'TBH Politoons'
Thanks, again, Tim!
Reader Suggestion
Whatever
An amusing little animation sent by your old friend
whatever
zen ferret
Thanks, Mr. Ferret!
He's Been Busy!
The Worried Shrimp
Selected Saturday Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
Contributor Comment
Nader
Nader's gonna fuck it up again
Can you believe this shit???After what happened last time and the resulting disaster of the rule of bunnypants,you'd think this moron would have better sense...his presence increases the likelihood that this trainwreck of an administration will get another four years to really break it off in our ass...
R...
The nature of your oppression is the aesthetic of our anger...
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Sunny, cool & breezy.
Running late - baked some pies to take behind the Orange Curtain - AKA: the family obligation.
Tonight, Saturday, CBS starts the night with a FRESH 'The Price Is Right Million Dollar Spectacular' (which also doubles as Bob Barker's 80th birthday), followed by a
FRESH 'Hack', then a FRESH 'The District'.
NBC rolls out the movie 'It's A Wonderful Life'.
'SNL' is FRESH, with Elijah Wood as host, music by Jet.
ABC RERUNs 'Charlie Brown Christmas', followed by the movie 'I'll Be Home For Christmas'.
The WB has NBA basketball here.
Faux has 'Cops', another 'Cops', and 'America's Most Wanted'.
'MAD TV' is FRESH.
UPN has the movie 'Chitty Chitty Bang Bang'.
A&E has 'City Confidential/, 'American Justice', 'Cold Case Files', and 'Andrew Luster'.
AMC ofers the movie 'The Horse Whisperer', followed by the movie 'Ghost', then the movie 'Colors'.
BBC -
[6pm] 'Keeping Up Appearances' - Episode 3;
[6:40pm] 'My Hero' - Car;
[7:20pm] 'Keeping Up Appearances' - Episode 4;
[8pm] 'Red Cap' - Cold War;
[9pm] 'Rebel Heart' - Part One;
[10pm] 'Cambridge Spies' - Episode 3;
[11pm] 'Dead Ringers' - Episode 6;
[11:30pm] 'Dead Ringers' - Episode 5;
[ 12am] 'Red Cap' - Cold War;
[1am] 'Rebel Heart' - Part One;
[2am] 'Cambridge Spies' - Episode 3;
[3am] 'Dead Ringers' - Episode 6;
[3:30am] 'Dead Ringers' - Episode 5;
[4am] 'Red Cap' - Cold War;
[5am] 'Rebel Heart' - Part One; and
[6am] 'BBC World News'. (ALL TIMES EST)
Bravo has 'Queer Eye', followed by the movie 'The Silence Of The Lambs', then the movie 'Silence Of The Lambs', again.
History has 'Battlefield Detective', and 'Last Mission'.
SciFi has the movie 'Route 666', followed by the movie 'Faust: Love Of The Damened', then the movie 'Candyman 3: Day Of The Dead'.
TCM celebrates the night featuring the ever-debonair
David Niven.
[6am] 'Sadie McKee' (1934)
[8am] 'High Sierra' (1941)
[10am] 'Geronimo' (1962)
[12pm] 'Hills Of Home' (1948)
[2pm] 'The Adventures of Robin Hood' (1938)
[4pm] 'Shadow Of The Thin Man' (1941)
[6pm] 'Bonnie and Clyde' (1967)
[8pm] 'Wuthering Heights' (1939)
[10pm] 'Separate Tables' (1958)
[12am] 'The King's Thief' (1955)
[1:30am] 'The Dawn Patrol' (1938)
[3:15am] 'Eye Of The Devil' (1966)
[5am] 'The Extraordinary Seaman' (1969). (ALL TIMES EST)
British scientist Jane Goodall poses for photographers in Vienna's historical Schoenbrunn zoo December 11, 2003. Goodall is in Vienna to promote the opening of the Jane Goodall Institute-Austria for Wildlife Research, Education and Conservation to provide ongoing support for field research on wild chimpanzees.
Photo by Leonhard Foeger
The Information One-Stop
Moose & Squirrel
Named Entertainer of Year
Johnny Depp
Piracy was lucrative work for Johnny Depp this year: E! Entertainment Television named the "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" star as its entertainer of the year.
The network bestows the award in a special on Monday at 9 p.m. ET.
Johnny Depp
'Let's Eat: Feasting on the Firesign Theatre'
'Firesign Theatre'
If you're going to do sketches from the "Firesign Theatre," but not with the original comedy troupe, how about Julia Louis-Dreyfus and John Goodman in their place?
Louis-Dreyfus, of "Seinfeld" fame, and Goodman ("Roseanne") will be joined by Howard Hesseman, Tim Meadows and others, including Brad Hall, who's married to Louis-Dreyfus.
They'll perform sequences from the Firesign Theatre's audio-plays with live music from Todd Rundgren and others, plus sound-effects.
"Let's Eat: Feasting on the Firesign Theatre" is planned as a one-time-only performance April 1 — April Fool's Day — at Royce Hall on the UCLA campus in West Los Angeles.
'Firesign Theatre'
Stones Singer Knighted
Mick Jagger
An icon of rock rebelliousness officially joined the British establishment Friday — and hardly anyone objected.
Rolling Stone Keith Richards was that rare dissenter as bandmate Mick Jagger — the group's raffish, womanizing front man once convicted on a drug charge — accepted a knighthood from Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace.
The lack of fuss marked a shift in British attitudes since 1965, when some outraged dignitaries returned their gold medals in protest after The Beatles were made Members of the Order of the British Empire, or MBE. Times change. Former Beatle Paul McCartney, Beatles' producer George Martin, Elton John and Cliff Richard preceded Jagger as rock knights.
Two other senior rockers — Gerry Marsden of Gerry and the Pacemakers, and Gary Brooker of Procol Harum — were at the palace Thursday to collect MBEs for their charity work.
Jagger came to the ceremony with his 92-year-old father Joe — who decades ago chided his son's passion for "jungle music" — and daughters Karis, 32, and Elizabeth, 19.
Mick Jagger
Rolling Stone Sir Mick Jagger, 2nd left, 60, with his 92-year-old father, Joe, left, and daughters Elizabeth, right, and Karis, who holds the knighthood insignia at Buckingham Palace Friday.
Photo by Matthew Fearn
Oprah Issues Invite
David Letterman
The "Super Bowl of Love" will go on after all: Oprah Winfrey has invited David Letterman to be a guest on her show.
Letterman had been begging Winfrey to appear on the CBS "Late Show," which she said she wouldn't do again because she felt uncomfortable during her previous two appearances.
Now, in an apparent attempt at resolving their public feud, Winfrey has asked him to appear on her syndicated daytime program.
"What we're hearing now is that Oprah no longer hates me," Letterman said on the episode airing at 11:35 p.m. EST Friday. "And what we're hearing now — and while I'm gratified on the one hand, I'm a little concerned about this — we're hearing that Oprah is actually inviting me to appear on her show."
A spokeswoman for Winfrey's show confirmed Friday that the talk show host had extended an invitation to Letterman, but could provide no further details.
David Letterman
War Child Christmas Card
Leonard Cohen
Poet and singer Leonard Cohen is displaying yet another artistic side this holiday season - his drawing of an angel watching over children is featured on War Child Canada's annual Christmas card.
Requests for cards are pouring in to the charity, which raises money for children in war zones around the world and works closely with the music industry to generate awareness, support and action for children's rights everywhere.
The artwork, Cohen's first-ever for a holiday card, is his second donation to War Child this year. Earlier, he contributed the song Anthem to the benefit album Peace Songs, which features more than 20 artists performing in support of the charity. So far, it has raised over $200,000.
Holiday cards can be ordered online at www.warchild.ca.
Leonard Cohen
Pulls Plug on `Punk'd'
Ashton Kutcher
Ashton Kutcher says the joke is no longer on him — he announced Friday that he's pulling out of the MTV prank show, "Punk'd," after two seasons.
The last new episode featuring Kutcher, star of "That '70s Show," is set to run Sunday, where the victim of a practical joke will be singer Beyonce Knowles.
It's possible the announcement is a trick aimed at duping new prank victims. A page on MTV's Web site that promotes Sunday's season finale pledges: "But don't worry, the new season starts in March."
Ashton Kutcher
In The Kitchen With BartCop & Friends
2004 MusiCares Person of the Year
Sting
Tony Bennett, the Black Eyed Peas, Elvis Costello, Dido, Elton John, Diana Krall, k.d. lang, Dave Matthews, John Mayer and Rufus Wainwright will perform in honor of Sting at the 2004 MusiCares Person of the Year gala.
Sting will receive the honor at a special tribute dinner, concert and silent auction Feb. 6 in Los Angeles, the Recording Academy said Tuesday. The gala is part of a weeklong festival leading up to the Grammy Awards, which will be presented Feb. 8.
Sting
Entertainer and comedian Bill Cosby (L) greets his 60-year old brother Russell prior to his brother's graduation with a political science degree from Florida A & M University in Tallahassee, Florida December 12, 2003. The comedian not only came to see his brother graduate, but delivered the commencement address to the 750 graduates of the only public, historically black university in Florida.
Photo by Mark Wallheiser
Stopped Breathing
Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne stopped breathing and his heart stopped beating for more than a minute after a crash on an all-terrain vehicle, a newspaper quoted his wife as saying Friday.
Sharon Osbourne said a security guard who was with the rock star resuscitated him, the Daily Mirror tabloid reported.
She reportedly added that Ozzy Osbourne crashed as he drove over uneven ground and the bike landed on top of him.
Ozzy Osbourne
Envoy Against The Death Penalty
Bianca Jagger
Bianca Jagger, ex-wife of Rolling Stones lead singer Mick Jagger, was named goodwill ambassador against the death penalty by the Council of Europe.
Nicaraguan-born Jagger, an international campaigner for human rights since her eight-year marriage to the rock superstar ended in 1979, had led "a remarkable fight" against capital punishment, council Secretary General Walter Schwimmer said in a statement.
Jagger will be officially appointed goodwill ambassador, an honorific title, at a dinner in Paris on Tuesday.
Bianca Jagger
Formerly 'The Vidiot'
Drawing Barred From U.S. Exhibit
Chuck Bowden
An award-winning drawing blaming resident George W. Bush for the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States was pulled from a small-town exhibit over "insurance issues" after a businessman withdrew his $300 prize and called the piece a form of "hate speech."
Artist Chuck Bowden's drawing, The Tactics of Tyrants Are Always Transparent, won second place in the Redwood Art Association's annual fall exhibit, held earlier this month in Eureka, Calif. In the drawing, a crown and halo-topped Bush stands on a grave, his hand dripping with blood as bodies fall to the ground from the World Trade Center towers in the distance.
Bowden called it a tribute to those who lost their lives in New York City on Sept. 11, 2001 and acknowledged the piece was meant to place blame for the attacks squarely on the shoulders of the president.
But the work upset at least one sponsor. After Bowden's piece was deemed the second place winner by the lone judge, it was quietly bubble-wrapped and stuffed into a closet, while 193 other works were prepared for the exhibit's public opening.
An anonymous donor gave $300 in cash to replace the rescinded gift-certificate award and Bowden accepted. But for the 45-year-old artist, it wasn't simply about the money, it was about the freedom to artistically express unpopular views.
Chuck Bowden
Le sextuple champion du monde de Formule 1, l'Allemand Michael Schumacher, a perdu 2 à 1 une série de courses opposant sa Ferrari 2003-GA à un chasseur-bombardier Eurofighter, jeudi sur l'aéroport de Baccarini à Grosseto.
• Photo by Patrick Hertzog
Claims Brother Mistreated
Jermaine Jackson
Michael Jackson's brother said the pop star was physically mistreated while in custody of the Santa Barbara Sheriff's Department. Department officials disputed the claim.
Jermaine Jackson told MSNBC in an interview broadcast Thursday that his brother has proof that "he was very much mistreated." He declined to give specifics, saying only, "The pictures will show you everything."
The singer was booked after arriving at the Santa Barbara airport in a private jet that rolled part way into a hangar before he got out and rode away in a caravan of cars. He entered the jail in handcuffs, accompanied by his attorney.
Jermaine Jackson
Producers Sue NBC
'Will & Grace'
The executive producers of "Will & Grace" have sued NBC and its production studio, alleging the network conspired to keep the sitcom's price down to reduce the producers' share of the profits.
In the complaint filed Thursday in Los Angeles Superior Court, David Kohan and Jason Mutchnick ask for damages, saying the network and NBC Studios breached contracts and acted in bad faith.
The men, who created the show and wrote many of its episodes, accuse the two companies of failing to shop the show to the highest bidder, colluding instead to keep profits within the NBC family. General Electric owns both companies.
Kohan and Mutchnick said the lawsuit stems from the industrywide trend of media conglomerates buying up independent production studios.
'Will & Grace'
Postponed as Authenticity Checked
Van Gogh Auction
The auction of a newly discovered Van Gogh painting thought to be worth a small fortune has been postponed so that experts from Amsterdam's Van Gogh Museum can check its authenticity.
The small town of Portets in southwestern France had been braced for a flood of visitors on Saturday, the day initially set to auction the painting of field workers which was bought at a flea market 12 years ago for 1,500 euros ($1,837). "The Van Gogh Museum offered late in the afternoon (on Thursday) to have another look at the painting, to carry out a fresh examination," auctioneer Eric Le Blay told Reuters.
Other experts and restorers say it is genuine, according to Le Blay, but the Van Gogh Museum has yet to deliver its verdict.
"In the interests of transparency, we prefer to postpone the sale. Based on the results, we will put the painting up for sale again," Le Blay said, adding he hoped the move would calm a wave of controversy that has erupted over the work's authenticity.
Van Gogh Auction
Farnsworth House Fetches $7.5 Million
Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe
Preservationists bought the Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe masterpiece, the Farnsworth House, at auction for $7.5 million on Friday, promising to keep the glass-walled home in its wooded setting near Chicago and turn it into a museum.
Richard Moe, president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, said on behalf of the coalition of preservationist groups that they were "ecstatic" at having won the bidding.
Completed in 1951 as a Plano, Illinois, retreat for Chicago doctor Edith Farnsworth, the minimalist design that seems to float on low steel stilts is one of three houses in the United States designed by Mies.
Mies, whose motto was "less is more" said the house was his effort to reduce architecture to "almost nothing."
Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe
In Memory
Frank Schubert
The last living vestige of a bygone era is gone: The keeper of a Brooklyn lighthouse, who stood watch over New York's gateway to the Atlantic Ocean for 43 years, has died.
Frank Schubert, 88, was the last of the Coast Guard's civilian lighthouse keepers in the United States, said Petty Officer Mike Hvozda. He died Thursday of natural causes at his cottage beneath the 113-year-old lighthouse on Brooklyn's Coney Island.
"The Coast Guard mourns the loss of its most courageous sentry of the sea," said Capt. Craig T. Bone, commander of Coast Guard Activities New York. "His devotion to duty and courage are unequaled."
Night after night, year after year, Schubert ensured that the ocean traffic at the nation's busiest port found safe passage around the pointy end of Brooklyn. He was responsible for maintaining the grounds, light and fog signal at the 80-foot-tall lighthouse.
Over the course of his career, Schubert was credited with saving the lives of 15 sailors. He survived howling hurricanes and towering waves, keeping the lighthouse beacon flashing through the rain and surf.
Even after the lighthouse became automated by the late 1980s, Schubert stayed on as an ambassador of good will and a reminder of maritime history.
Schubert was first assigned to a lighthouse off his native Staten Island at age 22, when the Coast Guard took over the U.S. Lighthouse Service in 1939.
Schubert was drafted and served in the Army during World War II. At the war's end, he came home and began working at another lighthouse in New York Harbor.
It was 1960 when Schubert took the job at the Coney Island lighthouse and never left.
Since its opening in 1890, only five other men have served at the Coney Island lighthouse — none longer than Schubert.
Frank Schubert
Giant panda Shuan Shuan looks pondering as she rests by bomboos in her new cage shortly after her unveiling ceremony to the public at Tokyo's Ueno Zoo Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2003. The 16-year-old female Shuan Shuan was flown to Tokyo Dec. 3 from Mexico City's Chapultepec Zoo for her breeding mission with 18-year-old Ling Ling whose three past mating trips to the Mexican zoo ended unsuccessful after he exhibited signs that he was ill at ease. If the breeding is successful, Shuan Shuan will remain in Japan until the spring of 2006 to watch over her off spring. If she does not get pregnant, she will return to Mexico next August.
Photo by Katsumi Kasahara
'The Osbournes'
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