Pop Focus: Spy music of the 1960s

On the heels of our look at 1960s Batman records, let's shine the spotlight on another musical cash-in trend of that decade: spy music.

James Bond and it's cool twangy theme song, not to mention brassy Bassey's "Goldfingah" helped kicks things off, of course.

Every spy movie or TV show that followed in the tracks of OO7's Aston Martin, of course, needed its own, similarly catchy and dynamic music in the John Barry/Monty Norman template: "I Spy," "The Man From U.N.C.L.E.," "The Ipcress File," etc., etc.

Below is a cover gallery that runs the gamut from official soundtracks to surf band cover versions to budget label knock-offs: bring on the guns and bikinis!

And, if you want a nice sampler of spy tunes, without going broke chasing down the original vinyl, checkout this excellent compilation.

Asterix artist pays tribute to Charlie Hebdo

"Asterix" artist Alberto Uderzo has come out of retirement to pay tribute to cartoonists slain earlier this week in a terrorist attack on the offices of the French satirical newpaper Charlie Hebdo.

Two Uderzo sketches referencing the incident were posted on the official Asterix Twitter feed.

Uderzo, who retired from Asterix in 2011 told Le Figaro:

Charlie and Asterix have nothing to do with each other obviously. I simply want to express my affection for those designers who have paid with their lives. 

Here are the sketches:

Pop artifacts: vintage Doctor Who key rings

Pop culture roundup: Super DC; History of DC mural; Doctor Who bigger in the U.S. than U.K.?; Sherlock Holmes in Fairyland; Phil Spector and the Ramones

Kid Robson shares covers from Super DC, an anthology title of the 1960s that collected Batman and Superman stories for the British market.

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More DC: A giant mural showcasing many DC characters has been removed from the lobby of the publisher's New York offices in favor of a new one showing the "New 52" lineup. DC is in the midst of moving its operations to Burbank, so the future of the older mural is unclear.

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This year's Christmas episode of "Doctor Who" drew a record audience for the show in the U.S., but in Britain, viewership was down nearly 3 million from Christmas 2011. New Doctor Peter Capaldi also was overlooked for a prominent British TV award. All of which causes the Guardian to ask:

So if Doctor Who is following the Downton ratings trajectory – falling in the UK, rising in the US – can we expect more stetsons and Daleks in Manhattan-type episodes in 2015?

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Why was the creator of Sherlock Holmes fooled by photographically manipulated fairies?

In a 1985 television interview on Arthur C. Clarke’s World of Strange Powers, an elderly Elsie and Frances confessed to their accidental hoax, with Frances remarking of Conan Doyle and other believers, “I can't understand to this day why they were taken in—they wanted to be taken in.”

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Music fans have probably heard the story about record producer (and convicted murderer) Phil Spector pulling a gun on the Ramones. Now Marky Ramone tells the full story in a lengthy excerpt from his new memoir.

There were turrets on either side of Phil Spector's Beverly Hills mansion.

...George Brand let us in the front gate, past the fountain, and in through the large wooden entrance doors. The furniture was mostly red velvet from the mid-seventies, which was recent history but receding fast. George led us to the living room, where behind a grand piano sat Phil Spector.

"Ramones! You ready to make the best album of your lives?"

"Yeah, yeah, ready."

Sitting on the love seat was Grandpa Al Lewis. Lewis would forever be connected to the role he made famous on the sixties TV show The Munsters. But I loved him even before that as Officer Schnauser on Car 54, Where Are You? It was surreal seeing him in Phil Spector's living room— or anyone's living room, for that matter. And the next surprise arrived when Grandpa stood up. He was well over six feet tall. In the cowboy boots and ten-gallon western hat, he looked closer to seven feet. 

New Ant-Man movie pics

Cool DC Comics phone cases

I'm holding out against getting a smartphone for as long as possible, but it's good to know that, if the time comes, DC's got me covered.