'Best of TBH Politoons'
Recommended Reading
from Bruce
MICK FARREN: Gentleman Radical (lacitybeat.com)
As Americans forget their history, forfeit power to corporations, and endorse perpetual war, Gore Vidal continues a one-man campaign for a 'civilized' nation
Jimmy Breslin: In Case We Forgot, Americans Are Still Dying in Iraq (Newsday. Posted on AlterNet.org)
I made a call to the Defense Department: "How are our soldiers doing lately?" "We've had a bad month," the man responded. "How bad?" "Stay there and you'll see." There now came faxes detailing American soldiers who died in Iraq since July 1. There have been 50 who died from then to August 6.
Will Durst: A Scarlet Service Threat
It's my duty as a patriotic American to send up this warning flare to the Republican Congress. Their very lives are in peril. THIS IS NOT A TEST! They have unknowingly stumbled into a dangerous situation that threatens them to a degree of which they are blissfully unaware. The fact that none of them will heed my advice saddens me a little, but not as much as it makes me giggle.
Barbara Ehrenreich: 'Miami Vice': The Class Analysis (AlterNet.org)
The film's bleak vision of a world divided between shanty-towns and trailer parks at one end, and unimaginable luxury at the other, is not far off the mark.
Helaine Olen: The Trouble With Chick Lit (AlterNet.org)
All those pink books with purses and shoes on the cover are obscuring the publication of serious literature by women. At least, that what the author of a new anti-chick lit anthology says.
Jenny Colgan: View from a broad (guardian.co.uk)
Thankfully the Dixie Chicks aren't weak -- their new CD, Taking the Long Way, has sold millions of copies. Just not in the US.
Aaron Cutler: It all started with Great Movies... (rogerebert.suntimes.com)
It all started with the Great Movies for me; I was a fledgeling seventh-grader who had heard that "The Godfather" was worth seeing, and I looked for reviews to back this up. Needless to say there were plenty, but Roger Ebert's stuck with me, and I read others and others and saw that he was right about them all.
Live in Westerville, Ohio? Borrow Bruce's Books (Westerville Public Library)
Perform a search for "Funniest People." By the way, did you know that you can request that your public library buy a book that you would like to read? (Hint, hint.)
Purple Gene Reviews
Fightin' Phil
Purple Gene's review of the private strategy fundraiser for Phil Angelides at "Kokkari" Greek restaurant in San Francisco on Thursday night August 10th:
What put Phil in a Fighting mood ??????
Could it be that a private fundraising dinner party for Phil Angelides put him in a fighting mood? Purple Gene was there and he knows !!!!!!
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Still sunny, but cooler.
No new flags.
Concert For Mideast Peace
Daniel Barenboim
Argentine-born pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim gave a concert for peace dubbed "Music against Violence" in Madrid's Plaza Mayor to show solidarity with the victims of the Middle East conflict.
Barenboim and his West-Eastern-Divan orchestra of Arab and Israeli musicians, which he founded in 1999 with late Palestinian author Edward Said, performed Beethoven's Ninth Symphony in front of a crowd of 6 to 7,000 people.
The orchestra comprises about 100 young musicians from countries in the Middle East, including 42 Israelis and 26 Arabs, some of whom hail from Lebanon and Syria.
The Israeli offensive against Shiite Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon prevented a dozen of the orchestra's members from attending the concert, the Europa Press news agency reported.
Daniel Barenboim
Signs Book Deal
Shoshana Johnson
Former Iraq prisoner of war Shoshana Johnson has signed a deal to write a book about her life and 22 days of captivity after she and five other members of her Fort Bliss unit were captured early in the war.
Johnson was captured along with then-Pfc. Jessica Lynch and three other soldiers in the March 23, 2003, ambush that killed nine members of her unit. She suffered injuries to her feet in the attack and has since left the Army with a medical discharge.
A spokeswoman for Dafina Books said Johnson's tale, written with Paul T. Brown, is scheduled for release next May.
Shoshana Johnson
Iranian Dissident Visits Hollywood
Akbar Ganji
Just months after being freed from nearly six years in Iran's feared Evin prison, Iran's most prominent dissident, Akbar Ganji, found himself guest of honor in a Hollywood producer's mansion.
A small, soft-spoken man who staged an 80-day hunger strike while in jail, Ganji appeared humble but unruffled on Wednesday night as he stood among the Frank Stella paintings at the home of former Orion Pictures chief Mike Medavoy.
Invited by Medavoy and actor Sean Penn to meet the Hollywood heavyweights while on a visit to the United States, he debated foreign policy with the likes of billionaire media mogul Haim Saban and was even asked which foods he missed most while on hunger strike.
His interpreter was not so relaxed. When actor-producer Warren Beatty jumped up to ask a question at the end of an hour-long speech by Ganji, she said, "Is that Warren Beatty? My God."
Akbar Ganji
Harvey Award
James Best
James Best, who is best known for playing Rosco P. Coltrane on TV's "The Dukes of Hazzard," will receive the Harvey Award from The Jimmy Stewart Museum. Best, 80, is scheduled to receive the award Oct. 20 at an event hosted by Nick and Nina Clooney.
Best starred with Stewart, a native of Indiana, in the films, "Winchester '73," "Shenandoah," "The Mountain Road" and "Firecreek."
He also appeared in several other films, including "Seven Angry Men," "The Last of the Badmen," "Cast a Long Shadow" and "Gator." His TV appearances include roles in "Gunsmoke," "Bonanza," "Perry Mason" and "Rawhide."
Earlier this year, the Harvey Award was given posthumously to actor Spencer Tracy and accepted by his grandson Joseph Spencer Tracy.
James Best
Hospital News
Suzanne Pleshette
Actress Suzanne Pleshette is undergoing chemotherapy for lung cancer that was caught at an early stage, her agent said Friday.
The cancer, discovered during a routine X-ray, is the size of "a grain of sand and was caught very much in time," said agent Joel Dean. "She feels very lucky. ... She's not concerned and in great spirits."
Pleshette, 69, is receiving chemotherapy as an outpatient at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where the cancer was diagnosed, he said.
Pleshette and Tom Poston, 84, who costarred with her on "The Bob Newhart Show," were married in 2001.
Suzanne Pleshette
James Dobson Lends Support
Mel Gibson
Focus on the Family ministry founder James Dobson spoke in support Thursday of Mel Gibson and his film, "The Passion of the Christ," saying Gibson's drunken tirade during a traffic stop had nothing to do with "one of the finest films of this era."
Dobson said in a statement that "we certainly do not condone that racially insensitive outburst," but added "Mel has apologized profusely for the incident and there the matter should rest."
"Mel has also indicated his willingness to seek help to overcome his alcoholism, and has asked the Jewish community for forgiveness," Dobson said. "What more can he do?"
Mel Gibson
Bitten By Pet Kinkajou
Paris Hilton
Paris Hilton got no love this week from her pet kinkajou Baby Luv - in fact, the racoon-like animal bit her. The heiress was not badly hurt but did visit a hospital emergency room to receive a tetanus shot, her publicist, Elliot Mintz, told The Associated Press on Friday.
Hilton was frolicking with her exotic pet early Tuesday morning "the way some people play with their cats and dogs" when the animal became excited, Mintz said.
"She was seen by a doctor, who treated the wound, gave her a tetanus shot, cleaned the wound and applied something to it," Mintz said.
Paris Hilton
Receive Dear John Letters
Dating Shows
Production has stopped on NBC Universal Domestic Television Distribution's "Blind Date," while Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution's "ElimiDate" hasn't been renewed for 2006-07, sources said.
"Blind Date," which films a couple on a blind date and then adds humorous pop-ups and graphics, has been renewed in more than 90 percent of the country for next season, but what viewers will be seeing are repeat episodes, sources said. There are believed to be more than 1,300 produced episodes from the show's seven seasons on the air.
"Blind Date" and "ElimiDate" represent the last two relationship shows left in syndication. The past few years have marked the demise of such other dating shows as "The 5th Wheel" and "Extreme Dating."
Dating Shows
Admits Serving In Nazi SS
Günter Grass
Nobel prize-winning German author Günter Grass has admitted for the first time that he served in the Waffen-SS, Adolf Hitler's elite Nazi troops.
In an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Grass, 78, said he volunteered for submarine service toward the end of World War Two. He was called up instead to serve in the Waffen-SS in the eastern city of Dresden.
The author, best known for his first novel "The Tin Drum" and an active supporter of Germany's Social Democratic Party (SPD), said his wartime secret had been weighing on his mind and was one of the reasons he wrote a book of recollections which details his war service. The book is out in September.
Grass was wounded in 1945 and sent to an American prisoner of war camp and later became a prominent peace activist. He said he had volunteered for army service as a way of breaking away from home and family.
Günter Grass
Judge Awards $95,000
Woody Allen
Woody Allen has been awarded $95,000 in legal fees in a dispute with his former producer.
State Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Bernard Fried on Thursday ordered Jean Doumanian, Allen's former producer and friend of 30 years, to pay the sum to Allen's Moses Productions.
The two clashed earlier this year over how to edit Allen's films to meet television standards.
The judge ordered the producer to pay Allen $48,000 in legal fees, and held Doumanian's production company, Sweetland Films, in contempt for failing to put money in escrow. Fried ordered Sweetland to pay Allen another $47,000 in fees.
Woody Allen
Night In Jail
Lou Diamond Phillips
Actor Lou Diamond Phillips was released from jail on his own recognizance Friday following his arrest for allegedly physically abusing his live-in girlfriend.
"Our office reviewed the case today and referred it to the city attorney's hearing program. The parties will come in and sit with one of our attorneys, who will try to mediate the situation," said Jonathan Diamond, a city attorney's spokesman.
"Charges could be filed down the road, but we're trying to resolve this through the hearing program," Diamond added.
Lou Diamond Phillips
Exceeds Fears
Pacific 'Dead Zone'
Scientists say the oxygen-starved "dead zone" along the Pacific Coast that is causing massive crab and fish die-offs is worse than initially thought.
Scientists say weather, not pollution, appears to be the culprit, and no relief is in sight. However, some say there is no immediate sign yet of long-term damage to the crab fishery.
Oregon State University scientists looking for weather changes that could reverse the situation aren't finding them, and they say levels of dissolved oxygen critical to marine life are the lowest since the first dead zone was identified in 2002. It has returned every year.
Strong upwelling winds pushed a low-oxygen pool of deep water toward shore, suffocating marine life, said Jane Lubchenco, a professor of marine biology at OSU.
She said wind changes could help push that water farther out but current forecasts predict the opposite.
Pacific 'Dead Zone'
Goat Crowned King of Ireland
Louis
A goat named Louis was crowned King of Ireland on Thursday in one of the country's oldest festivals.
Each year a wild male mountain goat is caught in the foothills of Carrauntoohill, Ireland's highest mountain, and paraded through the country town of Killorglin as part of the Puck Fair -- an annual festival of music, drinking and dancing.
The goat then reigns for three days from a platform 15 metres (50 ft) above the town's streets.
This year's King Puck is named Louis after the French Sun King and has an almost 70-cm (27-inch) horn span. He is kept in a special pen during his reign and fed a regular mountain diet of nuts, wild herbs, holly leaves, saplings and tender grasses.
Louis
In Memory
Fred, the Undercover Kitten
Fred, the Undercover Kitten who gained fame by posing as a would-be patient to help police nab a phony veterinarian, has died, authorities said Friday.
The 15-month-old tabby was killed Wednesday when he wandered into traffic and was run over by a car, according to the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office.
Fred was a rescued stray when he was enlisted by law enforcement in February. He got his due at a press conference, where he sported a tiny badge on his collar.
Fred received a Law Enforcement Appreciation Award and was honored at an adopt-a-thon benefit hosted by Mary Tyler Moore and Bernadette Peters. He had been "preparing for a new career in education," with a "significant role" in a classroom program that teaches children how to care for animals, the district attorney's office said.
Fred, the Undercover Kitten
In Memory
Anthony Galla-Rini
Anthony Galla-Rini, a self-taught musician who strove to raise the accordion's profile by composing, arranging and playing classical and popular melodies for the instrument, died July 30 after suffering a heart seizure, his son said. He was 102.
Galla-Rini played a variety of woodwind and brass instruments, but the accordion was his passion.
Born in 1904 into a musical family from Verona, Italy, Galla-Rini spent most of his childhood crisscrossing the country on the vaudeville circuit with his three sisters. Together they played with many vaudeville headliners, including Bob Hope, Jack Benny and the Marx Brothers.
With virtually no formal education, Galla-Rini taught himself to read music and begun composing and arranging classical and popular pieces for the accordion. After the Galla-Rini act disbanded in 1932, he performed as a solo musician and toured the United States and Europe over the next several decades.
Galla-Rini eventually settled in Southern California, where he broke into the movie business and played the accordion on many film scores, most memorably in 1944's "Laura" and 1952's "High Noon."
Anthony Galla-Rini
In Memory
Mike Douglas
Mike Douglas, the affable big band singer who for two decades hosted a parade of America's biggest stars and newsmakers on his top-rated daytime talk show, died on Friday on his 81st birthday, friends said.
Born Michael Dowd in Chicago in 1925, he began singing professionally as a teenager and after serving in the Navy during World War Two joined bandleader Kay Kyser's "Kollege of Musical Knowledge" program as a featured vocalist.
During his stint with Kyser's band, Douglas recorded such hits as "Ole Buttermilk Sky" and "The Old Lamplighter." He later supplied the singing voice for Prince Charming in the Disney animated fairy-tale classic "Cinderella."
Subsequently hired as a "staff singer" by NBC, Douglas went on to land his own TV show at a Cleveland TV station just as he was considering getting out of show business. "The Mike Douglas Show" debuted in 1961 as a local program and was soon syndicated nationally, moving first to Philadelphia and later to Burbank, California.
Airing weekdays until 1982, the series was the top-rated daytime talk show for most of its run and attracted the biggest names in entertainment, pop culture and politics, all welcomed in the easy-going, warm style that was Douglas' trademark as a host.
Douglas frequently shared the stage with celebrity co-hosts who helped interview other guests for several days. Among his most notable co-hosts were John Lennon and Yoko Ono, who spent a week in 1972 with such guests as Black Panther Party co-founder Bobby Seale, anti-Vietnam War activist Jerry Rubin, consumer advocate Ralph Nader and comedian George Carlin.
Despite the radical chic that sometimes graced his show, Douglas described himself as mainstream. "I'm square and I am happy that I am," he once said.
Mike Douglas
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