Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Elbert Ventura: The Return of Leos Carax (Slate)
"Holy Motors"-one of the best movies of the year-will make you long for the movies the French auteur never made.
Donald McRae: "Orlando Cruz: 'I wanted to take out the thorn inside me and have peace'" (Guardian)
The Puerto Rican, who became the first boxer to declare publicly that he was gay, explains his long and traumatic struggle against fear and prejudice and his fight to be true to himself. … Cruz laughs as a way of easing his emotions. "You should have seen me," he says, remembering the moment he told his mother he was gay. "I was crying! She was crying! I am emotional and I am so close to my mother. She said: 'It doesn't matter. You are my son. I love you.' That made me cry some more."
Brent Brookhouse: Miguel Cotto congratulates Orlando Cruz for coming out as a gay man (Bad Left Hook)
"For many years Orlandito and I spent time together on the national team of Puerto Rico. We went to the Central [games], Pan American [games], World Championships, Olympics ... I have a great appreciation for Orlandito. I congratulate him...Orlandito is my friend. I'm sure it wasn't easy for him [to make that announcement], but I congratulate him. From this point forward he will see that his life will change a lot and things will be much better for him."
Paul Krugman: Introduction to Isaac Asimov's Foundation trilogy
And now for something completely different (and fun): The Folio Society has just issued a deluxe new edition of Isaac Asimov's Foundation trilogy. And they picked an unusual person to write the introduction (pdf).
"Damn You All to Hell" (Letters of Note)
In July of this year, in an admirable attempt to secure him as a guest on his Nerdist Podcast, Chris Hardwick sent a beautiful 1934 Smith Corona to noted typewriter collector Tom Hanks and popped the question. Within days, Hanks responded with the charming letter seen below, typed on the Corona.
Eddie Deezen: The Strange Death of Alfalfa (Neatorama)
But in 2000, a new witness, Tom Corrigan, came forward. He was the son of actor Ray "Crash" Corrigan and Bud Stiltz's stepson, and was only 14 years old at the time of the incident. Although for years it was assumed that the death of Alfalfa was his own fault, Tom disagrees. "He didn't have to kill him," he said of his stepfather.
David Grossman: "At Home With Mama: An Interview With Martha Wainwright" (PopMatters)
Generations echo through Martha Wainwright's voice, which is exactly how she wants it.
Tommy Wooldridge: Taylor Swift pick up lines (YouTube)
I want a girlfriend like Taylor Swift, so I decided to see if Taylor Swift's lyrics could be used as pick up lines. Awkwardness ensues.
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David Bruce has 42 Kindle books on Amazon.com with 250 anecdotes in each book. Each book is $1, so for $42 you can buy 10,500 anecdotes. Search for "Funniest People," "Coolest People, "Most Interesting People," "Kindest People," "Religious Anecdotes," "Maximum Cool," and "Resist Psychic Death."
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Reader Suggestion
Michelle in AZ
From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Soupy marine layer - some drizzle, not a lot of sun, but pleasant.
Elf in Peter Jackson's 'Hobbit'?
Stephen Colbert
This is the best news we've heard about the Hobbit trilogy yet: comedian Stephen Colbert is going to appear in either the second or third movie.
The Hollywood Reporter's Kim Masters and Eric Carlson confirmed the rumor on Saturday. Colbert dropped a clue that he might appear in one of the Hobbit movies in a November interview with Playboy, of all places. It would make the most sense for Colbert's cameo to be as an elf considering he's fluent in elvish, something many of the other elves in the movie probably can't claim. We don't know what role Colbert's playing yet, though. He could be an elf, or a dwarf, or a hobbit, or something completely different. A wing-toed newt, even.
Playboy heard Colbert flew down to the set, and asked if he was only invited to watch. An unlikely prospect, though it could be seen as a nice gesture from director Peter Jackson to Colbert, a super fan of Tolkien's universe. When they asked if he appears in the movie, Colbert would only smile.
Stephen Colbert
Moves Venue of Philippine Concert
Sting
Sting has moved the location of his "Back to Bass Tour" concert in the Philippines following a petition by environmentalists who said the original venue is owned by a conglomerate that plans to uproot 182 trees for a parking lot and mall expansion in a northern mountain city.
The SM Mall of Asia Arena said on Saturday that changing the site of the Dec. 9 concert was "the decision of the artist himself."
"Understandably, the known environment advocate artist was left with no choice in spite of the SM representatives' appeal," it said in a statement.
SM Prime Holdings, which operates SM malls and the arena on Manila Bay, is owned by the Philippines' richest man, mall mogul Henry Sy.
Sting
NYC Exhibition
Katharine Hepburn
A new exhibition is hailing the fashion sense of Katharine Hepburn, whose trademark khakis and open-collar shirts were decidedly unconventional in the 1930s and 40s, when girdles and stockings were the order of the day.
The fiercely independent Hepburn famously once said: "Anytime I hear a man say he prefers a woman in a skirt, I say, 'Try one. Try a skirt.'"
But skirts and dresses abound in "Katharine Hepburn: Dressed for Stage and Screen" at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, which opens Thursday.
Hepburn, who died in 2003 at age 96, saved almost all the costumes from her long career that included four Oscars and such memorable films as "The Philadelphia Story," ''The African Queen," ''Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" and "On Golden Pond." Forty are on view at the exhibition, which runs through Jan. 12.
Katharine Hepburn
Town Sells $10 Plots of Land
Reston, Manitoba
Got an extra ten bucks? If so, you, too, could be the owner of a sparkling new home in Reston, Manitoba, a rural prairie town in Southern Manitoba bordering Saskatchewan on the west and North Dakota on the south.
In an effort to jump on the oil boom in that part of the country, officials are once again selling undeveloped land for a mere $10, an initiative they first started in 2010. Back then they had 14 lots for sale, 11 of which have houses built on them today, economic development officer Tanis Chalmers told ABC News .
That plan was so successful that in September the Rural Municipality of Pipestone, of which Reston is the biggest town (population: 550), decided to put up an additional 10 lots for sale, along with the three left from 2010. Nine remain, "But I've had offers on them already from both Canada and the U.S," said Chalmers, adding that the initiative has been so effective that the local school finally "has a standalone kindergarten class."
The plan is pretty straightforward: To purchase a property, wannabe homeowners have to sign an agreement and put down a $1,000 deposit. Once a lot is purchased, owners have 90 days to begin construction, and 12 months to complete it. As soon as the town receives your occupancy permit, they will refund $990 of the original down payment.
Reston, Manitoba
Reaches Settlement
CBS
CBS Television Distribution and ComStar Media have agreed to settle their lawsuit over the airing of several classic series, including "Happy Days," "My Three Sons" and "Family Ties."
CBS sued ComStar - owned by GodTube founder Chris Wyatt and "Hour of Power" minister Robert Schuller - for $1.5 million in April, claiming that the company had stopped paying its licensing fees for the programs.
The suit actually stems from an agreement that CBS had struck with FamilyNet, which was acquired by ComStar and was also named in the complaint. According to CBS, FamilyNet entered an agreement in December 2008 to license the above series. According to the complaint, ComStar stopped making payments soon after acquiring FamilyNet.
ComStar had maintained that it wasn't obligated to pay the licensing fees, as it didn't acquire FamilyNet's liabilities when they purchased it.
The terms of the settlement agreement were not disclosed.
CBS
California Freeway Closed
'Hangover 3'
Drivers are being warned to avoid sections of a Southern California freeway that will be shut down this weekend for filming of the third installment of the "Hangover" movie franchise.
Sections of the 73 Freeway in coastal Orange County will see staggered closures until 7 p.m. Sunday.
To the south, the freeway becomes a toll road. The Los Angeles Times reports that the film's producer, Warner Bros., will pay for lost toll revenues and other costs.
Lori Olin, a spokeswoman for the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor, tells the newspaper the agency will receive at least $25,000, including location fees.
'Hangover 3'
Big Fire
Big Tex
Big Tex, the metal cowboy whose slow drawl of "Howdy, folks!" made him an icon of the State Fair of Texas for 60 years, was destroyed Friday when flames engulfed his 52-foot-tall frame.
Some material that made up Big Tex's hands and sleeves could still be seen as firefighters gathered around the scorched area. This year's fair, which closes Sunday and had been celebrating the towering structure's birthday, went on despite the fire - just as Big Tex would want it.
"Big Tex is a symbol of everything the state fair stands for," fair spokeswoman Sue Gooding said. "Big Tex is where my parents told me, 'If you get lost, meet at Big Tex.'"
The cowboy always was easy to spot, with his 75-gallon hat and 50-pound belt buckle.
Big Tex
New Study
Earlier Puberty
When it comes to the birds and the bees, some parents may want to have that talk with their boys a little sooner than they expected.
Researchers have found signs of puberty in American boys up to two years earlier than previously reported - age 9 on average for blacks, 10 for whites and Hispanics. Other studies have suggested that girls, too, are entering puberty younger.
Why is this happening? Theories range from higher levels of obesity and inactivity to chemicals in food and water, all of which might interfere with normal hormone production. But those are just theories, and they remain unproven.
Earlier research based on 20-year-old national data also suggested a trend toward early puberty in boys, but it was based on less rigorous information. The new study involved testes measurements in more than 4,000 boys. Enlargement of testes is generally the earliest sign of puberty in boys.
Doctors generally consider puberty early if it begins before age 8 in girls and before age 9 in boys.
Earlier Puberty
Statue's Head Recovered
Agrippina the Younger
Italian police have recovered a statue head believed to be of the mother of Roman emperor Nero - artwork that was stolen more than two decades ago from the ruins of Pompeii.
The announcement Thursday from the Carabinieri in the northern Italian city of Piacenza said a professional art trafficker had tried to sell the work but it was too well known to attract buyers.
Nero's mother, Agrippina the Younger, has been described as a ruthless, beautiful woman who in some historical accounts is said to have been killed by her own son in A.D. 59.
Twenty years later, in A.D. 79, the city of Pompeii was destroyed by a volcanic eruption from nearby Mount Vesuvius.
Agrippina the Younger
Phoenix House For Sale
Frank Lloyd Wright
A Phoenix home designed by noted architect Frank Lloyd Wright had been threatened with demolition but is now about to go on the market.
The 1952 home will be listed Monday for sale at $2,379,000, real estate broker Robert Joffe said Friday.
Joffe said there wouldn't be strings on the sale but that he doesn't foresee the house being bought for resale or as a residence for the purchaser. Instead, he said he expects a philanthropic buyer either would donate the property to a Wright foundation or use it for housing for students at a Wright-affiliated school.
Wright designed the home for his son, David, and daughter-in-law, Gladys, who died in 1997 and 2008, respectively. Wright family members sold the two-acre property in 2008, and the property has been resold since. The current owners planned to demolish the home to redevelop the property.
Any immediate threat to the home was averted at least temporarily earlier this month when the owners and the city reached an agreement to put any work on hold to allow time to find a buyer.
Frank Lloyd Wright
Feds End Landing Argument
Sir Francis Drake
The federal government has apparently ended a 433-year-old historical controversy by determining that English sea captain and explorer Sir Francis Drake came ashore in what is now a county in the San Francisco Bay area when he claimed California for England.
For years, some historians and other scholars said Drake landed on the Point Reyes Peninsula, north of San Francisco, in Marin County.
But others pointed to what they considered evidence that Drake landed in locations ranging from San Francisco Bay to Alaska, Oregon, British Columbia or other sites along the California coast.
Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar apparently ended the controversy this week when he designated the Drake site as Point Reyes in Marin County as one of 27 spots nationwide that are national historic or natural landmarks, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Saturday.
Sir Francis Drake
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