Though she has had numerous roles in film and television, Kathy Najimy is best know for voicing Hank’s wife Peggy on “King of the Hill.”

While I enjoy the show, I prefer her turns in the short-lived but hilarious Kirstie Alley vehicle, “Veronica’s Closet,” and as Sister Mary Patrick in Sister Act. Though my favorite role she has played was as the witch sister Mary in Hocus Pocus, a beloved Halloween classic from my youth.

She seems like a very sweet lady, and is obviously incredibly talented. Here’s Miss Kathy in Funny or Die’s “Prop 8: The Musical:”

There’s plenty more Motor City Comic Con profiles on the way!

Mr. Todd is something of a legend in the horror genre, but I recently learned that he is also popular in the Star Trek circles as Worf’s brother! He will be attending Motor City Comic Con this year, and Villaintech hopes to get the opportunity to meet him.

The towering, 6’5 actor has appeared in films such as Platoon, The Crow, Night of the Living Dead (1990 remake), and the Final Destination series. He is best known for his turn as the frighteningly stone-faced supernatural murderer in Candyman.

I loved Tony in Candyman, and one of the first horror films I ever viewed, Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh. While the sequel is far inferior to its predecessor, the backstory concerning The Candyman is compelling and utterly tragic. With his deep voice and haunted dark eyes, Tony Todd is an interesting part of the horror genre, and one that I hope to meet while I attend the Convention.

His Wikipedia Entry.

The first Motor City Comic Con guest that I will be highlighting is none other than the fabulous international octogenarian sex-symbol, Julie Newmar.

Apart from being the focal point of one of my favorite movies of all time, To Wong Foo: Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar, this former Catwoman has had a long and varied career.

From Wikipedia:

Before she changed her name, she was a “dancer-assassin” in Slaves of Babylon (1953) and the “gilded girl” in Serpent of the Nile (1953) in which she was clad only in gold paint. She danced in several films including The Band Wagon and Demetrius and the Gladiators and was a ballerina with the Los Angeles Opera. She also worked as a choreographer and dancer for Universal Studios.

Her first major role, for which she was billed as “Julie Newmeyer”, was as one of the brides in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954). Her 3 minute Broadway appearance as the leggy “Stupefyin’ Jones” in the musical Li’l Abner in 1956 led to a reprise in the 1959 film version.

Julie’s legs were insured for $1 million by Lloyds of London.

Newmar also appeared on Broadway in her first play in 1961, The Marriage-Go-Round, which starred Charles Boyer and Claudette Colbert. She re-developed the role of the Swedish vixen and won a Tony Award for Best Supporting Actress. Later she appeared on stage with Joel Grey in the national tour of Stop the World – I Want to Get Off and as “Lola” in Damn Yankees! and “Irma” in Irma La Douce.

Much of Newmar’s fame stems from her television career, especially her roles in certain well-remembered television series. Newmar starred as “Rhoda the Robot” in the short-lived TV series My Living Doll (1964-1965). She is best known for her 12-episode recurring role in the 1966-67 TV series Batman as the “purrfect” villainess, Catwoman (portrayed in the related 1966 feature film by Lee Meriwether and in the series’ final season by Eartha Kitt).

In 1962, Newmar appeared twice as motorcycle-riding, free-spirited heiress Vicki Russell in the TV series Route 66, filming on location in Tucson, Arizona (“How Much a Pound is Albatross”) and in Tennessee (“Give the Old Cat a Tender Mouse”). She also guest-starred on iconic TV shows The Twilight Zone, F-Troop, The Beverly Hillbillies and Get Smart. In 1967, she guest-starred as April Conquest in the most popular episode of The Monkees and as a pregnant princess in the Star Trek episode “Friday’s Child”. She had guest roles in 1970s series Columbo and The Bionic Woman

In the 1980s and early 1990s, Newmar appeared in several low-budget films. She also guest-starred on TV shows including The Love Boat, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Hart to Hart, CHiPs and Fantasy Island. She was seen in George Michael’s video clip Too Funky in 1992 as well as appearing as herself in a 1996 episode of Melrose Place.

The 1995 film To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar pays homage to the actress; Newmar herself makes a cameo appearance near the film’s end. Fashion designer Thierry Mugler, selected her as his model-muse for the catwalk of his 20 year couture celebration in Paris.

If this Villaintechnician is lucky, she just might get to meet one of the sexiest women to ever suit up in latex and fight a masked hero.

After the weekend of fun at last year’s GenCon, I decided that I’m going to take Villaintech on the road to Novi, Michigan for Motor City Comic Con.

Apparently this is a fairly big event, bringing in hundreds of pop-culture hungry fans, vendors ranging from comic books to custom made costumes, and media guests.

For the next couple of weeks, I will be highlighting one guest each post that will be appearing at MCCC. Hopefully I can score at least a handshake from a few of the celebrities.

The accomodations for the convention are fantastic. It is held at Rock Financial Showplace. They’ve even arranged a special convention price for the area hotels.

It should be a fun time had by all!

** Update 12/15/2008 **
This giveaway contest goes to Zeusandhera. Both stranoster & spidey99 did not reply to our email in the allotted timeframe and Zeusandhera did. He should be getting his prize just in time for Xmas.

** Update 12/6/2008 **
spidey99 failed to respond in the allotted time frame and the prize now goes to stranoster. Be sure that you check your emails junk folder and respond in 48 hours.

** Update 12/3/2008 **
This giveaway contest goes to spidey99. Thanks for participating everyone. Be sure to check back soon because we have some World of Warcraft to giveaway as well.

** Update 11/20/2008 **
We are extending the entry time to Wednesday the 3rd of December due to the holidays.

We have a new giveaway and this time it for all the marbles. We are giving away a Limited Edition copy Gears of War 2 along with some Gears swag (thanks to Game Crazy) and a medium VillainTech.com tshirt (medium is all we have in stock). Instructions on how to qualify after the break.

To be entered to win this giveaway, simply visit pcweenies.com, look at a few strips and tell us your favorite one. Seriously, that’s all you have to do to get a chance to score a free copy of this already platinum title. You’ll have until Tuesday the 25th Wednesday the 3rd, then we’ll pick a winner, assuming s/he follows the rules: (And yes, if you posted in the tshirt giveaways win or lose, you may post again in this one and you must post a comment to qualify for this giveaway)

• You may enter other VillainTech contests, however…
• You may only enter this contest once; if you enter more than once on this particular contest post you’ll be automatically disqualified and barred from all future giveaways. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) You may enter future VillainTech giveaway contests though!
• You can only win once. (If you win and then try to go for a second prize during our giveaways, you’ll be automatically disqualified, etc. unless specified otherwise.)
• This contest is open to the US only, sorry!

**Update**
A winner has been selected. Commenting has been disabled for this giveaway.

It is that time again for another giveaway. This time we have a spare Call of Duty: World at War PC Beta code. We intend to give it away by end of day tomorrow so be sure to post your comment.

To be entered to win this weeks swag, just leave us a comment telling us what are your thoughts about another WWII game in the making? Seriously, that’s all you have to do for a chance to score a beta code. You’ll have until 5pm tomorrow in which we will pick a winner at random assuming s/he follows the rules:

You may enter other VillainTech giveaways, however…

• You may only enter this giveaway once; if you enter more than once on this particular giveaway post you’ll be automatically disqualified and barred from all future giveaways. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) You may enter future VillainTech giveaway contests though!

The VillainTech shirt giveaway is over however you have one more chance to win since this is the grand finale. One lucky winner recieve a copy of Gears of War 2 once it has been released. Previous shirt winners include blueviolet, Teresa690, whitbord, and finally last weeks winner was babakers5.

To be entered to win this weeks swag, just leave us a comment telling us how many hours in the first 2 weeks of Gears of War 2 you intend to play and do you intend to download the downloadable maps expected to arrive soon after? Seriously, that’s all you have to do to get a chance to score a free copy of this already platinum title. You’ll have until next Thursday (the 9th), then we’ll pick the winner at random, assuming s/he follows the rules: (And yes, if you posted in the tshirt giveaways win or lose, you may post again in this one and you must post again to qualify for this giveaway)

• You may enter other VillainTech contests, however…
• You may only enter this contest once; if you enter more than once on this particular contest post you’ll be automatically disqualified and barred from all future giveaways. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) You may enter future VillainTech giveaway contests though!
• You can only win once. (If you win and then try to go for a second prize during our giveaways, you’ll be automatically disqualified, etc. unless specified otherwise.)
• This contest is open to the US only, sorry!
• You will be shipped Gears of War 2 soon after its release so we can throw in bonus crap cough! cough! (I meant swag). Gears of War 2 is set to release November 7th and we will promptly send it your way at that time. Thanks for your patience!

Welcome back to week 4 and our last week of our shirt giveaway. Last weeks shirt winner is blueviolet. Next weeks, giveaway will include a copy of Gears of War 2 once it is released. All previous non-winners are eligible (ie.. can submit again) to enter.

To be entered to win this weeks swag, just leave us a comment telling us what is the most anticipated feature of Gears of War 2 you are looking forward to? Seriously, that’s all you have to do to get a chance to win a shirt until next week when we post another giveaway. You’ll have until next Thursday (the 2nd of October), then we’ll pick the winner at random, assuming s/he follows the rules: (And yes, if you posted in last weeks giveaway, and have not won you may post again in this one)

• You may enter other VillainTech contests, however…
• You may only enter this contest once; if you enter more than once on this particular contest post you’ll be automatically disqualified and barred from all future giveaways. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) You may enter future VillainTech giveaway contests though!
• You can only win once. (If you win and then try to go for a second prize during our giveaways, you’ll be automatically disqualified, etc.)
• This contest is open to the US only, sorry!
• You will be shipped your shirt in a few weeks when all our contests are over. Thanks for your patience!

Welcome back to week three of our shirt giveaway and your third chance to win. Unfortunately no one is interested in a free shirt so last weeks winner is Teresa690 and was defaulted to by participating in Week 1. All previous non-winners are eligible (ie.. can submit again) to enter. Since know one gave any input on which game they want for the grand prize, we made up everyones mind and decided to give away Gears of War 2 for the Xbox 360 upon its release.

To be entered to win this weeks swag, just leave us a comment telling us what is the most anticipated feature of Gears of War 2 you are looking forward to? Seriously, that’s all you have to do to get a chance to win a shirt until next week when we post another giveaway. You’ll have until next Thursday (the 25th), then we’ll pick the winner at random, assuming s/he follows the rules: (And yes, if you posted in last weeks giveaway, and have not won you may post again in this one)

• You may enter other VillainTech contests, however…
• You may only enter this contest once; if you enter more than once on this particular contest post you’ll be automatically disqualified and barred from all future giveaways. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) You may enter future VillainTech giveaway contests though!
• You can only win once. (If you win and then try to go for a second prize during our giveaways, you’ll be automatically disqualified, etc.)
• This contest is open to the US only, sorry!
• You will be shipped your shirt in a few weeks when all our contests are over. Thanks for your patience!

Welcome back to week two of our shirt giveaway and your second chance to win. Last weeks winner is whitbord. All previous non-winners are eligible to enter. We have some ideas lined up for the big prize at the end of the giveaway and we want your input. Some ideas include Gears of War 2 (Xbox 360), Spore (PC), Animal Crossing (Wii) and Fable 2 (Xbox 360).

To be entered to win this weeks swag, just leave us a comment telling us which upcoming game release you look forward to most and why it is so appealing to you? Seriously, that’s all you have to do to get a chance to win a shirt until next week when we post another giveaway. You’ll have until next Thursday (the 18th), then we’ll pick the winner at random, assuming s/he follows the rules: (And yes, if you posted in last weeks giveaway, and have not won you may post again in this one)

• You may enter other VillainTech contests, however…
• You may only enter this contest once; if you enter more than once on this particular contest post you’ll be automatically disqualified and barred from all future giveaways. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) You may enter future VillainTech giveaway contests though!
• You can only win once. (If you win and then try to go for a second prize during our giveaways, you’ll be automatically disqualified, etc.)
• This contest is open to the US only, sorry!
• You will be shipped your shirt in a few weeks when all our contests are over. Thanks for your patience!

VillainTech is looking for gadget bloggers. We are looking for bloggers with excellent knowledge of English, capable of editing their own works, writing interesting posts with unique content and a sense of humor, communicate with blog readers. Bloggers must be well-informed and experienced in their topic and have at least a basic understanding of HTML.

Our proposal:
It’s just the beginning of a long and fruitful cooperation (we hope ), we will pay $3 per
post and require 5 regular posts per week.

How to apply:
Please, be so kind and send us a sample post for the proposed topic and a short bio (200 to 250 words is sufficient) and make sure to include your name, city and email address.
Please, send us an email via our contact form.

We are waiting for you!

**Update**
Congratulations to whitbord for being the first winner ever of VillainTech’s tshirt giveaway. All non-winners may enter into Week 2′s shirt giveaway.

Once a week for the next month (10/13/2008), we will be giving away limited black VillainTech T-Shirts to our readers and will have a big finale giveaway at the end. We haven’t any idea what it is yet so you will just have to wait until we announce it. We do promise it will be big and have much more value than one of our shirts.

To be entered to win this swag, just leave us a comment telling us which next-gen console(s) you prefer and why?. Seriously, that’s all you have to do to get a chance to win a shirt until next week when we post another giveaway. You’ll have until next Thursday (the 11th), then we’ll pick the winner at random, assuming s/he follows the rules:

• You may enter other VillainTech contests, however…
• You may only enter this contest once; if you enter more than once on this particular contest post you’ll be automatically disqualified and barred from all future giveaways. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) You may enter future VillainTech giveaway contests though!
• You can only win once. (If you win and then try to go for a second prize during our giveaways, you’ll be automatically disqualified, etc.)
• This contest is open to the US only, sorry!
• You will be shipped your shirt in a few weeks when all our contests are over. Thanks for your patience!

We have upgraded VillainTech’s look today from the old dusty gray layout. We feel that color is important and now you’ll be seeing a lot of green since we don’t get enough of it….lol

This is the reason for a lack of posting on the site in recent weeks. We wanted to focus and ensure a great user experience with as little hiccups as possible. Anyhow, some key points this new design includes a prominent and full color masthead, easier navigation, and a more intuitive method for searching past archives.

The new masthead is certainly the centerpiece and joy of the site. Masthead and characters are designed by none other than Krishna M. Sadasivam (pronounced Sah-DAS-eh-VHAM).

Krishna is the creator of The PC Weenies. A glutton for knowledge, Krishna earned a B.S. and M.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. It was there, in the hallowed bowels of Ferris Hall, that Krishna discovered he was a bonafide computer geek.

The PC Weenies have appeared online since October 1998. The primary audience for this thrice-a-week comic are technology enthusiasts, engineers, systems administrators / IT, and software developers. While you’re at it, be sure to check out Krishna’s other webcomic, Uncubed.

You may have witnessed my wife guest starring in his strip last summer. I really do urge you to sign up for his toon mailings. They may brighten up your windowless cubicle a bit.

It was through the comic (which we at VT are guilty of being fan boys) that made him a perfect candidate for the design, I approached him for design services and to my surprise he accepted. I hadn’t expected much due to a recent addition in his family likely keeping him up at all hours of the night. Within the month he came back with some rather awesome and villainous tech gremlins that I thought were perfect to parade around the masthead of the site.

The rest of the new design speaks for itself, however I would like to note that the site now actively accepts user registration. This way you may login, create a profile, track recent comments, and never have to confirm a pesky Captcha box while logged in and posting comments. The new profile system automatically detects your gravatar based on your email. By the way, we will never email or expose your email. It is simply used to collect Gravatar information and spam prevention.

Another cool design addition is larger post images. From here on out the images are grander, brighter, and more in ya face!

You will also notice that there are a lot less affiliate ads on this new edition because we are now a pay for space site. We will no longer be offering space to the services such as Google’s AdSense or Commission Junction. We have found their services are just not profitable enough to keep this site up and running. With that said, please feel free to contact us for ad space which starts for a mere $10/mo.

As always, we are looking for guest writers or even volunteers to write columns to help this site grow. Cool things come from writing for us including the attendance of various conferences, occasional free swag, and pre-screenings.

Just got word today that our credentials have checked out and that we are officially going to be covering Comic-Con 2008. We will be sure to snap hundreds of photos containing geeks in costume, scandalously clad dressed woman (probably all under aged) and comic fanatics alike. Since there is just so much we can cover, we would really enjoy some feedback on anything you might have heard about in this years Comic-Con and we will certainly attempt to get you the skinny on it.

Keep in mind this years Comic-Con will be from July 23rd through July 27th and online registration has already begun. Also new to this years registration process is there will no longer be on-site registration due to the overwhelming success of recent years. Be sure to register early to ensure your entry into the largest comic convention on the planet. Hope to see you there!

If you would like to meet up there or perhaps become a writer for us please use our contact form am I will personally contact you back. We are always willing to spread the love and take on more writers enthused about entertainment and technology. Another note, next month we intend to revamp the site to be more in tune with our readers taste and perhaps a little less visually dry.

VillainTech is looking for more volunteers to help our site grow. Volunteers would write about what they love already in relation to technology, video games, movies, music etc…

While it is non a high paying gig (we do it for free…no joke), it is certainly a good resume builder for writers and tech guru’s alike. Your name will show up in search engines everywhere and if you work out, we may invite you to be a permanent writer for us or even give you your very own column.

As an additional incentive, we will give you $25 for every 25 articles you right for us (told you it isn’t high paying, we don’t get that much). That is a dollar for each article writing about what you love however it must be in 25 article increments.

All that we require is a minimum of one article a week from our writers and that it be new information. We try to keep it fun and not a business since this blog is intended to be for gamers, tech guys, and programmers. We do however try to stay somewhat professional by not using offensive or discriminatory language and spell check.

If you would like to write for us please post your comments below or use our contact form.

Cheers,
VillainTech