John Waters holds a flamingo by the neck
John Waters Credit: Susan Segal, used by permission

For the last two weeks, you’ve read a lot about what we loved in 2009. But what about you? After the jump, you can get a sense of what our readers dug in 2009, or at least what they clicked on the most at Black Plastic Bag and the revamped Arts Desk—-from John Waters and Twilight to Perez Hilton‘s dubious curatorship, an iPhone app that kills people, and the world’s most expensive Minor Threat record. Check it out.

  1. The John Waters Interview: Sheila Dixon, Teabagging, and Blowing up the Three Kings: “Well, that was the only time I had to actually think up a new sex act for a movie. Teabagging had been done before [Pecker]—-but I didn’t think that up, I just spread it. The fact that, in this movie, if you bang your head together it’s the ultimate orgasm—-I never tried it. So I don’t know if it works. Fictitiously, it works.” —-John Waters, on head-butting.
  2. Clark Sabine 1975-2009: “[One time] he rappelled off the roof of the Galaxy Hut. The band went on and started playing and suddenly everyone saw feet in the window and he was rappelling down on bungee cables. Then he came in and totally ripped it like Iggy Pop 2.0. It was one of the most unforgettable things I’ve ever seen” —-Former Q & Not U singer Chris Richards, on local indie-rock mainstay Clark Sabine’s knack for grand entrances. Sabine died in June.
  3. Reviewed: Paranormal Activity: “Holy shit.” —-Critic Tricia Olszewski, on first-time writer-director Oren Peli‘s low-budget hit.
  4. Washington Post Confused 9/11 Truthers With Cop H8rs: “A Nov. 26 article in the District edition of Local Living incorrectly said a Public Enemy song declared 9/11 a joke. The song refers to 911, the emergency phone number.”—-A correction in the Washington Post.
  5. His Tour Is Overpriced and Underattended. His Ideas Aren’t His Own. So Why Does Perez Hilton Have a Record Label?: “PopJustice—-a British website that Perez has pretty regularly ‘been influenced by’–started chronicling the genesis of a new girlband, The Saturdays. Three months later, as the girlband gears up for their first single, Perez Hilton claims them as his latest discovery. It’s not just coincidence that he stumbles upon this particular act.” —-Pop culture writer Rohin Guha, on blogger and record imprint head Perez Hilton‘s “good ear” for new musical artists.
  6. Blogging and Bleeding with Wale’s Back To The Feature: “Quoth the Wale: ‘I was one of the first people to rap on stuff that wasn’t traditional hip hop music.’ Fab Five Freddy might have something to say about that claim.” —-Andrew Noz on Wale’s song “Sharp,” from the D.C. rapper’s Back to the Feature mixtape.
  7. Minor Threat Drummer Sells Test Pressing for Nearly $6,000: “There is no other US band I would consider dropping so much money on.” —-Record collector Michelle, on buying an autographed test pressing of Minor Threat’s Out of Step EP for $5,899.99 from the band’s drummer, Jeff Nelson.
  8. Ex-TV Executive Creates Way to Kill People for $1: “[I]t shows the user shooting Rush Limbaugh,Dick Cheney, and Nancy Pelosi. I got in some hot water with [YouTube commenters] and took out Pelosi and Cheney—but left in Rush. No one really cares about Rush.” —-programmer and former TV producer Paul Sherno, on the YouTube trailer for his iPhone app Assassin FPS, which allows users to shoot digital bullets at whoever is facing their iPhones’ cameras.
  9. Reviewed: The Twilight Saga: New Moon: “Growling, posturing, and awful-looking transformations ensue, though mostly Jacob and the rest of his pack just hang around with their shirts off. It’s probably safe to assume that [Taylor] Lautner’s role in future films is now secure, but it’s a good thing he’s cut—when the actor opens his mouth, well, let’s just say his award chances are MTV-level at best.”—-Critic Tricia Olszewski, on the Twilight sequel’s big special effect: buff werewolf Jacob Black.
  10. Q&A Animals as Leaders: “Nobody really knows about it. I mean, music doesn’t have much relevance in my social life. It was never important. Nobody I’m friends with is really into my kind of thing, so I never told them I used to tour for a living and have professional endorsements. It was kind of fun to never mention that part of myself. But now I’m playing music again. It’s back to the grind.”—-Musician Tosin Abasi, on telling his friends about his instrumental shred project, Animals as Leaders.
    Abasi: Well, nobody really knows about it. I mean, music doesn’t have much relevance in my social life. It was never important. Nobody I’m friends with is really into my kind of thing, so I never told them I used to tour for a living and have professional endorsements. It was kind of fun to never mention that part of myself. But now I’m playing music again. It’s back to the grind.Abasi: Well, nobody really knows about it. I mean, music doesn’t have much relevance in my social life. It was never important. Nobody I’m friends with is really into my kind of thing, so I never told them I used to tour for a living and have professional endorsements. It was kind of fun to never mention that part of myself. But now I’m playing music again. It’s back to the grind.