Winningest Coach In Division 1 Football - EVER!
Joe Paterno
Today, the Penn State Nittany Lions put the Ohio State Buckeyes to bed, and
provided Joe Paterno with his 324th Career Win.
Sorry about Oklahoma State, though.
Reader Review
'From Hell'
Chris B.
I went to see FROM HELL on October 25th. I haven't read Alan Moore's
original graphic novel, but I really think it's better to see the movie first.
I don't know that we'll ever get a movie that's 100% faithful to the source
material it was adapted from, so it's easier for me to see movie
adaptations as different stories than the original book. Often times I'll
read the book after a movie or miniseries and find that I don't enjoy the
book as much. Later, the book version will become the version I favor
because it contains more nuggets of information and more characterization.
I first noticed this when I saw the ABC TV version of Stephen King's IT (TV
Guide's review said that the movie was faithful, "? to the letter of the
book, if not it's eerie spirit." The reviewer had juxtaposed his words,
meaning to say that the miniseries was faithful to the spirit, but not the
letter of the book. When I read the book afterward, I was annoyed that it
didn't hew more closely to the TV version. I've read the book again since
then and find that I prefer the book.
FROM HELL tells the story of Jack the Ripper from the point of view of
Police Inspector Abberline, a widower who has turned opium in his grief.
He also possesses a kind of second sight that allows him to see important
aspects of the Whitechapel murders before actually visiting the crime
scenes. He is assisted by Detective Sergeant Peter Godley, played by
Robbie Coltrane, a fiercely loyal policeman with a penchant for quoting
Shakespeare to patrolmen who don't recognize the words.
Heather Graham plays Mary Kelly, a prostitute whose friends are the specific
targets of Jack the Ripper.
Unlike previous portrayals, this Ripper has an agenda far beyond the
killing. He's up to his neck in a royal scandal, and the
murder/mutilations have a very specific meaning for him. The Ripper
believes he is above the laws of man, and he is almost correct in this.
I'd say more, but that would spoil the story.
Detective Abberline needs assistance from well above his station in life,
and obtaining that assistance in a class-conscious 1888 London is nearly
impossible. Only Dr. William Gull, played by Ian Holm, is willing to give
Abberline the time of day.
The movie is well-paced and scary. Even when you know what's supposed to
happen, the murders just jump out at you. The Hughes Brothers did a great
job of showing that 1888 London was a very brutal place if you were born in
the wrong caste, but even by those standards, Jack the Ripper was something
beyond what Whitechapel residents had ever experienced.
In an interview in the Onion, Alan Moore said that the book takes 5 hours
to read, and for a movie to come in at 2 hours, a lot of the stuff he found
interesting in the story would have to be cut out. He was convinced
though, that this cast and these directors were up to the task of making a
movie that was great in it's own right. As I understand it, FROM HELL is
one of the best researched treatments of the Ripper's story (Neil Gaiman
helped with the research, to drop yet another comic book name). A lot of
that detail and atmosphere comes through in the film. If you can stomach
the violence, but enjoy the sort of thriller that keeps you on the edge of
your seat, then I would recommend this movie very highly.
~~ Chris B.
Thanks, Chris - good review!
In The Chaos Household
Friday Night's TV
Started out watching ''Halloweentown'', and 'Halloweentown II' on the Disney Channel -
today was the kid's birthday, so he had first dibs on the remote.
Followed that with 'Young Frankenstein' on AMC. Gene Hackman gets me everytime.
Peter Boyle as the 'Monster', and 'Puttin' On The Ritz'...Yep, put me in a good mood.
Tonight, AMC is showing 'The Bride of Frankenstein (which, for film fiends - it's
one of the best horror movies (ever), yet a gentle mockery of the genre. The dialogue is
full of wry wit, and the photography is black & white at it's finest. The lighting is
stunning. [Digressing even further, Orson Welles once said none of the truly great films were
made in color - comments?] It was directed by James Whale, has Boris Karloff conveying
more with his eyes [and no dialogue] than an army of Bruce Willis' in a string of Jerry Bruckheimer
'block busters'. Last, but not least, is the always entertaining Elsa Lanchester as both the 'Bride'
and Mary Shelley, the spinner of the tale. If you've never seen it, it's worth the effort).
And, don't forget college football! Gotta get up early to see if Joe Paterno takes the title
from Bear Bryant. The Nittany Lions have been sucking a lot more than ever, but trying to keep a
good thought....
Anyone have any opinions?
Or reviews?
(See below for addresses)
'Emeril' Heading To The Back Burner
And More...
With his ratings sinking like a bad soufflé, superstar chef-turned-sitcom actor Emeril
Lagasse is being replaced next month by sitcom repeats, an hourlong edition of Three
Sisters and a Jennifer Lopez concert special--one of several changes the networks
have made to prep for the all-important sweeps period.
It's not surprising NBC would decide to drop Emeril for the month. But for those who
picked the critically flambéed show as first to go in their fall TV dead pool, the
fact that Emeril is even still around is surprising enough.
Since its September 25 debut, the series has averaged less than 8 million viewers in
its Tuesday 8 p.m. timeslot--not good, mind you, but not as horrible as what NBC scored
in the timeslot last fall. According to Daily Variety, NBC Entertainment President Jeff
Zucker is also sticking up for the series--which means for now (Bam!) the cooking sitcom
is scheduled to return in December.
Over at CBS, another fall underachiever, Wolf Lake, is getting yanked next Wednesday
at 10 p.m. in favor of an edited, hourlong edition of last weekend's Concert for New
York. The six-hour concert, featuring performances from Paul McCartney, the Who and
John Mellencamp, among others, originally aired last Saturday on Viacom sister station VH1.
Meanwhile, not all of the maneuvering is happening on the networks' schedules. For
example, the two creators of Richard Dreyfuss' CBS series The Education of Max Bickford
have stepped down amid sinking ratings and creative differences.
According to Hollywood trade reports, Dawn Prestwich and Nicole Yorkin are still working
on the production. But day-to-day control has been assumed by co-executive producer
Joe Cacaci, after CBS reportedly called for a change in the creative direction of
the show. The series, starring Dreyfuss as a college professor going through a mid-life
crisis, debuted strong in its Sunday 8 p.m. timeslot, but has since slipped, despite
a powerful lead-in from 60 Minutes.
Finally, however, we present some good news: The WB has announced it's picking up its
young Superman series Smallville for a full season. The decision was a no-brainer,
seeing that the series debuted to 8.4 million viewers last Tuesday--the largest
audience ever for a WB premiere. The series, starring Tom Welling as the Adolescent
of Steel, has averaged a healthy 7.8 million viewers after two episodes.
'Emeril' Heads To The Back Burner, And More...
Miss America Dissed?
Katie Harmon
The organizers of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade have invited Miss Universe
to participate instead of Miss America, who traditionally has had the honor.
Miss America Katie Harman of Oregon had planned to ride in the Nov. 22 parade, but
organizers told her this week that they'd already invited Miss Universe Denise Quinones.
Miss America Pageant winners have appeared in the parade since the 1960s, although
some have missed it because of scheduling conflicts. Three of the last five before
Harman participated.
According to the New York Post, Donald Trump, co-owner of the Miss Universe Organization,
pulled strings to get Quinones into the parade.
Not so, said Macy's spokeswoman Ronnie Taffet. No one with the Macy's parade ever
talked to Trump about it, she said.
In the meantime, Macy's officials - who last year opened a store in San Juan, Puerto
Rico - learned that Quinones was from Puerto Rico and liked the idea of including
her, Taffet said.
``Our intention was not to disappoint or upset Miss America. The intention, as always,
is to put on the most exciting parade the world's ever seen. We apologize for what seems
to be slighting her,'' Taffet said.
She said there have been talks about including both Miss America and Miss Universe
in the parade.
Is The Short-Fingered Vulgarian At It Again?
New! Updated!
BartCop Astrology
Check it out at BC Astrology.
This week, the official BartCop Astrologer has provided two charts.
One who's talent (and hearing, as well), is on loan from his god, and for contrast, an American visionary,
national treasure, and real-life role model, Helen Keller.
Very interesting reading!
Where's Bill Clinton?
Madrid, Spain
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton, right, shares a joke with Spain's Prime Minister Jose
Maria Aznar before their meeting in the Moncloa Palace in Madrid, Spain, Friday, Oct. 26, 2001.
Clinton is in the Spanish capital with other heads and former heads of government attending
the Democratic Transition and Consolidation conference. At center is an unidentified interpreter.
Photo by EFE, Bernardo Rodriguez
Good Grammar
Baby News
Kelsey Grammer, 46, and his wife, Camille, 33, have welcomed their first child together. The
newborn, a girl named Mason Olivia Grammer, was delivered by a surrogate mother
Wednesday in Los Angeles and weighed in at 8 pounds, 5 ounces.
The identity of the surrogate was not disclosed.
Kelsey married Camille, a model and former Club MTV dancer, in August 1997, after meeting
on a blind date a year earlier. When he's not acting and she's not modeling, they spend
quality time together speaking out on irritable bowel syndrome, which she suffers from.
Like his TV alter ego, Dr. Frasier Crane, Grammer is twice divorced. Like Camille,
his previous wives were also hoofers: Wife number two, Leigh-Anne Cushany, was an
exotic dancer and first wife Doreen Alderman was a dance instructor.
And while Mason is the first bambino for Kelsey and Camille, the Frasier star does
have two other daughters: Spencer, 16, from his marriage to Alderman; and Greer, 9,
from his relationship with makeup artist Barrie Buckner.
Grammer, who could add a fourth Frasier Emmy to his expansive trophy case next weekend,
has just signed a lucrative contract to keep playing his signature role through the
2004 season--a deal valued at more than $75 million.
The Grammar's Baby
BartCop TV!
Visit the site at BC TV
The 'Vidiot' never seems to rest!
Every show on TV must be listed--days worth of reading there.
For an amazing variety of information on an awesome array of tv programs check out
BC TV!
Coming To Madison, WI
Tribute To Chris Farley
Comedians Tom Arnold and Tim Meadows are among the celebrities expected at a fund-raiser
in memory of Chris Farley, the ``Saturday Night Live'' cast member who died in 1997.
``Comics Come Home'' is set for Dec. 1 at the Orpheum Theatre in Madison, said Farley's
brothers, Kevin and Tom Farley, in announcing plans for the event.
``SNL'' alum Jim Breuer is to host the show, sponsored by Comedy Central and Charter
Communications, which is the largest fund-raiser for the Chris Farley Foundation.
The foundation was formed shortly after Farley died at age 33 of an accidental overdose
of morphine and cocaine. It's dedicated to educating the public, and especially teen-agers,
about the dangers of substance abuse.
Tom Farley, the foundation's managing director and trustee, said it has sponsored educational
newspaper advertisements, distributed posters to local schools and is shooting public service
announcements with comedians, plus working with research centers in New York City and Madison
to deliver the most current information on its Web site.
The foundation also receives a portion of the sales of the video, ``The Best of Chris Farley.''
Chris Farley Tribute
Out Scalping The Scalpers?
'The Producers'
Here's the deal: choice seats for a record price.
``The Producers'' the town's toughest theater ticket, has rocked Broadway by planning
to sell 50 of the best seats in the house for a record $480 each, nearly five times
the show's current top ticket price.
The move was designed to thwart excess profits made by scalpers who buy tickets and
then resell them at a huge profit.
``What we're trying to do here is strike a blow at the heart of the scalping operation,''
producer Rocco Landesman, told The New York Times. ``The scalpers and their profits
serve no one but the scalpers. Those moneys belong to the people who created the
show, pure and simple.''
Under the deluxe ticket plan - expected to start early next month - seats in the
11th and 12th rows of the orchestra and the first three rows of the mezzanine at
the St. James Theatre will be sold at the premium price.
According to the Times, the ticket increase was to have been announced last month,
but was delayed by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. For
several months, $150 of each $480 ticket sold will be donated to the Twin Towers Fund.
Theatergoers have at least until mid-March to see its stars, Nathan Lane and Matthew
Broderick. That's when their contracts expire, and there has been no word whether
the two performers will stay with the show, which won a record 12 Tony Awards. Lane
received a Tony Award for his portrayal of the charlatan producer Max Bialystock,
who wants to produce a flop musical about Adolf Hitler.
Scalpers selling ``Producers'' tickets regularly advertise their wares on the Internet,
and the prices have varied - usually upward of $300 a ticket - for what are, in
most case, less-than-choice seats in the mezzanine and balcony.
Other producers were cautious about ``The Producers'' price hike, and none would criticize
the increase on the record.
'The Producers' To Out Scalp Scalpers
A 'Few' Curse Words
Britney Spears
Britney Spears' third studio album comes out next month, and it contains a few curse
words that she knows some parents may not want their children to hear.
``I guess they just shouldn't buy the album,'' Spears responded when asked about the
language on ``Britney'' during a conference call on Wednesday.
``When I say 'hell' and 'damn,' I say it out of frustration in my songs. It's not,
like, a normal term of endearment that I use all the time.''
The 19-year-old said it's flattering that girls look up to her, but they shouldn't
necessarily try to copy the sexy way she dresses on stage.
``It's honestly up to their parents to explain to them that I'm a performer, and that
when I'm on stage, that's my time to perform and express myself, that I don't wear
those clothes to the supermarket or to a ball game,'' she said.
``Britney'' is due in stores on Nov. 6.
Britney's Cursing
New!
In The Kitchen With BartCop & Friends
To check out 'Train Station Chicken', and more (like 'Cranberry Autumn Tea'),
In The Kitchen With BartCop
More Friar's Roast
Aaron Spelling
Among Aaron Spelling's upcoming projects: an HBO series about a Jersey mob of Mafia
eunuchs, ``The Falsettos''; a network series, ``Make Room for Puff Daddy''; a
prison-set sitcom, ``Oz and Harriet''; a MOW, ``John Bobbitt in 'Bye Bye Birdie''';
a game show, ``Who Wants to Be A Mohel?''; another series, ``Sabrina, The Teenage Yenta.''
It was, of course, Red Buttons headlining the (Beverly Hills) Friars' Lifetime Achievement
Award gala at the Beverly Hilton Wednesday. Buttons had just returned from Toronto guest
starring in the very dramatic ``Street Time'' for Showtime.
Nothing could be more drama-filled than the rest of the Friars evening (which raised
more than $500,000 for its various charities). Spelling himself frail, admitted on
his acceptance speech, ``I did not know Norm (Crosby) had the same thing I have.''
Crosby, who had preceded at the microphone, has completed his chemotherapy and other
treatments for cancer. The Friars had delayed the Spelling dinner from its original
Sept. 14 date to give Spelling time to regain strength.
Crosby admitted to me, ``I shouldn't be here -- I won't do another thing for a month.''
Although he was worried about his voice, Crosby was brilliant, his voice strong in a
strictly serious tribute to Spelling via a parodied Gettysburg address: ``Three score
and some odd years ago the Spelling family brought forth upon this continent a new
person, conceived in genius and dedicated to the proposition that all television
shows are not created equal.''
And ``The world will little note nor long remember what we say here but it can never
forget what he has done here. It is for us rather to be dedicated to a greater appreciation
for all that Aaron Spelling represents. It is for us rather to be here dedicated to a new
birth of gratitude for all that Aaron Spelling has given to our industry -- and that
Aaron Spelling television, television of the people, by the people, for the people
shall not perish from the Earth.''
Crosby delivered sans prompter, notes, cue cards.
Unscripted dramatic moments started in the VIP pre-show Versailles room of the Beverly
Hilton when Jack Carter had to be rushed to the hospital by wife Roxanne when he noted
bleeding. When I spoke to him (at the hospital) he said he was awaiting tests Friday to
ascertain the cause. Carter's confident he'll be OK -- he's to be honored by the Friars
Nov. 9 with the Friars' Freddie Roman winging out from the N.Y. Club to head the tribute.
A short while after the Spelling tribute dinner started, Jolene Schlatter fainted and
husband George Schlatter, producer of the show, rushed her to the emergency room of
the Century City Hospital where she underwent tests. George, of course, remained with
her -- never saw the show he produced.
It included the above-mentioned Buttons and Crosby appearances plus a generous program by
Diahann Carroll, a toasting (roasting) by Don Rickles, Monty Hall as auctioneer, Robbie
Britt who sang ``Proud To be an American,'' presentation of the award to Spelling by dinner
chairman Sumner Redstone, remarks by dinner co-chairman Steve Wynn, welcome by Friars
president/dean Irwin Schaeffer. Larry King m.c'd and led all in the Pledge of Allegiance
and singing ``God Bless America,'' opening-closing the evening respectively.
The Ever-Fabulous Army Archerd On The Aaron Spelling Roast
More Concert Tours Cancelled/Postponed
Now, Dave Matthews
First it was Janet Jackson. Then Destiny's Child. Now the Dave Matthews Band has joined
a chorus of American pop acts who have canceled or postponed overseas tours since last
month's terrorist attacks.
It's another setback to the industry, which already was experiencing an off year
before Sept. 11.
``The economy is down, ticket prices are up,'' Barbieri said. ``Ticket grosses were
OK for the third quarter, but attendance was down.''
Jackson canceled her European tour two weeks after the World Trade Center and Pentagon
assaults, citing concern for her fans.
Since then, Weezer has canceled its European tour; Destiny's Child has pushed back its fall European tour until May; Slipknot postponed its ``Pledge of Allegiance'' European tour until sometime in 2002; and this week, Dave Matthews Band canceled its tour of Mexico, Germany and the United Kingdom, citing the attacks and the need to stay close to family. Several other tours have been delayed or canceled as well.
'N Sync had no overseas concerts planned, but even member Lance Bass acknowledged
he was reluctant to travel.
``Yeah, I'm a little hesitant going to other countries,'' Bass said. ``Going to a
whole different place, you don't know how it's run.''
The only exception to the international and domestic downturn is U2. The group has
sold out its fall tour dates, which went on sale shortly after the attacks.
At this point it's unclear when the concert industry will begin to rebound.
Not A Good Time For Concert Tours
Her First Interview
Niki Taylor
Niki Taylor says the body that made her one of the world's most-photographed models
is forever scarred, but somehow that doesn't matter much anymore.
In her first interview since surviving a near-fatal car wreck six months ago, Taylor
gives Us Weekly a first-hand account of her brush with death, painful recovery and
joyful reunion with her kids.
The 26-year-old model says she still has lingering nightmares after her April 29 accident
in Atlanta and also faces the prospect of more surgery to fix a curvature of the spine
that resulted from her being bed-ridden for two and a half months while she recovered
in a hospital.
Taylor sustained severe internal injuries when the car she was riding in struck a utility
pole. The driver, Taylor's friend James Renegar, lost control of his 1993 Nissan Maxima
on an off-ramp when he looked down to answer his cell phone.
Taylor, who was wearing her seatbelt and initially seemed unhurt, later began having
intense stomach pains and was rushed to Atlanta's Grady Memorial Hospital in critical
condition where she remained until July, when doctors finally gave her the okay to go home.
Recalling her first moments after the crash, the runway star said she stumbled out
of the car and laid down on a patch of grass holding her stomach where it "hurt so
bad" that she began to cry, then passed out just as the ambulances arrived.
At the hospital, surgeons worked overtime to save her life, performing more than 40
operations. As Taylor says, "I now have scars all over my stomach--it looks like I
have a 16 pack."
In those first critical days, doctors told her manager Lou Taylor (no relation), to
prepare her family for the possibility that she might not make it. But, despite a
few setbacks, Taylor rallied and became stronger.
"When I woke up from surgery, I thought I was a vegetable. I couldn't move or talk
because of the breathing tube and the ventilator," says Taylor. "It was very uncomfortable,
and it was hard to swallow, but that machine kept me alive."
She also said her body ballooned to four times her normal size because of fluid build up.
What seemed like a few days was really a two-month hospital stay, a drowsy Taylor
later learned. For much of that period, the model was under heavy sedation and could
only communicate with her family by mouthing words (the first word she whispered was
"Coke" because she says she was really thirsty).
Taylor was very weak from having been bed-ridden for nearly two and a half months and
was forced to relearn everything, even how to write. But what kept her going, she says,
was her boys.
"All I wanted was to live to see my boys again. They gave me the strength to fight,"
says Taylor, who could only see them through video since they were too young to be allowed
into the intensive care ward of the hospital.
Her six-year-old twins, Jake and Hunter, were being cared for by their father, Taylor's
ex-husband, Matt Martinez, at home in Florida. When she finally did see them by the
end of June, she said she cried for hours and they spent the whole night with her.
The former Sports Illustrated swimsuit star said she was also touched by the thousands
of get-well cards sent to her by fans and the kindness of strangers, one of whom, an Atlanta man, even offered to donate his liver.
And in those painful days, the last thing Taylor said she was thinking about was her
career as one of the fashion industry's most photographed faces.
"A job is a job," she says. "I am much more interest in life. I am just so grateful
right now that I can move my arms and legs, that I can breathe, that I came out of
this nightmare alive, that I'm with my boys."
In addition to her crooked spine, Taylor says her legs are numb from nerve damage,
some of her hair has fallen out from the antibiotics (don't worry guys, it'll grow
back), and the scars on her stomach "will never fade."
But, if there's any good that's come out of this difficult period of her life, she
says she's learned to have a sense of humor and not worry so much about the future
of her modeling career as much as appreciate the fact that she's alive.
Says Taylor: "I definitely think the big man upstairs is saying, 'You've gotta live.
It's not your time yet.' "
Niki Taylor Talks About Recovery
As Promised
Bonus Page Link
Here are a couple of MP3 files from BC
Liberal Radio !
Erin Hart
Who cares about the World Series (ok we MIGHT sneak a peek). Gooooo ???????
Plus the latest from our CBS correspondent in Pakistan; life after anthrax & other bioterrors.
And Lockheed wins over Boeing, will the home team ever get a break?
Join us from 9 pm to 1 am (pdt) Saturday and 9 pm to 1 am (pst) at www.710kiro.com
In Memory
Pat Ast
Pat Ast, a model and actress who appeared in Andy Warhol films, died Oct. 2. She was 59.
Born in New York, Ast worked as a receptionist and clerk in a box factory when she met
Warhol and starred in his 1972 movie, "Heat," with Joe Dallesandro and Sylvia Miles.
After meeting fashion designer Roy Halston, Ast worked as a model in his Madison Avenue
store, although she weighed 210 pounds.
Ast moved to Los Angeles in the mid-1970s and appeared in several films, including
"Reform School Girls," "The Incredible Shrinking Woman" and the Chevy Chase-Goldie
Hawn comedy, "Foul Play."
Pat Ast
The Best Comic Strip In America
"Boondocks" (27 Oct 01)
Ooooooh -- Really Like This One....
"Boondocks" (22 Oct 01)
Still Really Like This One....
"Boondocks" (9 Oct 01)
Gonna let it ride for awhile.
Still MISSING
Marc Chagall's "Study for 'Over Vitebsk'"
