James Jacoby
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moderntuba.bsky.social
James Jacoby
@moderntuba.bsky.social
180 followers 210 following 520 posts
Human who licenses music for film/TV, plays the tuba (capably) and the ukulele (less capably), enjoys soundtracks & speculative fiction, and votes. (he/they is a-okay)
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moderntuba.bsky.social
January 3, 2026 at 7:08 AM
moderntuba.bsky.social
A thing I love about living in L.A. is sometimes getting to have lunch nearby a celebrity.

Nice to see Ron Perlman today!
Ron Perlman sitting at a restaurant, tired of waiting for someone.
January 3, 2026 at 1:57 AM
moderntuba.bsky.social
This is covered in the article that accompanied the post, which I highly recommend you read. Compelling stuff. I love Public Domain Day!
Sound recordings within a movie are treated differently from separate sound recordings because copyright law's definition of "sound recording" specifically excludes "sounds accompanying a motion picture." So the 1930 recordings as they appeared in the film King of Jazz have the same copyright term as the movie and are public domain in 2026, while regular sound recordings from 1930 that were independent of motion pictures have the 100-year term and their copyrights won't expire until 2031.
January 1, 2026 at 7:28 PM
moderntuba.bsky.social
It’s a brand new record for 1990.
It’s a brand new record for 1990. They Might Be Giants’ brand new album, FLOOD.
December 28, 2025 at 3:20 AM
moderntuba.bsky.social
Post a perfect album from the 90s that isn't Nirvana, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, or Alice in Chains.
It’s a brand new record for 1990. They Might Be Giants brand new album, FLOOD.
December 28, 2025 at 2:51 AM
moderntuba.bsky.social
The shower in this hotel room has two full doors instead of some half door flood-producing catastrophe. Nature is healing!
A hotel shower with a luxurious TWO doors to keep the water on the inside where it belongs.
December 27, 2025 at 12:57 AM
moderntuba.bsky.social
Time to shop at these stores and bring large hauls to the register, dump them on the counter, and walk out in protest of these “return fees.” Sowing chaos is the only way to be heard here.
A news graphic about New Return Fees from retailers: Marshalls ($11.99), TJ Maxx ($11.99), Macys ($9.99), JC Penney ($8.00), and J. Crew ($7.50). The banner reads, “Many retailers now charging some sort of return fee.”
December 16, 2025 at 8:12 PM
moderntuba.bsky.social
In case you’re wondering, a true mind fuck is being on the Walt Disney Studio Lot for its annual holiday celebration—surrounded by pretty lights & decorations, gift booths & treats, snow machines & Disney characters—

and the DJ is playing a Nine Inch Nails song.
It’s the corner of Mickey Ave & Dopey Drive at the Walt Disney Studio Lot, all decked out in holiday lights and decorations!
December 13, 2025 at 5:35 PM
moderntuba.bsky.social
Groundhog’s Day is a Christmas movie. #changemymind
Three figures stand in the foreground, from right to left: A man wearing a silly green hat with a groundhog popping out the top. Another man, possibly but not Bill Murray, holds a live groundhog in his hands. Someone in a giant beaver costume. There is clearly a Christmas tree in the background.
December 11, 2025 at 7:59 AM
moderntuba.bsky.social
It’s #SpotifyWrapped time!

(h/t @indivisible.org)
A Spotify “wrapped” image, but instead of the Top 5 listed, there’s a message from @indivisible.org about Spotify as follows: “Spotify is Wrapped In Complicity: Don't Share annual wrapped Sharing Spotify Wrapped drives traffic and increases engagement to a platform that is actively running ICE recruitment ads. By holding off on sharing, you reduce Spotify's influence and stand in solidarity with communities targeted by ICE.”
December 3, 2025 at 5:39 PM
moderntuba.bsky.social
@gailsimone.bsky.social The gift shop on the U.S. side of the border is clearly targeting Canadian tourists.
Pickles! Pickles! Pickles! Pickle shirts, pickle hats, pickle beanies, and general pickle merch for Canadians to bring home with them. But BEWARE CANADIANS, because your border patrol security will likely confiscate all pickle goods to comply with the general ban on pickility in your country, and honestly you should know better by now.
November 21, 2025 at 9:42 PM
moderntuba.bsky.social
@gailsimone.bsky.social The border crossing from Canada back into the U.S. is just getting weirder and weirder.
November 20, 2025 at 7:43 AM
moderntuba.bsky.social
THE REASON I JUMP is a moving autobiographical book by author Naoki Higashida, who was 13y at the time. As a non-speaking child w/autism, he turned to writing to express his thoughts & imagination, explaining in part what the world looks like through his unique lens. Still sticks w/me years later.
The cover to the book THE REASON I JUMP: THE INNER VOICE OF A THIRTEEN-YEAR-OLD BOY WITH AUTISM, by author Naoki Higashida. Introduction by David Mitchell. Translated by KA Yoshida & David Mitchell. Cover quote: “One of the most remarkable books I’ve ever read. It’s truly moving, eye-opening, incredibly vivid.” – Jon Stewart, The Daily Show.
November 11, 2025 at 7:15 PM
moderntuba.bsky.social
I’m currently reading POSITIVE OBSESSION, the biography of author Octavia E. Butler (by Dr. Susana M. Morris), detailing the life & times of one of SciFi’s best and brightest writers. Butler’s work was ahead of its time, evocative, compelling, and moving.

Hard to choose one, but I’ll go with DAWN.
Book cover to DAWN, Book One of the Xenogenesi Trilogy, by Octavia E. Butler—Hugo and Nebula Award-Winning author of KINDRED & PARABLE OF THE SOWER.
November 11, 2025 at 6:59 PM
moderntuba.bsky.social
So that carton ended up having about 6 double-yolked eggs. 🥚

I figured the was that, but this morning I opened a fresh new carton and yoked it up anew! 🪺
October 20, 2025 at 4:12 PM
moderntuba.bsky.social
I’M SEEING DOUBLE!

Yesterday I had a fun-size pack of peanut M&Ms, and there were 2 stuck together. (No pics, sadly.)

Today I ordered fried pickles from Gus’s Fried Chicken, and there was a double in there too!

WHAT’S HAPPENING?
That’s two, I say, two fried pickles stuck together! An Orange Bird mug from EPCOT is in the background, incredulous.
October 17, 2025 at 12:35 AM
moderntuba.bsky.social
Or does it just mean there are younger hens being harvested for eggs to catch up for the scarcity earlier in the year? (Younger hens are more likely to yield double-yolks than mature hens.)

I’m going to go with both—a double conclusion!
Two eggs, one with a double-yolk, in a white bowl in front of a carton of eggs. Do the yolks look like a hidden Mickey?
October 16, 2025 at 6:19 PM
moderntuba.bsky.social
It has been a double-yolk week, finding them three days in a row. Does this mean something good is about to happen?
Two double-yolked eggs in a white bowl.
October 16, 2025 at 6:11 PM
moderntuba.bsky.social
I drop this meme whenever it’s relevant, as it appears to be now.
A person wearing an expression of deep nonplussment points to a sign that reads, “Alcohol is the only drug we have to explain not using.”
October 3, 2025 at 11:26 PM
moderntuba.bsky.social
Chatbot response: “Here are all the U.S. states that include the letter "A" in their names: 1. Alabama 2. Alaska 3. Arizona 4. Arkansas 5. California 6. Colorado 7. Connecticut 8. Delaware 9. Florida” … Chatbot response at the end of the list: “Note: Some spellings and inclusions may slightly depend on how strictly "includes the letter A" is interpreted (e.g., states like Connecticut do not have the letter "A"), but the above list includes any state with an "A" in its name. If you'd like a shorter version or need the answer double-checked, let me know!” ???
October 3, 2025 at 2:17 AM
moderntuba.bsky.social
Kudos to the #AlienEarth set dec team for including a Duffy on the shelf during this blink-and-you-miss-it scene in Wendy’s bedroom! #DuffyBear
A screenshot from the Hulu program ALIEN: EARTH. Wendy is showing her brother Hermit around her bedroom, which briefly shows a shelf of stuffed toys. Included on the shelf is a Disney Duffy Bear doll, which I’ve circled in red.
August 27, 2025 at 7:30 PM
moderntuba.bsky.social
Someone had to do this first.
August 9, 2025 at 5:15 PM
moderntuba.bsky.social
THE TWO TOWERS by J.R.R. Tolkien, as performed by Andy Serkis.

My incredible audiobook journey back to Middle Earth continues w/the middle part of the LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy.

It’s arguably the least of the three but thrilling nonetheless despite some of the slower moving chapters. Still genius.
August 2, 2025 at 2:43 AM
moderntuba.bsky.social
Spotted in Burbank earlier this week by my spouse, who clearly knows me well.
#YouShallNotPass
#IdRatherBeInRivendell
#LOTR #TolkienSky
A silver Toyota RAV4 with a license plate LOTR143. There is an Elvish rune in the bottom-left window and a license plate holder that reads, “I’d rather be in Rivendell.”
July 25, 2025 at 3:15 PM
moderntuba.bsky.social
UPDATE:

I DID leave the coffee shop … and the first thing I saw a block away was this #BillyJoel billboard. 😑

Anyway, watch that fun video!
July 18, 2025 at 5:58 PM