In honor of the this week's Jazz at the Point festival in Somers Point, we go cool mode this week.
Since the start of Atlantic City Weekly's Weekend Hot Tub Party, you might have described it as "sweet" "nifty" or even "groovy," but one thing remains constant about the HTP — one word: coolness.
And in honor of this week's jazz festival in Somers Point, we are keeping the temps cool inside this week's hot tub party. Cool as in hot. (OK, we're confusing ourselves now.)
Miles Davis' 1949 jazz classic, Birth of the Cool remains one of the best-selling jazz recordings of all time.
Pretty cool, huh?
Although "cool" comes in many forms and flavors, some things are not quite as "cool" as others.
For instance, there's cool as in casual, and "OK, I'm fine with that" and then there's "Wow" cool, and cool as in Miles Davis.
According to the etymology dictionary, "cool," meaning fashionable, is "said to have been popularized in jazz circles by tenor saxophonist Lester Young."
Though an unspecified word, which may be why it's so powerful and lasting, cool has had the same lasting affect on generations. It also moves around from "way cool" to "cool beans" to "cool it now" and "keep your cool."
What is really important to understand is that the people who helped bring the the word "cool" into the popular vernacular were indeed, cool themselves.
Here are some of the coolest, in no particular order.
Winston Churchill - British Prime Minister during WWII. This badass was not only cool in the line of fire, but also coined some of the best quotes since Shakespeare. "You have enemies? Good. That means you've stood up for something, sometime in your life."
Nikola Tesla - Inventor of many of the electrical technologies we use today. Got screwed over by Edison. His invention of the "earthquake machine" would later evolve into what is known today as, ahem, "personal" massagers.
Freddie Mercury - Lead singer for Queen. One of the greatest rock singers of all-time. Mild mannered in his personal life, the late Mercury was an electric showman on stage.
Bob Marley - What needs to be said? Musician, political activist, Rastaman, and friend of the people, Marley was all about truth, peace and love. His final words to one of his sons were, "Money can't buy life."
Stevie Wonder - Motown legend and activist, who helped make Martin Luther King's birthday a national holiday with the late Gil-Scott Heron (another cool-ass dude), Wonder exudes positive charisma. He's also had more than 30 Top 10 hits and has won more Grammys than anyone in history.
Bruce Lee - Best known for his ass-kicking, Lee was also a remarkable philosopher. He was arguably more intense in interviews than he was in a fight. Be water, my friend.
Clint Eastwood - Did you know Dirty Harry practices transcendental meditation in his free time? He also donates much of his wealth to charities and flies a helicopter to work. Yeah, aside from one of today's great film directors and actors, he's a licensed pilot, too.
Miles Davis - Perhaps one of the most revered influences in all of jazz, he was responsible for such inspirational recordings as Kind of Blue and Bitches Brew. Davis has been recognized by the House of Representatives as "a national treasure."
Hunter S. Thompson - This man was a renegade. As a journalist, he didn't write his stories, he BECAME them. A lifelong proponent of mind-altering substances, Thompson frequently flung himself head-first into his work, often with reckless abandon, in order to discover the heart of his story and take a stab at all the "Bastards."
Steven Hawking - Theoretical physicist and author of A Brief History of Time, Hawking has revolutionized science, demonstrated against wars, written numerous books, donated to childrens' charities, spoken out on the existence of extraterrestrial life, and is rumored to be a bit of a swinging bachelor these days.
Mahatma Gandhi - Talk about cool under pressure. This guy pioneered the use of non-violent resistance and civil disobedience and changed the course of history for India and the world. Despite being imprisoned on several occasions, he was not deterred and fought for such noble causes as women's rights, economic self-reliance, and eliminating poverty.
Steven Colbert - TV personality, political commentator, comedian, and author of such books as I Am America (And So Can You!) Colbert's also a fellow resident of the Garden State. When he's not busy being hilarious, he volunteers his time as a sunday school teacher and invents words like "truthiness."
Bill Murray - A legendary actor and comedian, Murray is well-known to be very kind and friendly with all of his fans, earning him a tremendous following. An urban legend claims that Murray will even go around tickling people at random, then running away shouting, "Your friends will never believe you if you tell them this happened!"
Marvin Gaye - The "Prince of Soul." This guy was about as smooth and cool as they come. Adored by women and respected by men, Gaye is probably responsible for more pregnancies than anyone else in history.
Billie Holiday - "Lady Day" revolutionized jazz lyricism and singing and laid the foundation for pop music to come. Frank Sinatra is quoted as saying that Lady Day was "the greatest single musical influence on me."
Bob Dylan - The hilarious, brilliant and influential ( to say the least) American singer-songwriter, author, filmmaker, actor, historian and performer, has been on the road for nearly 25 years straight, and is still, at 70, as cool as a cucumber. (OK, well maybe not as cool as he is in the rock doc Don't Look Back.) (Read: 69 Things to Love About Bob Dylan)
Lenny Bruce -The "Charlie Parker of Comedy," Lenny Bruce (who the aforementioned Dylan wrote a song for in 1981) changed the entire game of comedy, forging a link between jazz, the Beats and performing comedy. An inspiration to all stand-up comics who came after him, in the 1950s — and up until his death in 1966 — Bruce told the straight dope — used it in excess too, unfortunately — before it was a common practice by entertainers. Bruce took a lot of heat for simply cursing, talking about sex or telling it like it was, and was a genius at satire and always interested in testing the waters of his audiences. Lenny Bruce is the bridge between Groucho Marx, George Burns and Charlie Chaplin and Richard Pryor, George Carlin and Richard Lewis.
Debbie Harry - Lead singer of Blondie, Harry has been recognized by VH1 as one of the greatest women of rock & roll and one of the sexiest artists of all time. She's also an icon of punk rock and an accomplished actress.
Leonard Cohen - Described by Lou Reed as belonging to the "highest and most influential echelon of songwriters," Cohen is one of the most influential songwriters and musicians in history. He also is still putting out amazing music at age 77. The album cover for his I'm Your Man album is the epitome of cool.
Frida Kahlo - Perhaps the most well-known Mexican painter of all time, Kahlo was deeply introspective and used her talents to explore themes of identity, pain and recovery, and surrealism. Famously quoted as saying, "I was born a bitch. I was born a painter."
Sammy’s will be open the weekend of May 18-20, in tandem with Hagar’s band Chickenfoot playing the House of Blues that Friday night, May 18, then the Wailers will kick off Sammy’s summer season and daily schedule through Labor Day with a special Friday, May 25, performance at 8pm.
This Weekend’s Hot Tub Party is hungry for a snack… With Atlantic City Restaurant week in full swing and tons of foodies bustling around town we thought we would serve up something fresh and… different. In the midst of all of the fine dining we’ve assembled a list of some unusual gastrointestinal entrees, mouth-watering favorites, and bizarre concoctions for your savory taste buds. Whether scrumptious or nauseating, some of these foods are genius… and some of these concoctions are so alarming you'd think the human imagination can’t sink any deeper into depravity. This weekend’s hot tub party is your one stop for all of our favorite savory, gut-busting, revolting, ghastly, and delicious foods. From bacon cupcakes to donut burgers, we’re bringing you the tastiest and the most ridiculous treats for this weekend. So grab a snack, feel your arteries start to clog and unwind in this food porn edition of The Weekend Hot Tub Party. Proceed at your own risk... Bacon, Egg and Cheese Breakfast Muffins. Not a bad idea... now if only we could wedge some OJ and coffee in there too, you'd have a whole meal. Beer Floats (The Wild Blue is especially tasty.) Deep-fried Pizza... for the health-conscious pizza connoisseur. Falafel and hummus platter. A personal...
This weekend's party is bringing you The Hot Tub Fringe Stage, a sick metal playlist we've compiled for your enjoyment — and some gnarly pictures of some of the greatest heavy metal hairstyles throughout the ages.
Lisa Lampanelli, who says her jabs at Chevy Chase during a recent roast of the comedian-actor helped her career immensely, may be one of today's greatest roasters, but if you've seen any of the Comedy Central roasts (Donald Trump, Charlie Sheen, Pam Anderson, etc.) over the past few years, you're probably aware ...
Atlantic City Weekly's Hot Tub Party is taking a trip back in time again, this time checking out some of the best duets of the last 20 years and a round-up of some of the best Super Bowl commercials of the last decade.
Atlantic City Weekly's Weekend Hot Tub Party is honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with a look back at the outcomes of the civil rights movement, some interesting facts you might not have known and a sweet playlist of songs inspired by Dr. King, some that were even performed at the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom where King delivered his infamous "I Have a Dream" speech.
Light off some illegal fireworks, pop open a bottle of champagne and spend this chilly commencement weekend in Atlantic City Weekly's Hot Tub!
Atlantic City Weekly's Weekend Hot Tub Party is bringing you a special present: a holiday stocking stuffer extravaganza filled with a variety of joyous videos, creepy Santa pictures and unusual festive folklore.
In the spirit of Thanksgiving, we're coming to you early with your regular dose of the coolest photos, music, videos, trivia, op-ed stories, contests, and anything else we think that you, our dear reader, might dig.
With 11-11-11 and this week's Bombshell of a cover story in mind...
Your weekly dose of the coolest photos, music, videos, trivia, op-ed stories, contests, and anything else we think that you, our dear reader, might dig.
This Weekend Hot Tub Party is soaking up some real fresh creativity and innovation.
1. Anonymous said... on Mar 10, 2012 at 02:41PM
“Colbert 2012!”
2. Rayster said... on Mar 11, 2012 at 07:12AM
“This is the coolest HTP yet!”
3. Darrel Sewell said... on Mar 11, 2012 at 10:29AM
“You can not have a "cool list" without mentioning Sean Connery. In my opinion he is the coolest individual on the planet.”
4. Anonymous said... on Mar 11, 2012 at 01:38PM
“Connery beat women. Not very cool.”