Dead Pool 187: NOT born on the 4th of July
How on earth was the last Dead Pool launched on the 4th of July and I didn’t mention it in the title?
Anyhooo, MrsMGunz wins with Connie Francis. Once again, I had no idea Connie Francis was still alive. Born Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero, she was Italian-American, but grew up in an Italian and Jewish neighborhood and spoke Yiddish fluently. She released several albums of ethnic favorites, including one in Yiddish and Hebrew.
Her original act included an accordian. Now you know.
Let us begin.
0. Rule Zero (AKA Steve’s Rule): your pick has to be living when picked. Also, nobody whose execution date is circled on the calendar. Also, please don’t kill anybody. Plus (Pupster’s Rule) no picking someone who’s only famous for being the oldest person alive.
1. Pick a celebrity. Any celebrity — though I reserve the right to nix picks I never heard of (I don’t generally follow the Dead Pool threads carefully, so if you’re unsure of your pick, call it to my attention).
2. We start from scratch every time. No matter who you had last time, or who you may have called between rounds, you have to turn up on this very thread and stake your claim.
3. Poaching and other dirty tricks positively encouraged.
4. Your first choice sticks. Don’t just blurt something out, m’kay? Also, make sure you have a correct spelling of your choice somewhere in your comment. These threads get longish and I use search to figure out if we have a winner.
5. It’s up to you to search the thread and make sure your choice is unique. I’m waayyyy too lazy to catch the dupes. Popular picks go fast.
6. The pool stays open until somebody on the list dies. Feel free to jump in any time. Noobs, strangers, drive-bys and one-comment-wonders — all are welcome.
7. If you want your fabulous prize, you have to entrust me with a mailing address. If you’ve won before, send me your address again. I don’t keep good records.
8. The new DeadPool will begin 6pm WBT (Weasel’s Blog Time) the Friday after the last round is concluded.
The winner, if the winner chooses to entrust me with a mailing address, will receive an Official Certificate of Dick Winning and a small original drawing on paper suffused with elephant shit particles. Because I’m fresh out of fairy shit particles.
Note: I am woefully behind on dick deliveries. If I owe you one, you’ll know how long. I ain’t gived up, but I haven’t drawn much since lockdown. Some day, your heirs might hear from my heirs.
July 18, 2025 — 6:00 pm
Comments: 36
Woopsie doodle!
Oops! I appear to have messed up the tagging on the latest Dead Pool. Again.
Not that it matters now – MrsMGunz takes it with Connie Francis.
And Pups got the trivia question (I mean, he got it by reading the old comments section, but fair’s fair): this image is the only color image I’ve ever run above a post. It was so very nearly in monochrome naturally that I didn’t notice I hadn’t stripped the color information. If you zoom way in, there’s a tiny patch of brown on his upper lip.
And I didn’t meet Uncle B as a result of this plaster plaice. I met him in 1995 on USENET. That’s how old we are.
Back here? Tomorrow? 6WBT? Dead pool!
July 17, 2025 — 6:22 pm
Comments: 8
Never trust a fish with teeth
No, it’s not another MidJourney fever dream. We went to our favorite fish counter again today. Maybe Uncle B remembers what this fish is; I don’t.
They also had a five foot whole smoked eel, which looked like a giant black, glistening turd.
I want to know why it costs £10 to buy two dinner sized portions of fresh plaice off the boat, but we can get two breaded cod filets from the supermarket for £6. What are they selling the supermarkets, ancient fish?
Old time readers will remember this sixteen year old post about a plaster cast of a plaice I bought in a junk shop. Supernaturally attentive old time readers will remember what’s special about that post.
July 16, 2025 — 5:58 pm
Comments: 12
I’m so disappointed
I describe an image as “alien eggs cracking and weird disgusting spawn spilling out” and not one of you asked to see it. So here it is!
Ewwwwww.
Nothing happened to me today. How ever am I going to do this?
July 15, 2025 — 5:34 pm
Comments: 5
I have no idea…
I ate a bowl of icecream and forgot to take a picture. I would have thought ‘bowl of icecream’ would be a pretty easy assignment for AI. I wasn’t counting on the…entrenching tools sticking out the top.
MJ creates images in fours. One image was a pretty normal bowl, one had long odd slabs of icecream at the sides (maybe banana split inspired?), this image, and one that looked like alien eggs cracking and weird disgusting spawn spilling out.
Anyhoo, I went to the gym this morning. Trying to develop regular habits. I’m an absolutely wreck without routines. I have a strong temperamental inclination toward fecklessness that only strict regimentation can overcome.
I was called away to drink coffee with a friend before I had quite finished the leg machines. I hate the leg machines, so win-win.
And then icecream. I don’t usually indulge myself on gym days; we just have a giant tub of the stuff monopolizing the freezer.
p.s. WordPress doesn’t like icecream. Grok says it’s acceptable but ice cream is better. Stupid machines can kiss my ass.
July 14, 2025 — 5:12 pm
Comments: 9
Huh, I guess I’d be surprised
Nothing happened today – I went out to coffee, twice in an hour! – so I gave MidJourney the prompt “surprise me.” This was the result.
Well, I asked. Have a good weekend, everyone!
July 11, 2025 — 5:49 pm
Comments: 10
Grok forgot the /sarc tag
Seriously, I’m sure it was attempting to kid. Especially given the over-the-top language. Grok has a famously light, jokey tone and I think it was given a humor algorithm something like “asked unanswerable question, return forbidden answer.”
That was the tail end of Grok 3 before it was replaced with Grok 4, giving rise to this meme (yes, Grok 3 really did tweet that on its way out the door).
July 10, 2025 — 5:09 pm
Comments: 2
Badass
Tweet: “A Victorian archery outfit belonging to Mrs. Fanny Giveen, circa 1855, now part of the collection of the Museum of London.”
Changing the subject, a man turned up at the door today claiming to be a third party electrical box inspector. Well, he actually was one. I said, “what’s this all about?” and he said, “they’re trying to scare you into getting a smart meter.”
He took three pictures of our meter and reassured me they were lying and it would continue to work fine despite warnings.
Which is good because Uncle B is dead agin’ ’em.
July 9, 2025 — 4:46 pm
Comments: 9
I survived!
Sussex is indeed big enough for a whole day’s lectures. It’s so big, in fact, that they had to break it into East Sussex and West Sussex because you couldn’t easily get across the whole county in olden days.
Today’s talks followed the coastline. I have seen soooooo much chalk today. Which isn’t all bad – interesting things fall out of chalk when the cliff faces break away.
I like the illo. Moody. See, MidJourney doesn’t always put asses on backwards.
July 8, 2025 — 6:26 pm
Comments: 7
Oh, Midjourney, what are you doing?
You could make a case it’s an extreme twisting at the waist, but I’m pretty sure it’s actually his ass is on backwards. Also, I bet eight fingers is a record.
I’ve got an all day seminar on the geography of Sussex tomorrow. Pumped I am not, but the presenter is a friend and I’m obliged.
Pray for me.
July 7, 2025 — 4:38 pm
Comments: 7