Marc Dion: Who's a Good Dog? (Creators Syndicate)
I love the rich people who employ me. I do. Before that, I loved the other rich people who employed me. I want them swaddled with care, smothered with tax incentives, insulated against the cold breezes of the income tax. I am the dog, and they are the hand that comes mysteriously out of the air to put food in my bowl. Sometimes, they pet my head, which is called a "Christmas bonus." I bark at the people they hate, and if they want to keep me chained in a small backyard, then I am happy just to have food. If they do not feed me enough, I figure I must be a bad dog because people feed you if you are good.
Froma Harrop: Rainbows Behind the Virus Crisis (Creators Syndicate)
And the air [in Milan, Italy] is much cleaner. Satellites report a dramatic drop in the region's air pollution. Since the lockdown started on March 9, the levels of nitrogen oxide in northern Italy have plunged dramatically. NO2 is a toxic gas that can cause inflammation of the body's air passages. Clean air has been a bright spot in the region's immense suffering.
Susan Estrich: The Robot Rule (Creators Syndicate)
So what if a nominee, say, Joe Biden, gets infected after the Democratic National Convention? While the convention is technically the governing body of the Democratic Party, the party doesn't hold a new one when situations change. The Democratic National Committee then meets and decides. … If the DNC picks - if it's after the convention - you'll be crazy not to put your money on New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Aaron Mak: The Internet Is Breaking a Little From the Coronavirus (Slate)
Internet speeds have been declining in various coronavirus hot spots around the world as broadband providers scramble to keep up with sudden spikes in traffic. Hubei, the Chinese province that has Wuhan as its capital, has seen mobile broadband speeds fall by roughly 60 percent since January, according to Ookla's Downdetector, an internet monitoring service. Performance has been slowly improving in March as China reaches the tail end of the outbreak, though it's nowhere close to fully recovering. Countries in western Europe began experiencing broadband performance issues in early March, around the time when governments there began enforcing lockdowns, though the dips have not been as dramatic as they have been in Hubei.
Perfectly Frank is an album by Tony Bennett, released in 1992, recorded as a tribute to Frank Sinatra.
Part of Bennett's late-in-life comeback to commercial success, it achieved gold record status in the United States and in 1993 won the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Performance.
In 2006 it was reissued with the same contents as Perfectly Frank: An American Classic Celebrates 80, in conjunction with Bennett's 80th birthday.
Source
Mark. was first, and correct, with:
Tony Bennett.
Randall wrote:
Tony Bennett
Doug in Albuquerque said:
Tony Bennett recorded "Perfectly Frank" to honor his friend Frank Sinatra.
Alan J answered:
Tony Bennett.
Cal in Vermont replied:
Tony Bennett recorded "Perfectly Frank" as a tribute to Frank Sinatra. Frank Sinatra was a good singer, a genius at it some would say, but genius oftimes comes with shortcomings. Mr. Sinatra's was that he was a galactic class booger.
Dave responded:
Tony Bennett. Perfectly Frank is a tribute to his friend Frank Sinatra, the critical and commercial success was a triumph and a big comeback for Bennett after about 15 years of personal trials and being considered a has been. In the next decade the in demand Tony Bennett went from being deeply in debt to amassing a personal fortune of about $20 million. At age 93, Bennett is still active professionally and has a remarkably strong voice.
Jim from CA, retired to ID, responded:
Tony Bennett
Deborah replied:
It's not Frank Sinatra, it's not Frank Zappa, so it must be Tony Bennett, one of my favorite crooners.
Had 2 Zoom meetings Friday and one with our adult children yesterday - our first family reunion in over a year. We're going to do this weekly, if not more often. And my siblings are on board downloading the app, and I believe we'll have a family reunion this afternoon. Sure looking forward to that.
Rosemary in Columbus wrote:
Tony Bennett
Billy in Cypress U$A said:
"Frankly, my dear" it was Tony Bennett
My son sent this link today it is F-ing hilarious, and I must share it AND THE ONES THAT FOLLOW AS WELL::
A COVID-19 Admonition ***EXPLICIT
DJ Useo answered:
I suggest the answer is "Frank Sinatra". In hindsight, I generally like his music, especially "The Ratpack".
Daniel in The City responded:
Tony Bennent
Barbara, of Peppy Tech fame replied:
The answer is Tony Bennett
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• Who drummer Keith Moon and Monty Python member Graham Chapman were great friends and great drinkers. Mr. Chapman visited Mr. Moon one day when Mr. Moon was out of gin, Mr. Chapman's preferred alcoholic beverage. Mr. Moon ordered gin from room service, but room service was slow - so he stepped out a window, onto a 4- or 5-inch ledge, on which he made his way into a neighboring apartment, from which he burgled a bottle of gin to offer to his friend.
• Opera singers hate to catch colds and the flu. While in New York, Luciano Pavarotti came down with the flu. Fellow opera singer and friend Mirella Freni felt sympathy for him, but she didn't want to catch his flu. Therefore, she made hot soup and left it outside his dressing room door. Then she ran away from the door, muttering, "Povero amico mio, povero ragazzo" ("My poor friend, poor boy").
• Rudolf Nureyev and Leonard Bernstein lived very close to each other in the Dakota on Central Part West in New York City. In fact, their apartments were separated by a party wall, and they used to tap on the wall occasionally to say hi to each other.
Gay Men
• Bette Midler began her career at a gay bathhouse, which meant that she performed in front of a lot of gay men wearing nothing but towels. This was a big opportunity for her, as the gay men treated her act with respect, although it only hinted at the superstar act Ms. Midler later created. In addition, the gay men gave Ms. Midler the freedom to experiment and be outrageous on stage. She says, "Ironically, I was freed from fear by people who, at the time, were ruled by fear." (She also says she never saw a penis in the Baths, although she admits she looked real hard.)
• Popular culture has many gay icons, including Stevie Nicks of the pop group Fleetwood Mac. In New York, the Jackie 60 club holds an annual Night of a Thousand Stevies in which gay men dress as their idol. (Being a gay icon is a major compliment. It means that you live your life with flair and elegance - and you look fabulous.)
Gifts
• The Beach Boys and Jan and Dean played similar kinds of surfing music. In fact, when Brian Wilson was unable to come up with a good ending for "Surf City," he gave the song to Jan Berry. Mr. Berry came up with a good ending, and then recorded it with his singing partner, Dean Torrence, and it became a No. 1 hit. Later, when the Beach Boys were recording "Barbara Ann," Mr. Torrence happened to be in the studio, and he recorded the lead vocals. However, he didn't get any credit on the album notes because according to his contract, the only group he could record for was Jan and Dean.
• While performing in Paris, soprano Emma Albani received a notable gift from some young American art students. They had taken a box near the stage so that they could give her their gift: a large basket of flowers, under which they had placed an album of sketches they had created especially for her. This was quite a gift, since the young American art students - Bridgeman, Lowe, Sargent - later became famous.
• In 1964, the New York Yankees, who were managed by Yogi Berra, suffered a losing season. After yet another loss, infielder Phil Linz started to play happy tunes on his harmonica on the team bus. This annoyed Yogi, so he fined Mr. Linz $200. However, when Mr. Linz signed his next Yankee contract, Yogi gave him a $200 bonus - so he could get music lessons.
CBS opens the night with a FRESH'The Neighborhood', followed by a FRESH'Bob Hearts Abishola', then a RERUN'The Neighborhood', followed by another RERUN'The Neighborhood', then the FRESH'Homefest: James Corden's Late Late Show Special'.
Scheduled on a hybrid-FRESHStephen Colbert it's Stephen Colbert from home.
On a RERUNJames Corden, OBE, (from 2/10/20) are Dr. Phil McGraw, Lana Condor, and Green Day.
NBC begins the night with a FRESH'The Voice', followed by a FRESH'Manifest'.
Scheduled on a hybrid-FRESHJimmy Fallon are Kim Kardashian West, Jon Bon Jovi, and OneRepublic.
Scheduled on a hybrid-FRESHSeth Meyers is Sen. Bernie Sanders.
Scheduled on a hybrid-FRESHLilly Singh is Tyra Banks.
ABC starts the night with a FRESH'American Idol', followed by a FRESH'The Good Doctor'.
Scheduled on a hybrid-FRESHJimmy Kimmel are Tracy Morgan and Lizzo.
The CW offers a FRESH'Whose Line Is It Anyway?', followed by a RERUN'Whose Line Is It Anyway?', then a FRESH'Roswell, New Mexico'.
Faux has a FRESH'9-1-1', followed by a FRESH'Prodigal Son'.
MY recycles an old 'L&O: SVU', followed by another old 'L&O: SVU'.
A&E has 'Elizabeth Smart: Autobiography' (part 2), 'Hunting JonBenet's Killer: The Untold Story', and 'The Killing Of JonBenet: Her Father Speaks'.
AMC offers the movie 'Transporter 2', followed by a FRESH'Better Call Saul', then a FRESH'Dispatches From Elsewhere'.
BBC -
[6:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - Shadowplay
[7:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - Playing God
[8:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - Profit and Loss
[9:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - Blood Oath
[10:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - The Maquis
[11:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - The Maquis
[12:00PM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - The Wire
[1:00PM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - Crossover
[2:00PM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - The Collaborator
[3:00PM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - Tribunal
[4:00PM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - The Jem'Hadar
[5:00PM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - The Search
[6:00PM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - The Search
[7:00PM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - The House of Quark
[8:00PM] Grease
[10:33PM] Grease
[1:05AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - Crossover
[2:04AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - The Collaborator
[3:03AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - Tribunal
[4:02AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - The Jem'Hadar
[5:01AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - The Search (ALL TIMES EST)
Bravo has 'Below Deck Sailing Yacht', another 'Below Deck Sailing Yacht', followed by a FRESH'Below Deck Sailing Yacht', another 'Below Deck Sailing Yacht'.
FX has the movie 'Ride Along', followed by the movie 'Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle', then a FRESH'Breeders', and 'Better Things'.
History has 'American Pickers', another 'American Pickers', followed by a FRESH'American Pickers', and another 'American Pickers'.
IFC -
[6:00A] The Three Stooges - You Natzy Spy!
[6:15A] Dante's Peak
[8:45A] The Taking of Pelham 123
[11:15A] Training Day
[2:00P] That '70s Show
[2:30P] That '70s Show
[3:00P] That '70s Show
[3:30P] That '70s Show
[4:00P] That '70s Show
[4:30P] That '70s Show
[5:00P] That '70s Show
[5:30P] That '70s Show
[6:00P] Two and a Half Men
[6:30P] Two and a Half Men
[7:00P] Two and a Half Men
[7:30P] Two and a Half Men
[8:00P] Two and a Half Men
[8:30P] Two and a Half Men
[9:00P] Two and a Half Men
[9:30P] Two and a Half Men
[10:00P] Two and a Half Men
[10:30P] Two and a Half Men
[11:00P] Two and a Half Men
[11:30P] Two and a Half Men
[12:00A] Two and a Half Men
[12:30A] Two and a Half Men
[1:00A] That '70s Show
[1:30A] That '70s Show
[2:00A] That '70s Show
[2:30A] That '70s Show
[3:00A] That '70s Show
[3:30A] That '70s Show
[4:00A] That '70s Show
[4:30A] That '70s Show
[5:00A] The Three Stooges - Income-Tax Sappy
[5:15A] Machete Kills (ALL TIMES EST)
Sundance -
[6:00am] Hogan's Heroes
[6:30am] Hogan's Heroes
[7:00am] Hogan's Heroes
[7:30am] Hogan's Heroes
[8:00am] Hogan's Heroes
[8:30am] Hogan's Heroes
[9:00am] Hogan's Heroes
[9:30am] Hogan's Heroes
[10:00am] Hogan's Heroes
[10:30am] Hogan's Heroes
[11:00am] Hogan's Heroes
[11:30am] Hogan's Heroes
[12:00pm] Hogan's Heroes
[12:30pm] Hogan's Heroes
[1:00pm] Hogan's Heroes
[1:30pm] Hogan's Heroes
[2:00pm] Braveheart
[6:00pm] The Patriot
[9:30pm] The Patriot
[1:00am] The Taking of Pelham 123
[3:30am] The Andy Griffith Show
[4:00am] The Andy Griffith Show
[4:30am] The Andy Griffith Show
[5:00am] The Andy Griffith Show
[5:30am] The Andy Griffith Show (ALL TIMES EST)
SyFy has the movie 'Harry Potter & The Order Of The Phoenix', followed by the movie 'Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince', then the movie 'Fantastic Beasts & Where To Find Them'.
TBS:
Scheduled on a hybrid-FRESHConan is Adam Sandler.
The stars of the 2011 virus thriller "Contagion" - a prescient film these days - have reunited for a series of public service announcements to warn about COVID-19.
Matt Damon, Laurence Fishburne, Kate Winslet and Jennifer Ehle have teamed up with scientists from Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health to offer four individual homemade videos.
"Wash your hands like your life depends on it," Winslet says in her PSA. "Because right now, in particular, it just might."
"Contagion," directed by Steven Soderbergh, explores a scenario in which a lethal and fast-moving influenza is spreading around the world.
Looking back, were we wrong to assume that Adult Swim would be giving us a more regular stream of new Rick And Morty adventures after picking the show up for 70 episodes and then promising that there'd be no more massive gaps in between seasons? Because the long-awaited fourth season has only aired five episodes since starting in November and it's now April… but maybe a gap in the middle of the season doesn't really count as a gap between seasons? Either way, Adult Swim threw Rick And Morty fans a bone last night with a violent new anime-inspired short written and directed by Kaichi Sato of… this Twitter feed and some anime stuff we couldn't find much record of on the American internet.
But anyway, it's a pretty cool short! Called Samurai And Shogun, it's about one of the multiverse's many Ricks fighting off an army of Ninja Ricks as they try to capture Shogun Morty. It's not even six minutes long, so it's barely a drop in the Szechuan sauce ocean of time that Rick And Morty fans have been waiting for more Rick And Morty content, but maybe you should just watch it over and over again until there are more real episodes to watch.
Songwriter John Prine has been hospitalized since Thursday with coronavirus complications and is in critical condition, his family posted today on his official Twitter account.
The news came just after his wife, Fiona, announced that she had coronavirus symptoms. Prine is 73 year old and was one of the nominated artists last year for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
His songwriting is widely considered among the best of his generation, focusing with a touch of humor on love, life, social commentary and current events.
Fox News on Sunday issued an explanation for Saturday's episode of "Justice With Judge Jeanine," which was marred by "technical difficulties" and the appearance of host Jeanine Pirro, whom many viewers thought seemed disheveled and perhaps even tipsy.
An individual close to the network also said Pirro did her own hair and makeup for Saturday's show, noting that even in-studio talent is working with reduced hair and makeup staff as a result of new protocols in response to the coronavirus pandemic. And the former New York state judge's usually well-coifed hair did appear to get less telegenic as Saturday's episode went on.
Pirro also joined her show roughly 15 minutes into the regular broadcast time, apologizing for "the technical difficulties" when she finally took over for network anchor Jackie Ibanez.
A good portion of the Twitterverse quickly had a field day based on tweeted clips from the show, with several noting similarities to Cecily Strong's impression of a liquor-toting, drink-spilling Pirro on "Saturday Night Live."
When the UN security council and the G7 group sought to agree a global response to the coronavirus pandemic, the efforts stumbled on the US insistence on describing the threat as distinctively Chinese.
There are other reasons for the lack of collaboration in the face of a global crisis, but the focus on labelling the virus Chinese and blaming China pursued by the US secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, helped ensure there would be no meaningful collective response from the world's most powerful nations.
For some US allies, the fixation on words at a time when the international order was arguably facing its greatest challenge since the second world war encapsulated the glaring absence of US leadership.
And that absence was illustrated just as vividly by news coverage of planes full of medical supplies from China arriving in Italy, at a time when the US was quietly flying in half a million Italian-made diagnostic swabs for use in its own under-equipped health system and Donald Trump (R-Con Man) was on the phone to the South Korean president pressing him to send test kits.
From the debacle over testing to Trump's months-long denial about the scale of the threat and his constant political point-scoring, the US has showed itself to be anything but a model for the rest of the world to emulate.
As the United States' death toll from coronavirus surpassed 2,000 over the weekend, our reality show president took to Twitter on Sunday to inform everyone he was more popular than ABC's The Bachelor.
Citing a report from the New York Times, Trump tweeted: "Because the 'Ratings' of my News Conferences etc. are so high, 'Bachelor finale, Monday Night Football type numbers' according to the @nytimes, the Lamestream Media is going CRAZY. 'Trump is reaching too many people, we must stop him.' said one lunatic. See you at 5:00 P.M.!"
Yes, America, our dear leader is more concerned about ratings than acknowledging the rising death toll. And instead of realizing that the viewing numbers for his briefings are indicative of the fear many citizens feel in the face of the pandemic, the president instead interpreted those numbers as a reflection of his own popularity.
Trump, whose administration previously avoided public press briefings like Americans are trying to avoid coronavirus, has been broadcasting daily briefings from the press room where the president spews lies and misinformation that have left many networks contemplating pulling the plug on broadcasting them. MSNBC host Rachel Maddow recently said on air that she would stop broadcasting the briefings, even though her channel continues to run them. "I would stop putting those briefings on live TV - not out of spite, but because it's misinformation," she said.
But misinformation sells, and since he began these briefings, Trump's approval ratings have risen - showing just how desperate our country is for leadership, even if it's poor leadership, in this time of crisis. Even so, continuing to give this egomaniac a platform is increasingly dangerous as he reassures Americans that he will lift social distancing restrictions by Easter and touts the unproven efficacy of dangerous drugs against the virus. The president's lies have left at least one man dead and his wife in critical condition after they ingested anti-malarial drug chloroquine - which is also commonly used in fish tanks - believing it would prevent them from contracting the virus after Trump bragged the drug's prospects against coronavirus on TV.
The U.S. Interior Department is rescinding the reservation status of a Native American tribe whose plan to build a casino on its Massachusetts land was attacked by President Donald Trump (R-Grifter) last year.
The planned gaming operation would have competed for business with nearby Rhode Island casinos with strong ties to Trump, who once owned, then bankrupted, casinos in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
The federal Bureau of Indian Affairs informed the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe on Friday that its 321-acre Cape Cod reservation will be "disestablished" and its land taken out of federal trust, according to Tribal Chairman Cedric Cromwell. Land in trust to the federal government effectively grants a tribe special legal status and autonomy. The Mashpee Wampanoag, however, will still be officially recognized by the federal government as a Native American tribe, according to a spokesman for the Interior Department.
Tribal members are believed to be descendants of the first Native Americans to encounter the Pilgrims nearly four centuries ago. They call themselves the "People of the First Light."
Google is holding off on its traditional annual April Fool's Day jokes until next year "out of respect for all those fighting the Covid-19 pandemic."
Many will be restraining themselves this April Fool's Day from the usual pranks, jokes and mischievous behavior because of the solemn state of the planet due to the spreading coronavirus… and Google is leading the charge.
Google will "take the year off from that tradition out of respect for all those fighting the Covid-19 pandemic. Our highest goal right now is to be helpful to people, so let's save the jokes for next April, which will undoubtedly be a whole lot brighter than this one," according to an internal email from Google's head of marketing Lorraine Twohill obtained by Business Insider.
Among last year's Google April 1 pranks: Google Tulip, an app which allowed the user to talk with a tulip; and Google Spoon Bending, a smart spoon that allows users to type Japanese characters in Gboard by bending it.
For Navajo spiritual leader Steven Benally, saving a Native American religion from extinction means preserving those diminishing lands where hallucinogenic peyote grows wild.
Preservation also means battling activists in the California Bay Area and other cities who want to legalize consumption of the psychedelic cactus.
"To these outsiders, we say, 'Leave peyote alone. Please,'" Benally said. "Is that too much to ask?"
Under federal law, only members of the Native American Church are authorized to ingest peyote. That could change, however. Dozens of cities across the nation are considering legislation to decriminalize an array of mind-bending plants and fungi that have come to be known as "The Big 5" - magic mushrooms, iboga, ayahuasca, huachuma and peyote.
The movement is led by the nonprofit Decriminalize Nature, whose mission statement envisions happier and healthier people as a result of legalization.
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