Pablo B. Chavez @quechavez

Born on this day Ralph McQuarrie (1929-2012). Here's his giant white spider concept art that was originally created for The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and eventually found a home on S2E2 of The Mandalorian (2020).

Raiders of the Lost Ark (🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟) hit theaters 45 years ago this very weekend & it intersects at the exact time Steven Spielberg returns to theaters with Disclosure Day. As has been the case all week long, I’ve bathed in Spielberg’s filmography- in addition to visiting the Jaws exhibit at the Academy Awards museum down the street from my apartment, I’ve tossed & turned in all of Spielberg’s films. All of that is to say that while Catch Me If You Can remains my personal favorite Spielberg movie, Raiders of the Lost Ark comes in swiftly at Number 2.  Over the last seven days, whether it be Jaws, Saving Private Ryan, Catch Me If You Can, Close Encounters or now Raiders, revisiting Spielberg’s filmography has taught me once again that this man’s career is infinitely deep. He’s made so many exceptional films across nearly 60 years. The quality & the longevity continues to blow my mind.  But there’s something about Raiders that stands-out amongst Spielberg’s filmography because it’s a synthesis of so many perfect parts at the perfect time. I’ve always maintained that the unsung hero of this film is the man who wrote the screenplay, Lawrence Kasdan (also a notable director in his own right). While the story was largely developed by George Lucas, I think Kasdan deserves so much credit for the dialogue he brings to the characters here, especially Indian Jones. The first third of this film, where Indy is briefed on government intelligence & we learn more about his background as an archeologist, is intelligent & witty & keeps the plot moving forward. My biggest criticism of Spielberg’s latest films- including Disclosure Day - is the screenplays have been weak. That’s not the case with Raiders in any remote sense. Beyond that is the fact that this is some of the best direction we’ve ever seen from Spielberg. Consider not just the three or four iconic set-pieces, from the opening sequence where Jones is temple diving & running for his life in what’s now become one of the most memorable scenes in modern film history, but the fact that every last shot of Jones in a class room or a library is utterly breathtaking. Spielberg’s technical nuance throughout the entire film pushed boundaries. It’s crisp. It’s sharp. There are no wasted motions.  Then there’s Harrison Ford. The charisma/magnatism from Ford is beyond words- there’s nothing I can write in this review that does Ford’s performance justice & we all know that. We also all know the fabled story that Ford’s Indy was supposed to go to Tom Selleck, who infamously passed on the role- elevating Ford’s career to new heights. In the words of Entourage’s Ari Gold, it’s not making a bust that ruins your career….it’s passing on a hit. At this point, it’s impossible to even envision for a milisecond anyone else dawing the hat & whip other than Ford. His line-delivery throughout the entire film, whether falling off a moving vehicle or whispering behind glasses in a hollow library, is perfect. It’s that of a man born to be a movie star.  Steven Spielberg Week doesn’t have to end. You can make it a lifestyle. Just take my word for it.

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Haiti v Scotland: World Cup 2026 – live theguardian.com/football/live/…

In the opening, Alfred Molina’s Satipo is covered in tarantulas. Spielberg wanted the spiders everywhere but they didn’t move. An animal consultant said it was because the spiders were male. They put in a female and they went wild. Here’s Molina telling the story himself… 23/36

#IndianaJones Outstanding gallery shared by Industrial Light & Magic in the 45th anniversary of Raiders

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Literary Hub » Why Michael Crichton’s Best Novel Failed as a Movie share.google/OlVVeIsVBgkuZw…

@SequoiaKingsNPS Cool!

Looking for a way to get into the great outdoors, help others, and find community this summer season? Join the River Rover and Trail Trekker Volunteer Program at Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. As a River Rover, you’ll spend your days along some of the Sierra’s most stunning rivers—helping visitors stay safe, protecting waterways, and enjoying meaningful time outdoors. It’s a fun and rewarding way to give back, connect with others, and be part of a dedicated volunteer community. Interested? Apply through volunteer.gov (search for SEKI) or email [email protected] with any questions. This opportunity is open to volunteers 18+ who can commit to at least two days per month from April through October. In-person training will be held at the park in June 2026. #SequoiaNationalPark #KingsCanyon #VolunteerNPS #RiverRovers #FindYourPark #VolunteerOutdoors #ProtectYourParks

A Goofy Movie (1995) really does hit differently with age. As a kid it feels like a fun road trip comedy, then years later the whole movie starts looking like a father desperately trying to hold onto time with his son before that connection slips away. share.google/5Rul6GXlelCrHN…

CONAN THE BARBARIAN was released 44 years ago today.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ Arnold Schwarzenegger trained with an 11-pound broadsword for 3 months, and each sword cost $10,000. He did all his own stunts since suitable body doubles couldn’t be found for his size.

2500 years on and we’re still studying Greek philosophers. They basically invented Western philosophy. 10 Greek philosophers you need to know:

Imagine a silence so profound it swallows entire galaxies. There exists a void in space so incomprehensibly vast that a traveler moving at the speed of light — the fastest anything can go — would plunge through unbroken, starless darkness for 752,536,988 years before encountering even a single speck of matter.This is the Boötes Void (also known as the Great Nothing), one of the most staggering empty regions ever mapped in our observable universe. Spanning roughly 330 million light-years across, it contains almost nothing — just a lonely handful of galaxies where thousands should exist. It is a cosmic abyss so empty it defies our intuition about what “space” even means.Using deep-sky maps from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and other powerful observatories, astronomers have revealed these enormous voids as dark, yawning gaps between the glowing filaments of galaxies that form the large-scale structure of the cosmos. In the early universe, gravity acted like a sculptor, pulling matter into vast cosmic webs and threads, leaving behind these immense, hollow pockets — nature’s ultimate voids.Even more strangely, galaxies seem to crowd nervously along the edges of these empty zones, as if shunning the desolation at their cores. The universe, it turns out, is not a uniformly filled expanse. It resembles a delicate cosmic spiderweb: shimmering strands of galaxies and clusters connected by thin filaments, with cavernous voids making up the majority of its volume.In a cosmos teeming with billions of galaxies, these voids stand as humbling reminders that much of existence is defined not by presence, but by absence. They challenge everything we think we know about “empty” and “full,” whispering of a universe far stranger, far lonelier, and far more mysterious than we ever dared imagine.A quiet kind of infinity — not shouting, simply being.

@TheCinesthetic You are a hero, Antie. 😭

Rest in peace, Tony Stella. Your legendary career and artwork will never be forgotten. Pictured are some Indy pieces from his website along with his Dial of Destiny poster. #indianajones

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After all the reboots I love this elementary Sherlock Holmes share.google/rusRJDmez4VDj1…

Home on the Range No More: Trump Wants Bison Gone - The New York Times share.google/FKo4I1rbXfFuc0…

Hey! Now that's something new! Or rather, something old! The most charmig gallery you'll see this week about the hero of the hat --before he was the hero of the hat. A MUST-SEE FOR EVERY HARRISON FORD FANS. Enjoy it! wdwnt.com/2026/05/photos…

10 dinosaur science books recommended by a paleontologist | Scientific American share.google/TGB87exDGOppPN…

@_CinemaHub_ @TheCinesthetic 🤧

Hidden treasures: Spanish archaeologists discover trove of ancient shipwrecks in Bay of Gibraltar | Archaeology | The Guardian theguardian.com/science/2026/a…