Category Archives: Las Vegas

Robert Stark talks about The YIMBY Movement & The Alt-Center

aesthetics, Alt Center, Alternative Left, Alternative Right, American Culture, Architecture, Black Culture, California, Cartrell Payne, Cities, Class, Conservatives, Crime, Culture, decentralization, demographics, Donald Trump, Dystopia, Economics, Environment, Falling Down, Film, gentrification, Historic Preservation, Huey Long, Immigration, income inequality, John C. Portman Jr, Las Vegas, Leftism, Liberalism, Libertarianism, Los Angeles, Malibu, Market Urbanism, Mass Transit, Middle Class, New Urbanism, New York, Norman Mailer, Oligarchy, Police, Police Brutality, Police Corruption, Police State, Political Parties, Politics, Pornography, Portland, Race Relations, Radical Center, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, Skyscrapers, Suburbia, SWPL, The Adventure Kid, The American South, Third Way Economics, Twin Peaks, Urbanism, Wealth, Zoning

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark joined with Cartrell Payne(aka The Adventure Kid) to discuss the YIMBY movement, the Alt-Center, and how those issues relate.

Topics:

California Senator Scott Wiener’s housing-transit measure Derailed
Factions of the YIMBY movement including left leaning housing advocates, real estate developers, and the Market Urbanist
Left Wing anti-gentrification activists and their alliance with NIMBY’s
Cartrell’s observations on gentrification in Memphis, Tennessee
The hypocrisy of pro-immigration Limousine Liberal NIMBY’s, and how that combination exacerbates the housing crisis
How the YIMBY movement is also very pro immigration
Income Inequality in California and the mass exodus of the middle class
The film Falling Down which is set in LA in the early 90’s and a warning of a dystopian future
What makes California great and can it be saved?
The New Great Migration of Black Americans back to The South
White Middle Class Conservative NIMBY’s, their motivations, and how they are sabotaging their own self interest
Why YIMBYism and immigration restriction are compatible, and why the Alt-Center should take up those causes
Why YIMBYs need to address aesthetic concerns
Why YIMBYism is compatible with environmental and historic preservation
Citylab and City Journal; their writings on urbanism and political agendas
Why mass transit is inefficient in LA and other Sun Belt cities
The political and cultural flaws of both Blue and Red States
A vision of an Alt Center which include alternative economics, pro middle class policies, New Urbanism, environmentalism, SWPL culture, and socially centrist
Cartrell’s political orientation as an Old School Southern Democrat minus the racism
Cartrell’s critique of both the Black Liberal Establishment and Black Conservatives
Conservative views on the poor and police issues and Conservative Class Cucks
The early 20th Century Populist movement
Norman Mailer’s plan for breaking up New York City which addressed both the concerns of the Left and the Right

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings and his novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark talks to Brandon Adamson about Skytrain to Nowhere

1980's, aesthetics, arcology, Art, Brandon Adamson, Culture, Disneyland, Futurism, Las Vegas, Leisure Suit Larry, Literature, Mass Transit, Mid-Century Modern, Mythology, Philosophy, Phoenix, Photography, Poetry, Retro Futurism, Skytrain to Nowhere

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark talks to Brandon Adamson about his new photo essay and collection of poetry Skytrain to Nowhere. Purchase Skytrain to Nowhere in Paperback on Lulu, in eBook PDF, and on Amazon.

Brandon Adamson is a writer who currently resides in Phoenix, Arizona. He has been writing since 1995, and his work has appeared in many magazines, blogs and literary journals over the years. Brandon blogs at AltLeft.com.

Topics:

The book is made up of poems resulting from the author’s experiences riding the skytrain at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport
How the book was loosely inspired by Keith Gunderson’s A Continual Interest in the Sun and Sea
Brandon’s style and method of writing poetry
How there is very little offensive material in the book compared to previous works
The photographs in the book
How the skytrain doesn’t really go anywhere but an imaginative person will envision potential destinations and explore the possible ways in which this kind of technology could be used
The skytrain as a vehicle for escapism
The airport as the blueprint for self contained cities
Disneyland as also a model for self contained cities
How the author’s fascination with skytrains and monorails originated with trips to Disneyland and Disney World in the 1980’s
The importance of always staying on the move in life and never getting too comfortable
The Retro-Futuristic themes in the book
The Retro-Futurist’s dilemma of wanting to embrace the future while being inspired by nostalgia and having to determine what’s worth holding on to
The poem Treadmill to Neonopolis named after the place in Las Vegas
Mythological references in the book (Atlantis, Icarus, etc)

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings and his novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark interviews Al Barna and Randall Ann Homan about San Francisco Neon

1950's, aesthetics, Al Barna, Architecture, Art, Art Deco, California, Cities, Culture, gentrification, Historic Preservation, History, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Mid-Century Modern, Neon, Oakland, Orinda CA, Photography, Randall Ann Homan, Reno, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, Urbanism

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark talks to Al Barna and Randall Ann Homan. They co-authored and provided the photographs for the book San Francisco Neon: Survivors and Lost Icons. Their website is San Francisco Neon Book.

Al Barna is a San Francisco photographer and artist whose work has been shown in exhibitions at the de Young Museum, the Legion of Honor Museum, the Rayko Gallery, the San Francisco Public Library, and the San Francisco Arts Commission Gallery. His photography has been published in CA Modern magazine, Society of Commercial Archeology Journal, The Sun magazine, and Shots magazine.  www.albarna.com

Randall Ann Homan began her interest in the art of signage as an apprentice sign painter in Flagstaff, Arizona. She lives in San Francisco and is an art director, photographer, and an award-winning graphic designer.  Someday she would like to design a neon sign.  www.giantorange.net

Topics:

The history of Neon in San Francisco
Neon Walking TOURS
Historic Preservation and how San Francisco has lost the least of it’s signage of any major city
Market Street, it’s history as a Neon hub, and the failed Mid-Market Sign District Proposal
The Starlight Room at The Sir Francis Drake Hotel in Union Square
Other signs near Union Square including Tad’s Steak House, Marquard’s Cigar Store, The Stratford Hotel, and the Herbert Hotel
Parking Garage Neon near Union Square
The Tenderloin
Chinatown which has the highest concentration of signs in the city though many are unlit
The Lady from Shanghai directed by Orson Welles
Broadway in North Beach
Columbus Street in North Beach
Fisherman’s Wharf; Alioto’s, Fisherman’s Grotto, The View Alcatraz Sign, The Cannery and Ghiradelli Square
Bar signs including the 500 Club Martini sign in the Mission District
The Coca-Cola Company Replaced the Landmark Outdoor Neon Sign with LED
Animated Signs
The Embarcadero Center’s LED bulb signs
The Port of San Francisco Sign at The Ferry Building
Oakland’s signs including the Paramount Theatre
The Orinda Theatre
Rheem Theatre closes it’s doors in Moraga
Santa Cruz, The Boardwalk, and The Del Mar Theatre
Jim Rizzo of Neon Works in Oakland who rescues and restores signs
Stookey’s Club Moderne which has a brand new Art Deco style sign
NEON SPEAKS: Symposium & Spotlight Forum
The Museum of Neon Art in Glendale, California
Will Durham’s Neon Museum in Reno 

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings and his novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark interviews Peter Moruzzi about Mid-Century Modern

1950's, 1960's, 1970's, aesthetics, American Culture, Architecture, Art, Art Deco, Beverly Hills, California, Cartrell Payne, Cities, Cuba, Cuisine, Culture, Denmark, Florida, Gambling, Hawaii, Historic Preservation, History, Italy, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Mid-Century Modern, Neon, New Orleans, New York, Oakland, Palm Springs, Peter Moruzzi, San Francisco, Skyscrapers, The Adventure Kid, Urbanism

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and co-host Cartrell Payne(The Adventure Kid) talk to Peter Moruzzi. Peter was born in Concord, Massachusetts and raised in Hawaii, he graduated from the University of California at Berkeley and later attended the American Film Institute in Los Angeles. In 1999, he founded the Palm Springs Modern Committee (PS ModCom) an architectural preservation group. He is the author of “Havana Before Castro: When Cuba Was a Tropical Playground,” “Palm Springs Holiday: A Vintage Tour From Palm Springs to the Salton Sea,” “Classic Dining:Discovering America’s Finest Mid-Century Restaurants,” “Palm Springs Paradise: Vintage Photographs from America’s Desert Playground,” and “Greetings from Los Angeles.”

Topics:

Classic Dining: Discovering America’s Finest Mid-Century Restaurants
Grand Central Oyster Bar
Historic Preservation
Notable Mid-Century architects including Richard Neutra and Joseph Eichler 
A Eulogy for the Four Seasons Restaurant in New York
Neon Signs
Dal Rae Replaces Historic Neon for Ugly Backlit Plastic
The Mob, the El Cortez, and the Flamingo
Tiki culture
The Tonga Room in San Francisco
Palm Springs Paradise
Melvyn’s Restaurant in Palm Springs
Greetings from Los Angeles
L.A.’s Backyard Oil Well Fever!
Norms Restaurants in LA
Googie, Space Age, and the International Style
Mid-Century Modern highrises including Eichler’s highrises in San Francisco and the Sierra Towers in LA
The Madonna Inn
70’s Mayan themed Architecture
Havana Before Castro: When Cuba Was a Tropical Playground
Mid-Century Modern Furniture including Danish Modern, Italian Murano Lamps, and Swiss Swiza Clock
Nationwide Map of Classic Restaurants Now on Google Maps

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings and his novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark talks to Ashley Messinger about Roger Blackstone & The Politics of AESTHETICS

1980's, aesthetics, Aleister Crowley, Alicia Silverstone, Alternative Right, Architecture, Aristocratic Individualism, Ashley Messinger, Asian Culture, automation, Basic Income, Brandon Adamson, capitalism, Cities, Culture, Cyberpunk, democracy, Disneyland, Distributism, Donald Trump, Drugs, Economics, Elections, Environment, Eugenics, Fascism, Futurism, hedonism, Japan, Japanese Culture, Journey to Vapor Island, Las Vegas, Literature, Nationalism, New Urbanism, New York, Nietzsche, Occultism, Pepe the Frog, Philosophy, Politics, Post-scarcity economy, Retro Futurism, Roman Empire, Sexuality, Skyscrapers, Socialism, Third Way Economics, Transhumanism, Urbanism, Utopia, Vaporwave

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Roger Blackstone is a fictional presidential candidate in Robert Stark’s novel Journey to Vapor Island.

Topics:

Ashley’s article Roger Blackstone: The Politics of Aesthetics
Roger Blackstone’s ideology as a psychedelic futurist form of social nationalism
Roger Blackstone utilizing capitalism as a real estate mogul to rise to power
Roger Blackstone’s Utopian visions in contrast with Trump who has been a major disappointment
Roger Blackstone’s campaign commercial
“Advancing civilization and furthering human progress” implies a rejection of the NRx reading of history (inverted Whig view) and assumes that some forms of progress are actually meaningful
Basing political ideology on aesthetic values
New Urbanism and the necessity of creating aesthetically pleasant living spaces
The idea that simple libertarianism is just not enough and we need to create intentional communities for every possible group
The 1980’s Retro Futuristic theme; “Neon Nationalism”
Roger Blackstone’s idea of making humans, rather than just art and architecture, the subject of aesthetic concern
Roger’s Blackstone’s economic views and support for a basic income
The power to completely re-engineer the human genome to enhance human potential(Transhumanism)
The book The Chemical Muse about the prevalence of drugs(especially entheogens) in pre-modern societies, and the importance of drug use to a lot of artists and anti-conformists
Roger Blackstone’s father Alistair and his manifesto “Why The True Aristocrat Must Rule”
The notion of a natural aristocracy(ex. Ralph Waldo Emerson and HL Mencken)
The term “Aristocratic Radicalism” pops up, which has been used to describe Friedrich Nietzsche’s philosophy
Similarities to Alistair Crowley’s concept of “Aristocratic Communism,” where society is geared towards empowering those who are naturally non-conformists, artists, and intellectuals
There is some evidence that Alistair is sympathetic to distributive economic philosophies, because capitalism has this stifling effect on the creative class
The mock presidential debate scene where Noam has to represent Roger Blackstone against the Democrat, Republican, and Libertarian
The growing trend of political fusionism
The importance of using fiction to influence political discourse

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings and his novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark interviews Architect Adam Mayer

1960's, 1970's, 1980's, 1990's, Adam Mayer, aesthetics, Architecture, arcology, Art Deco, Asia, Brutalism, California, Chicago, China, Cities, Culture, Environment, Historic Preservation, income inequality, James Howard Kunstler, John C. Portman Jr, Lafayette CA, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Los Gatos CA, Malls, Mass Transit, Mid-Century Modern, Mount Diablo, New Urbanism, Orinda CA, Postmodernism, Retro Futurism, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, Silicon Valley, Skyscrapers, Sonja Trauss, Suburbia, Urbanism, Walnut Creek CA, Wealth, Wilderness, Zoning

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Adam Mayer is an architect based out of San Francisco. Check out his Twitter, Instagram, and Architectural Portfolio.

Topics:

Growing up in Los Gatos which is a small town on the edge of the Silicon Valley
Studying architecture at USC and observations on LA
Art Deco and Mid Century Modern Architecture in LA
New Urbanism and Retrofitting suburbia
The Bay Area Housing Crisis and the importance of developing smartly while protecting greenbelts
How ugly architecture leads to NIMBY sentiment and why the YIMBY movement needs to address aesthetics
California Senate bill would force more dense housing near transit hubs
Working on a redevelopment project at the Walnut Creek BART Station
San Francisco’s SOMA district’s new skyline
San Francisco’s new Transbay Terminal
Architect John C. Portman; The Embarcadero Center and Hyatt in San Francisco and the extension of the urban realm to the inside
Architect Jon Jerde; his projects including Westside Pavilion and the Universal City Walk in LA, Horton Plaza in San Diego, and the Wynn and Bellagio in Las Vegas
Architect William Pereira who designed the Trans-America Pyramid in San Francisco
Brutalism
1980’s architecture and whether it will make a comeback
Frank Gehry
Modernism vs. Postmodernism and where to draw the boundary
How current architecture lacks one cohesive aesthetic
Adam’s work as an architect in China, master planned projects, and observations on architecture in China
Winner Take All? Richard Florida’s ‘New Urban Crisis’
How to accommodate families in cities

Click Here to download!

This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings and his novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark talks to Lynn Zook about Gambling on a Dream Volume 2

1950's, 1960's, 1970's, aesthetics, Architecture, Cities, Culture, Fashion, Gambling, Historic Preservation, History, Las Vegas, Lynn Zook, Mid-Century Modern, Neon, Skyscrapers, Vice

Robert Stark talks to Lynn Zook about her new book Gambling on a Dream Volume 2:. This second volume of a two-part multimedia book tells the fascinating story of the Las Vegas Strip hotels built during the turbulent years of cultural and societal change, 1956-1973. Nowadays, alongside traditional casinos, people can go online to sites such as togel singapore for easier access to their gambling/lottery needs. In the digital age in which we live today, online gambling has really taken over the world. This is indicated by the number of people using parhaat nettikasinot (the best online casinos) for entertainment or as preparation for a real casino setting. Competition is still fierce though. Online casinos have to offer bonuses and other initiatives to tempt gamers in. Want to learn How to receive the first deposit bonus? If so, doing some research on casino review websites is strongly recommended. Back to the book though, Lynn Zook also runs the website Classic Las Vegas, and has produced an hour-long, first person narrative documentary on the history of Las Vegas entitled “The Story of Classic Las Vegas. Check out Robert Stark’s first interview with Lynn Zook on Gambling on a Dream Volume 1.

Topics:

Lynn’s first book Gambling on a Dream: The Classic Las Vegas Strip 1930-1955
Lynn’s interest and personal connection to Vintage Las Vegas
Caesars Palace
The Hacienda
The Stardust
The Aladdin
The original MGM Grand which is now Bally’s
The International which is now the Westin
The English Tudor themed Tally Ho which was built by the creator of Yahtzee
How the Tropicana and Circus Circus are the last two remaining from this era
The Sin City Era
The Rat Pack and Frank Sinatra
The showrooms and variety show performers
The role of the Mob
Historic Preservation and the Neon Museum
Lynn’s upcoming book on Fremont Street and Downtown

Click Here to download!
This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings!




Robert Stark interviews Musician Jody Coombes of Star Noir

1980's, 80's music, Absolute Valentine, aesthetics, Art, Asia, Asian Culture, automation, Basic Income, Blade Runner, California, Cinema, Cities, Comic Books, Culture, Cyberpunk, Depeche Mode, Dystopia, England, Film, Film Noire, Florian Renner, FM-84, Futurism, History, Hong Kong, horror, horror films, Industrial Music, J.G. Michael, Japan, Japanese Culture, Jody Coombes, John Carpenter, Las Vegas, Leisure Suit Larry, London, Music, Neon, New Retro Wave, Perturbator, Photography, Psychology, Retro Futurism, Sam Kevorkian, Science Fiction, Star Noir, Stranger Things, Synthwave, The Summoner, Transhumanism, Travel, Vaporwave, Video Games, Wilderness, William Gibson

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark, Sam Kevorkian, and J.G. Michael talk to Illustrator, Photographer, Video Game Designer, and Musician Jody Coombes. Check out his music under the label Star Noir on Facebook and bandcamp, and his photography and illustrations on Flickr.

Topic:

Working on video games including Call of Duty and Need for Speed
Cyberpunk games such as Shadowrun and Beneath a Steel Sky
The New Retro Wave and Darkwave genres
The  Cyberpunk genre
How To Make Synthwave Retrowave with Timecop 1983 in FL Studio
The visual component in making Synth music
Jody’s first EP Psycho City
Jody’s first-ever gig in London at the Retro Future Fest
Jody’s illustrations and 80’s Retro-Futurist aesthetics
80’s Action and Horror films
80’s Video Game Arcades; London Trocadero
The new series Stranger Things and the film Drive
Jody’s photography of locations including the UK, New York, Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Nova Scotia
Sinofuturism
“Design is not art….. Design is an exercise in psychology”
Robert Stark’s Paintings which fuse Retro Futurist genres
Transhumanism, Automation, and the Basic Income
The Pilot project “Lost Future” about a man who lost his future
Upcoming projects and performances

Click Here to download!

This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings!




Robert Stark interviews Old Urbanist Charles Gardner

1970's, aesthetics, American Culture, Architecture, arcology, Art, Charles Gardner, Cities, Culture, Disneyland, Economics, Environment, Europe, Frank Lloyd Wright, Historic Preservation, History, James Howard Kunstler, John C. Portman Jr, Las Vegas, Market Urbanism, New Urbanism, New York, Sam Kevorkian, San Francisco, Skyscrapers, Strong Towns, Suburbia, Urbanism, Utopia, Wilderness, Zoning


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and co-host Sam Kevorkian talk to James Gardner. He is an Attorney based in Stamford, Connecticut and blogs at the Old Urbanist.

Topics:

Jane Jacob’s The Death and Life of Great American Cities
The Curated Landscape  and how European towns and cities have starker divides between urbanized and undeveloped land than those of the United States
The Streetcar suburb model and Bourgeois Utopias: The Rise And Fall Of Suburbia: Robert Fishman
That 70s Urbanism, 70’s Urban Renewal projects(ex. the Embarcadero Center in SF and the Crystal City in Arlington, Virginia), and how those projects are underappreciated
Paolo Soleri’s Arcosanti
Cruise Ships: The Densest (Urban) Environment in the World
Disneyland and Urbanism
Heroic materialist
Green Urbanism, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Broadacre City, and the Garden City movement
Rehabilitating Walmart
The European Arcade and the Middle Eastern Souk as a model for retail
Height Acts and Restrictions
Narrow Streets
Vancouver and the Zoning Straitjacket
Lot Sizes: Regional Trends and Causes
NYC Suburban Demographics: and the  demographic collapse among the young adult population in wealthy suburbs
Urban growth boundaries

Click Here to download!

This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings!




Robert Stark talks to Brandon Adamson about the Film Cherry 2000

1980's, aesthetics, Brandon Adamson, Cherry 2000, Cinema, Cities, comedy, Culture, Dystopia, Environment, Erotica, Feminism, Film, Futurism, Immigration, Las Vegas, Love, Mad Max, Overpopulation, Pamela Gidley, Phoenix, Pilleater, Pornography, relationships, Sam Kevorkian, Science, Science Fiction, Sex Robots, Sexuality, Stepford Wives, Suburbia, technology, Transhumanism, Travel, Trip, Twin Peaks, Urbanism, Wilderness

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark, new Co-host Sam Kevorkian, and retiring co-host Pilleater talk to Brandon Adamson about the Film Cherry 2000(1987). Brandon blogs at AltLeft.com, is the author of Beatnik Fascism, and has a new youtube channel Self Checkout

Topics:

Brandon’s review Cherry 2015 – If Loving A Fembot Is Artificial, I Don’t Want To Be Genuine
The main character Sam Treadwell who is a romantic guy who still longs for a traditional loving relationship and finds courtship with a female android
The depiction of sexual encounters and relationships with real women as complicated legal transactions requiring lawyers, reduced to merely emotionless business arrangements
Contrasting the film with the “Stepford Wives” where the men kill their loving yet sassy wives in exchange for robot sex slaves
How the issue of sex robots has become relevant again and it’s implications for the future
The ending of the film where Sam falls for the tracker, “Edith”(Melanie Griffith) whom he hires to help locate the robot
The theme of a journey and the popularity of road trip films in the 80’s and 90’s(ex. Chevy Chase in “Vegas Vacation”)
Pamela Gidley as Cherry 2000 and her role in the Twin Peaks prequel “Fire Walk With Me”
The 80’s aesthetic of the film
The dystopian theme where cities are deserted and overrun with criminals; comparisons to “Mad Max”
Locales depicted in the film including Las Vegas, the Hoover Dam, and the Citadel Outlet Mall
Self Checkout – Becoming a New Suburbanist

Click Here to download!
This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings!