it probably has a direct influence on why magazines and newspapers contain more advertising than text over time, companies now sponsor sporting events and even uniforms, and athletes make more money from endorsements than they do from playing their sports.
Star Wars is the Force that changed Hollywood, and as Hollywood goes, so goes America.
I rest my case.