Matthew Dessem

@matthewdessem.bsky.social

1493 Followers 669 Following

I’m the enchanting wizard of rhythm. I came here to tell you about the rhythms of the universe.

The cover of the May 6, 1950 issue of Collier's with the page showing "There Will Come Soft Rains" original publication.
An early edition of Isaac Newton's "Opticks: or, A Treatise of the Reflexions, Refractions, Inflexions and Colours of Light," opened to the title page.
An ad for Judy Cahill playing at the J.T. Lounge.
Front page story about the night they blew up the chicken man in Philly. They blew up his house too!
1950s mugshot of Philip Testa, aka the chicken man.
A newspaper photo of Andre Sennwald's penthouse apartment, destroyed in an explosion, headlined "Critic Dies in Blast."
A strip of 9.5mm film, with sprocket holes in the center of the strip, between each frame.
Gigolo Joe from A.I.
An OWL 1 phono stage sitting atop a Packburn 323A analog noise suppressor.
An article arguing that football is ill-suited for television, headlined "GOING BALMY WITH VIDEO!"
The preface to DeFoe’s “A System of Magick,” in which he explains that he is not going to teach his readers how to do any magick.
The ceiling fan at the Palmer house.
An ad for a 1940s pinball machine, “Hawaii Roll-Down” from the United Manufacturing Company.
Seven three-shot strips of what looks like 35mm camera film, perforated, with negative B&W images of landmarks in L.A. Noire printed on them, semi-translucently. They are spread out on top of the envelope that normally holds them.
The original packaging for "The Witness" by Infocom. It's a box the size of old computer game boxes. Visible through the clear plastic lid of the box are a floppy disk, a matchbook from the Brass Lantern, a telegram, and other game-related clues.
A frame from The Royal Tenenbaums. A John-Ford-looking guy with eyeglasses with one lens blacked out, an ascot, a cigarette, standing on the set of a movie, centered, looking at camera. Among the crew and the lights in the background are two people dressed as some sort of sea creatures. Across the bottom, it reads "FRANKLIN BENEDICT" in Anderson’s beloved Futura.
The poster for Mr. Death: The Rise and Fall of Fred A. Leuchter, Jr.
Tom Cruise suspended inches off the floor in Mission: Impossible, on his way to steal the NOC list.
A pamphlet with a photo of Agnew taking up the whole cover.
Two copies of Nixon ‘68 promotional record “Nixon’s the One,” showing f both sides of the record (printed on paper.)
A section heading from “The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich.” It reads: SLOVAKIA “WINS” ITS “INDEPENDENCE.
A screenshot from "In the Weights" showing that gpt-5.5 thinks I wrote for the AV Club.
A page from a very old book, with an illustration of a goofy-looking scribe or scholar removing scrolls from a shelf.
A headline. It reads: The Berle-ing Point By Milton Berle
Page 105 of the first volume of Antiquitatum et annalium Trevirensium libri XXV, published in 1670. The page has an illustration, drawn from a bas-relief that has since been lost, of a young man retrieving a scroll from a flat shelf or niche, upon which the scrolls have been stacked three high.
An ad for Radium Gold Fibre Screens.
A still from "Hell Toupee" showing the interior of a store called "Hair & Now," which has wallpaper with an irregular grid pattern and lots of neon.
An excerpt from "The Sea Wolf." It reads: I remember thinking how comfortable it was, this division of labour which made it unnecessary for me to study fogs, winds, tides, and navigation, in order to visit my friend who lived across an arm of the sea. It was good that men should be specialists, I mused. The peculiar knowledge of the pilot and captain sufficed for many thousands of people who knew no more of the sea and navigation than I knew. On the other hand, instead of having to devote my energy to the learning of a multitude of things, I concentrated it upon a few particular things, such as, for instance, the analysis of Poe's place in American literature —an essay of mine, by the way, in the current Atlantic. Coming aboard, as I passed through the cabin, I had noticed with greedy eyes a stout gentleman reading the Atlantic, which was open at my very essay. And there it was again, the division of labour, the special knowledge of the pilot and captain which permitted the stout gentleman to read my special knowledge on Poe while they carried him safely from Sausalito to San Francisco.
A still from Come & See.
My last four watched films on Letterboxd. Italia: Fire and Ashes Against All Odds M:I-2 The Running Man (the new one)
A very old man sitting in a booth-style dining area on a boat, with deep red seat cushions, from Widow’s Bay.
An Antikaminia calendar page, showing a newsboy with an oversized skull for a head, peddling papers.
Another page from the Antikamnia Calendar, showing an emaciated little dog with a tin can tied to its tail, barking franticly at a police officer with a giant oversized skull for a head, walking thoughtfully and stroking his skeleton beard. The caption reads "TELL YOUR TROUBLES TO ME!"
A page from Antikamnia’s 1899 calendar, showing a little skeleton man with an oversized skull, dressed in checked pants, a black jacket, a bow tie, a green sash, and a top hat with a clover in it. (Apparently he is celebrating St. Patrick’s Day.) The caption reads: “HIS Fourth of July!”
A screenshot of the Los Angeles Times’ coverage of the airborne toxic event in Orange County.
A Star Trek title treatment that just repeats the phrase "passersby were amazed by the unusually large amounts of blood."
A newspaper story headlined "HAMBURGLAR RAID" about a guy who stole 7,500 frozen hamburger patties from a McDonald's.
A story, headlined, "Burglary Ain't What It Used to Be," about a guy who tried to rob the Hi Grade Deli but got caught in a vent and had to be rescued by police.
Tom Cruise in Risky Business announcing he is going to attend the University of Illinois.
An excerpt from Wikipedia's list of authors and works on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum, showing that "Dumas, Alexandre (fils)" and "Dumas, Alexandre (père)" were both listed for "All love stories."
A screenshot showing that googling "disregard" yields the response "Got it. Consider it ignored. Let me know if you need anything else later on!"
An old newspaper headline. It reads: NEW IDEAS ON LIFE IN HELL Rev. F. W. McCleskey Writes a Pamphlet, Original and Unique. SAYS HELL-FIRE IS REAL FIRE Has Very Positive Views on the Charac- her of the Burning Lake BE A MIXTURE OF SALT AND BRIMSTONE The Author Insists That Those Who Believe Punishment After Death Will Not Be Physical Pain Are Blind to the Truth.
Ritchie Coster as "The Chechen" in The Dark Knight. He has a mustache and goatee, has slicked back hair in a ponytail, and wears a leather jacket and collared shirt with an unbuttoned collar.
A front cover illustration from the National Police Gazette, showing three 19th century women holding up their nightgowns with great sadness. The caption reads: SEWED UP THEIR NIGHTGOWNS FRISKY MALE GUESTS AT A HILLSDALE, N.H. HOTEL PLAY TRICKS ON THE YOUNG WOMEN.