With its many militant vegans and anti-meatists, San Francisco might seem like an odd place to hold an event called BaconCamp. But when pork enthusiasts gathered here for the second year in a row to devour all things bacon, Asylum knew we needed to be on hand to take in the action — literally.

And by “all things bacon,” we mean it. We’re talking bacon loaf cakes, bacon-wrapped meatloaf, bacon fruit salad, and maple-bacon macaroons. In short, it was bacon, bacon, bacon, bacon, and more flippin’ bacon.

The extravaganza was held last weekend in a cramped warehouse in the heart of San Francisco. As participants presented their bacon-infused dishes on a small stage, attendees were treated to that oh-so-familiar sizzling-pork aroma. You know the smell.

But BaconCamp is not a spectator sport. Every person who showed up was encouraged to dig in and sample the 33 different entries into the competition as three “American Idol”–type judges sampled and rated each dish. Pork-belly culinary creativity abounded, and went well with bacon-themed tutorials, jokes, poetry and double entendres.

Join Asylum as we meet the pork-obsessed folks behind this important event, and to see such heart-stopping concoctions such as bacon Twinkies and bacon Bloody Marys.

Follow the link to Asylum for the rest of the story….

I use to think the Guardian Angels were the hall monitors of society. A vigilante group in red berets without actual legal power. A club for people who legally want to join a gang. A gang of good! I always felt annoyed by their presence. To begin with, I don’t like authority figures, let alone volunteer authority figures.

I needed to find out more. What makes them tick? What are their likes and dislikes? Do they like soup? Are they nice?!

So I threw aside past prejudices and joined up with the Venice Beach Guardian Angel Chapter. I was sold by the recruitment flyer. A multi-cultural mix of Angels are on the front; emblazoned below are the words “You CAN Make a Difference!”

It’s time to wash the scum off the streets. Yes, I, Harmon Leon, will make a difference!

MY PREPARATION:
- 1 Gung Ho attitude
- 6 Cups of coffee for a shaky effect
- 1 Spice Girls T-shirt
- 1 Catchphrase (“Gotta Get My Shakespeare Together!”)
NOTE: I’ve changed all the names — not to protect the innocent, but to protect my ass from being kicked.

TIME TO JOIN!

The Venice Beach Guardian Angels have hit on hard times. It just restarted three months ago, after some of the original members were booted for taking some of the group’s petty cash. The headquarters is located in a row of apartments on the beach; the actual building looks like a crack pad. It’s situated amongst shops selling bad T-shirts, amputee dwarf rap-singers, fat German tourists, and naked women sculpted in sand, all set against the backdrop of Baywatch-style lifeguard stands.

“Everyone Entering HQ Will Be Searched!” reads the sign outside. I enter. The place is pumping with testosterone. Immediately I’m searched, manhandled, and asked about my possession of knives. “We treat members like brothers, but watch them like hawks!” says the manhandler at the door.
Read my entire infiltration of the Guardian Angels by following the link to Zug.com.

As filmmaker Terry Zwigoff stated on stage at the historicCastro Theater:

“There’s a murderers’ row of directors here tonight!”

The Ghost Worlddirector was referring to the cavalcade of cinematic talent on hand to pay tribute to renown movie critic,Roger Ebert, who received the Mel Novikoff Award at the 53rd San Francisco International Film Festival. Jason Reitman (Juno), Errol Morris (The Fog of War), and Philip Kaufman (Henry and June) all sang their praises for Ebert-whose love of all things movies has made him the icon of film criticism for three decades.

For me, it was a personal thrill being I’ve always loved Roger Ebert’s no-nonsense review approach. The “thumbs up” has become embedded in our culture thanks to the man who started his career at the Chicago Sun-Times and later went on to such movie review TV shows as Sneak Previews and At The Movies. I once had the pleasure of sitting in front of Roger Ebert during a screening at the Cannes Film Festival. I enjoyed occasionally looking back at Ebert knowing he was in the midst of a big thumbs up moment as he appeared to take in the film like a wide-eyed kid in cinematic heaven.

All the directors present expressed their gratitude to Ebert for championing their early films that might have been shuffled aside by the public-small films that were made for the right reasons. Zwigoff remarked that Ebert’s praise of his documentary Crumb not only launched the film into theaters but the glowing review he penned felt greater than winning the Oscar.

‘You don’t know if your film is good when you make,” Errol Morris stated to the crowd. “To me, it was Roger Ebert. I owe him an enormous debt of gratitude.”

Jason Reitman showcased Ebert’s sharp wit. Reitman read his favorite scathing Ebert review that summarized the man’s outlook and love for cinema:

“I hated this movie. Hated hated hated hated hated this movie. Hated it. Hated every simpering stupid vacant audience-insulting moment of it. Hated the sensibility that thought anyone would like it. Hated the implied insult to the audience by its belief that anyone would be entertained by it.”

Philip Kaufman shared stories of his friendship with the kid with the golden thumb, He remarked that Ebert fit into the old school Chicago tradition of,
“tough, give ‘em hell, no bullshit, tell it like it is.”

Battling jaw cancer over the last several years, Ebert proved that his sharp sense of humor was still firmly intact. Speaking with a computerized voice via a laptop, Ebert greeting the capacity San Francisco crowd with, “My little man is standing in his chair and applauding.” (A nod to the SF Chronicle’s iconic movie rating system.)

Speaking out against such Hollywood smoke-and-mirrors as 3D movies, franchises, sequels, superhero, and special effect films used as gimmicks to sell box office tickets, Ebert sang his praises for the evening’s film, Juila, which starred Tilda Swinton.

‘Let’s turn our euyes to the movie screen and make Francois Truffaut happy, and enjoy one hell of a great film.”

The SF International Film Festival runs until May 6th.

In honor of Roger Ebert, here’s some of his greatest moments alongside cohorts Gene Siskel and Richard Roeper.