Animation writer [Futurama producer / writer] Patric M. Verrone was overwhelmingly elected Tuesday to head the union representing Hollywood screen and TV writers, vowing to take a tougher stance with studios and pledging to step up organizing efforts.

Verrone, whose TV credits include "Futurama," "Muppets Tonight" and "Rugrats," won 69% of the 2,012 ballots cast by the Writers Guild of America, West. Currently secretary-treasurer of the 9,000-member union, Verrone defeated "Pirates of the Caribbean" writer Ted Elliott, who had been endorsed by outgoing president Daniel Petrie Jr.

To read more about it, check out the Los Angeles Times article.

Billy Bastard
Billy West is busy little beaver right now. Not only is he being told about the notion of a new Futurama direct-to-dvd movie, but he also has a new show in the works titled "Billy Bastard." The Puppet-styled show is about Billy West's life when he was a drug-user/alcoholic. Sounds pretty depressing, eh? Well, leave it to Billy to make it comical. The 5 minute pilot should be released either somewhere online or on television sometime soon.
If you want to hear more about Billy Bastard, check out the old IGN video.

And while you're at IGN, check out this great questions and answers that they had with Billy just two days ago. Here's a tid-bit of the interview :

IGN FILMFORCE: What role did you initially go in to audition for on Futurama?

BILLY WEST: I was called in for all of the characters, and I was in a room with probably a hundred people - and I'm sure 200 more were around before or after, because everybody wanted to be part of this. I was almost going to have a heart-attack - I walk in, and there's Ryan Stiles, ready to read for it. I'm like going, "Oh, Jesus... Wrong room."

A meal fit for crustaceans
Although Futurama has never been aired in Thailand, a blogger from there has taken one very tasty aspect of the show and created a recipe for Spicy Neptunian Slug Fricassee (also known as Pamuek Yut Sai Mu Nueng Manow.) If you'd like to make this yourself, check out the delicious directions over Appon's Thai Food Recipes site. Thanks to Anna for the heads up on this.

Iconorama
Incase you haven't already customized your computer or mac with Futurama icons, this site right here could help you out. At first I didn't understand how to download it, but if you look closely you'll notice you can choose between Windows or Mac icons. Once downloaded, you can use them anywhere you wish on your PC/Mac.

Futurama Comics #22 out November 23rd

by Boothby & Kazaleh
Bender becomes the 31st century's newest diet guru, and before long President Nixon appoints him czar of the President's Council on Physical Fitness. But too much power in the wrong robots hands is a dangerous thing, and the physically tired and huddled masses of New New York City are soon yearning to be free of Bender's tyrannical exercise regimen.