Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Mark Morford: Open letter to the new Apple iTablet (sfgate.com)
Dear imminent newborn world-altering Apple iWondergizmo, you who is right now being hyped to breathless orgasmic meganirvana by every tech columnist, gizmo blogger and swooning gadget pundit from here to Steve Jobs' personal foot masseuse: ...
Paul Krugman: Do the Right Thing (nytimes.com)
America desperately needs health care reform; it would be a betrayal of trust if the Democrats simply folded.
Garrison Keillor: Hey tea partyers, wake up and smell the coffee
The tea partyers are enjoying their day in the sun, but coffee is the beverage preferred by most Americans, and we don't have time to gang up and holler and wave our arms - we prefer to sit quietly with coffee in hand and read a reliable newspaper and try to figure out what's going on in the world.
Ted Rall: Obama Will Drag Down Democrats in November
NEW YORK--I'm a bit late, but this is the time of year when pundits issue their predictions for the coming year. Normally I stay out of the political prognostication racket. It's as thankless as writing for Arianna Huffington.
Tom Danehy: Taking ballot initiative is bad for democracy (tucsonweekly.com)
It's an election year, meaning that we'll again be bombarded with ballot initiatives big and small, some profoundly destructive, others just petty and mean, but almost all adding their weight to the mass of nonsense that threatens to crush the foundation of the American legislative process. What many consider to be direct democracy is, instead, turning into something quite perverse.
RICHARD ROEPER: If celebs give big bucks for Haiti -- good for them (suntimes.com)
By the time you read this, I wouldn't be surprised if Rush Limbaugh and Bill O'Reilly are criticizing all those Hollywood celebrities who are donating big chunks of cash or planning a telethon to raise funds for Haitian earthquake relief.
The passion players: amateur classical music in the UK (guardian.co.uk)
Across the UK, thousands of amateur musicians meet every week - brought together by a shared love of playing. Charlotte Higgins grabs her violin and joins in.
Interview by Laura Barnett: "Portrait of the artist: Brett Anderson, musician" (guardian.co.uk)
'Rock's not all carnal glamour. You spend a lot of time sitting around backstage, fiddling with bits of cheese.'
Alex James on reuniting with Blur (timesonline.co.uk)
Pop life was just a memory until, in the middle of a Durham grouse moor, I got an unexpected call, remembers the bass player.
Lewis Beale: Fast chat with 'Big Bang Theory' star Jim Parsons (Newsday)
If there is one breakthrough TV role over the past year or so, it is Jim Parsons' turn as physicist Sheldon Cooper in the hit CBS sitcom "The Big Bang Theory."
ANDRÉ ACIMAN: My Nights With Eric (nytimes.com)
TO those of us who have seen all of Eric Rohmer's films it is impossible not to remember when, where, with whom we saw each one. I even remember the second and third time I saw his films. "My Night at Maud's," "Claire's Knee," "Chloe in the Afternoon" are grafted onto my life.
Chris Lee: Kristen Stewart, Dakota Fanning get wild with 'The Runaways' (Los Angeles Times)
Dakota Fanning's porcelain-doll features were swathed in exotic makeup and her blond hair coiffed into a feathery shag; she raised her umpteenth shot of sake and cast a knowing glance at Kristen Stewart.
The Weekly Poll
New Question
The 'LOL in the Boardroom' Edition
President Barack Obama told banks Thursday they should pay a new tax to recoup the cost of bailing out foundering firms at the height of the financial crisis. He said...
"My commitment is to recover every single dime the American people are owed. And my determination to achieve this goal is only heightened when I see reports of massive profits and obscene bonuses at some of the very firms who owe their continued existence to the American people...We want our money back, and we're going to get it."
Citing 'obscene' bonuses, Obama to tax banks - U.S. business- msnbc.com
How confident are you that Obama will be able to recover those funds?
1.) Very - 'The Man' will be on 'em like a pit bull...
2.) Somewhat - We'll get back just enough so 'The Man' can claim success, but not nearly the total of what they scammed from us...
3.) Yer kiddin' me, right? I'm laughing with 'The Board'...
Send your response to
wrote:
From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
Oxfam Auction
Haiti
Coldplay, Arctic Monkeys and Damon Albarn are among the British music stars who have contributed to an online auction to raise funds for Oxfam's emergency response to the earthquake in Haiti.
Albarn, former frontman of Blur and co-creator of virtual band Gorillaz, will record a "bespoke" piece of music for the winning bidder, while Coldplay singer Chris Martin's "Viva La Vida" tour jacket -- signed by the band -- is also up for grabs.
Other lots to go on sale on eBay from 0900 GMT on January 22 until 0900 GMT on February 2 include the Fender Stratocaster guitar played by Alex Turner in the Arctic Monkeys' "I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor" video, according to Oxfam.
Haiti
Internet Birthing
Lily the Bear
A researcher says Lily the black bear has given birth to a cub in her den in northeastern Minnesota.
Biologist Lynn Rogers says Lily gave birth just after 11:30 a.m. Central Time Friday in her den, which is equipped with a video camera. He says it was difficult to see her giving birth, so he based his conclusion on contortions the bear made, followed by "sweet grunts" that show concern for a cub.
Rogers and his North American Bear Center put a camera in Lily's den outside Ely, Minn., that streams her activity live over the Internet.
A bear's first litter is typically one or two cubs. But Rogers said enough time has passed that it's unlikely the 3-year-old Lily will deliver a second cub.
Lily the Bear
SAG To Honor 60-Year Career
Betty White
Betty White couldn't believe it.
"They told me about the SAG Lifetime Achievement Award, and I thought they were putting me on," White said. "I really did. I thought, 'Oh, sure.'"
She'll finally have tangible proof Saturday night, when Sandra Bullock, her co-star in "The Proposal," hands over the statuette from the Screen Actors Guild, paying tribute to White's more than 60-year career. The SAG Awards will air live on TNT and TBS from the Shrine Exhibition Hall (8 p.m. EST).
Starting in local Los Angeles television during the medium's earliest days, White's first 20 years in the business included a 1951 Emmy for the sitcom "Life With Elizabeth," and various talk-show and game-show gigs. But it wasn't until 1973 that she became part of a TV classic, as sex-crazed "Happy Homemaker" host Sue Ann Nivens on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show."
Betty White
"The Questor Tapes"
Gene Roddenberry
The son of "Star Trek" creator Gene Roddenberry has struck a deal to try to bring one of his late father's forgotten projects to TV.
Rod Roddenberry has formed an agreement with Imagine Television to develop "The Questor Tapes," which is based on a 1974 Roddenberry pilot that ultimately aired as a TV movie.
"My father always felt that 'Questor' was the one that got away," Rod Roddenberry said. "He believed that the show had the potential to be bigger than 'Star Trek.'"
The original "Questor" is about an android with incomplete memory tapes who searches for his creator and his purpose.
Gene Roddenberry
Pens Tune About Minnesota Vikings
Prince
Prince has recorded a purple-tinted tribute to the Minnesota Vikings.
The "Purple Rain" superstar told Fox affiliate KMSP-TV that he penned "Purple and Gold" after he saw the Vikings beat Dallas at the Metrodome last weekend. Prince told the station he hadn't seen the team play in years until this season.
The Vikings play the Saints in New Orleans on Sunday in the NFC championship game.
The hymn-like Vikings song from the Minnesota rocker includes the lyrics, "Raise every voice and let it b' known/in the name of the purple and gold."
Prince
Leaving `Brothers & Sisters'
Rob Lowe
Rob Lowe will leave ABC's "Brothers & Sisters" at the end of the season, his publicist, Nicole Perez-Krueger, said Friday.
Lowe plays Sen. Robert McCallister, who is married to Calista Flockhart's character, Kitty. He has appeared on the drama for four seasons.
The departure was first reported by the blog Deadline Hollywood, which quoted ABC Entertainment President Steve McPherson saying that the network was in talks with Lowe for his own show.
This isn't the first time Lowe has left a role where he's part of an ensemble. He exited NBC's "The West Wing" in 2003 to star in "The Lyon's Den." The show was canceled after six episodes aired.
Rob Lowe
$70M Settlement
TV Writers
Two dozen entertainment firms said Friday they have agreed to pay $70 million to settle age discrimination claims by 165 television writers over the age of 40 in the largest settlement of its kind.
The defendants include 17 television networks and production companies, including ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC, and seven talent agencies including the now-merged William Morris Endeavor Entertainment, Gersh and UTA.
The settlement caps nearly a decade of court battles. Just one outstanding case, against Creative Artists Agency, remains.
The writers said the defendants refused to hire or represent them because of their age. When they were represented, the writers alleged their agents didn't present them aggressively to studios for job openings.
TV Writers
Bail Increased
Joseph Brooks
The Academy Award-winning songwriter of "You Light Up My Life" has a week to come up with a $3 million bond - or $1.5 million in cash - to stay out of jail in his New York sexual assault case.
A Manhattan judge increased Joseph Brooks' previous $250,000 bail Friday but gave him until Jan. 29 to post it.
The bail boost came after prosecutors upped the charges against Brooks, who's accused of forcing himself on 13 women. Prosecutors say he lured victims by inviting them to audition for movie roles.
Brooks has pleaded not guilty to predatory sexual assault and other charges. The 71-year-old faces at least 10 years in prison if convicted.
Joseph Brooks
Won't Be Sentenced In Absentia
Roman Polanski
A judge ruled Friday that Roman Polanski must return to the U.S. to be sentenced in a decades-old sex case.
Superior Court Judge Peter Espinoza said he ruled "in defense of the integrity of the justice system, he needs to surrender."
His ruling is likely to be appealed.
Roman Polanski
Moves To Impose Internet Regulation
Berlusconi
Silvio Berlusconi is moving to extend his grip on Italy's media to the freewheeling Internet world of Google and YouTube.
Going beyond other European countries, the premier's government has drafted a decree that would mandate the vetting of videos for pornographic or violent content uploaded by users onto such sites as YouTube, owned by Google, and the France-based Dailymotion, as well as blogs and online newsmedia.
Google, press freedom watchdogs and telecom providers are among those pressing for changes in the draft to prevent the fast-track legislation from taking effect as early as Feb. 4. They say the decree would erode freedom of expression and mandate the technically burdensome - maybe even impossible - task of monitoring what individuals put on the Internet.
The draft was written in mid-December, just around the same time the media empire founded by Berlusconi announced it was seeking at least euro500 million (US$779 million) in damages against YouTube and Google for allegedly misusing video it produced. The move is in response to a 2007 European Union directive to set up media rules, but only Italy has taken the directive to mean putting Internet companies in the hotseat.
Berlusconi
Singapore Screw Up
McDonald's
McDonald's apologized to Singapore Friday and brought a pig back to its toy menu, after a decision to leave the animal out of its Chinese zodiac collection upset many in the predominantly ethnic Chinese nation.
McDonald's this month started selling cartoon character miniatures depicting the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac calendar, but the pig was replaced by love god Cupid as McDonald's said it did not want to offend Muslims.
But the move, just ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday and Valentine's Day in February, backfired as many Chinese customers complained in chatrooms and blogs that they would not have a chance to buy the animal sign of their birth year.
"We're sorry, and we're grateful," the fast food chain said in a half-page advertisement in the Straits Times newspaper, saying it never intended to offend anyone.
McDonald's
Newest Legoland
Cypress Gardens
Legoland will open a new park in Florida in 2011 on the site of the old Cypress Gardens attraction, which closed last fall.
Merlin Entertainments, the owner and operator of Legoland, said Legoland Florida would include resort facilities with accommodations, along with more than 50 rides, shows and other attractions, including Lego models and interactive programs.
The company's first U.S. Legoland is located in Carlsbad, Calif., and three more are located in Europe, in Denmark, Germany, and near London. Merlin said in a statement that the park in Florida would be its largest. A sixth park is being developed in Malaysia.
Cypress Gardens opened in 1936 in the small town of Winter Haven, about 50 miles from Orlando. In the days before Disney, it was a must-see for visitors to Florida, known for water-skiing shows, botanical gardens and Southern belles in hoop dresses. It closed after years of declining attendance.
Cypress Gardens
White House Correspondents' Association Dinner
Leno
Late-night comic Jay Leno is the featured entertainer at the annual White House Correspondents' Association dinner in Washington.
WHCA President Ed Chen said the black-tie, nationally televised dinner to feature Leno - in the news lately for an ugly dispute with Conan O'Brien over NBC's late-night lineup - is being held this year on May 1.
The dinner is traditionally attended every year by the president, who delivers a comic keynote that rivals - and sometimes surpasses - the hired entertainment.
The dinner attracts about 3,000 Washington elite and press as well as Hollywood celebrities. The association was formed in 1914 as a liaison between the White House press corps and the presidents they cover. Every president since Calvin Coolidge has attended the dinner.
Leno
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