New Year's Bonus!
Michael Dare
| WARNING: These individuals, whose names and dates of birth may be fictitious, are believed to have entered the United States illegally on or about December 24, 2002. Although the FBI has no specific information that these individuals are connected to any potential terrorist activities, based upon information developed in the course of on-going investigations, the FBI would like to locate and question these persons. | ||||||||||
| ||||||||||
| ||||||||||
'TBH Politoons'
Thanks, again, Tim!
Weekly Review
HARPER'S WEEKLY REVIEW
December 31, 2002
The Bush Administration revealed that it is preparing a
comprehensive strategy of political and economic measures to
pressure North Korea into backing down from its aggressive
pursuit of additional nuclear weapons, though Secretary of
State Colin Powell refused on television to characterize the
situation as a "crisis."
Administration officials privately
admitted that it was difficult to explain why it is
necessary to go to war with Iraq, where United Nations
weapons inspectors have the run of the country, while
counseling patience and diplomacy with North Korea, which
has threatened "uncontrollable catastrophe" and "merciless
punishment" for the United States and which just announced
the expulsion of U.N. inspectors.
The Bush Administration
promised to give Japan a missile shield to protect it from a
North Korean attack.
Iraq shot down an American Predator
drone, and allied jets bombed a command-and-control post
near Tallil. "The evil criminals in the evil American
administration and its humble servant Britain added a new
crime to their black record against civilization and
humanity and the houses of God," said the official Iraqi
news agency.
A coalition of Canadian peace groups announced
that it will send weapons inspectors to the United States.
Saddam Hussein, Burmese opposition leader Aung Sun Suu Kyi,
Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush were among the top
foreigners deserving British citizenship, according to the
audience of the BBC's "Today" radio program.
Serbia's
prime minister promised to extradite Serbia's president to
the United Nations war crimes tribunal at The Hague.
Senate Republicans selected Bill Frist of Tennessee to be
their new leader; Frist is a relative newcomer whose main
qualifications for Senate leadership are his close ties to
the White House and his ability to raise money.
Continued at www.harpers.org/weekly-review
-- Roger D. Hodge
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Started out with a bright, sunny morning, but it clouded over in the afternoon.
Jo (the remaining) lizard molted.
Will be having guests for eats tomorrow. The meal will feature what my grandfather called 'intestinal floss' - sauerkraut (he also referred to tapioca pudding as 'fish eyes & glue').
Tonight, Wednesday, CBS opens with '60 Minutes II, and then follows with the tv-movie 'The Wedding Dress'.
On a RERUN Dave are Nia Vardalos and director Barry Sonnenfeld.
On a RERUN Craiggers are Leah Remini and Donald Faison.
NBC offers nothing fresh - RERUN 'Ed', RERUN 'West Wing', RERUN 'Law & Order'.
Scheduled on a fresh Jay are Brendan Fraser, Wanda Sykes, and Dane Cook.
On what appears to be a RERUN Conan are Brian Williams, Marc Maron, and performance from Broadway's "Hairspray".
On a RERUN Carson Daly(from 6/20/02), are Freddie Prinze Jr. and Seven and the Sun.
ABC has the Sugar Bowl infringing on prime time, so expect local programming.
The WB here is re-re-re-re-re-rerunning 'The Tournament Of Roses Parade'. At least they do it well.
Faux has a RERUN 'Bernie Mac', then a RERUN 'Cedric The Entertainer', followed by a RERUN 'Fastlane'.
UPN has a RERUN 'Enterprise', followed by a RERUN 'Twilight Zone'.
Sci-Fi's 'Twilight Zone' marathon continues until 3am!
TCM features BIG musicals - 'Oklahoma', 'South Pacific', and 'Flower Drum Song'.
Anyone have any opinions?
Or reviews?
(See below for addresses)
Madison Square Garden
Goggles
Jason LeBloch of Santa Monica, Calif., 24, wears goggles he made from detergent bottles as he waits in front of New York's Madison Square Garden with Phish fans
trying to obtain tickets to the sold-out Phish concert there later in the evening, Tuesday, Dec. 31, 2002. LeBloch, an industrial designer specializing in medical
equipment, said his glasses ' help me connect to the universe outside.'
Photo by Scout Tufankjian)
Free Rolling Stones Concert In LA
Stop Global Warming
Blethyn, Bates, Cox, Fox & Scott
Newest Titled
Film director Ridley Scott and actor Alan Bates won knighthoods Tuesday, two of a clutch of figures from the arts world honored by Britain.
Scott, who will become Sir Ridley, is responsible for cult movies "Blade Runner" and "Thelma and Louise," blockbusters like "Gladiator" and the Hannibal Lecter sequel "Hannibal" and war film "Black Hawk Down."
Bates' career spans five decades. Perhaps most famously he grappled naked with the late Oliver Reed in the 1969 film of D.H. Lawrence's "Women in Love." He recently shone in a star-studded cast in U.S.
director Robert Altman's "Gosford Park," a satire on the British class system.
Versatile Scottish actor Brian Cox, who was first to portray cannibal serial killer Lecter on film, becomes a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire).
Actress Brenda Blethyn, twice Oscar-nominated, receives an OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) as does Edward Fox. His distinguished theater and cinema career featured "Day of the Jackal," where
he played a cold assassin, and World War II movie "A Bridge Too Far."
Newest Titled
On A&E January 10
Nobel Peace Prize Concert
A&E will screen the two-hour "Nobel Peace Prize Concert," featuring performances by Jennifer Lopez, Santana, Willie Nelson and Hall & Oates, on Jan. 10 at 9 p.m.
Honoring the Nobel Peace Prize winner Jimmy Carter, former president of the U.S., the concert took place at the Oslo, Norway, Spektrum on Dec. 11. Jessica Lange and Anthony Hopkins hosted.
Other performers included Suede, Josh Groban, Angelique Kidjo, Jessye Norman, Sissel and Michelle Branch.
Nobel Peace Prize Concert
Kuala Lumpur
Skydivers
Skydivers parachute down from Malaysia's landmark Petronas Twin Towers during a rehearsal for a new year's event in Kuala Lumpur on December 31, 2002. Ten multi-national skydivers will
leap from the world's tallest building at midnight to celebrate the new year.
Photo by Bazuki Muhammad
'Road to Kandahar'
Dave Letterman
David Letterman's stealthy, whirlwind Christmas visit to U.S. troops in Afghanistan was a surprise even to people close to the Late Show host.
Accompanied by Paul Schaffer and stage manager Biff Henderson, Mr. Letterman left New York on Monday, Dec. 23, and traveled to Kandahar, where he
spent Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with members of the armed forces.
For a high-profile guy, Mr. Letterman's Afghanistan trip was a well-kept secret. Only a handful of staffers knew he was going. It's not certain if
CBS president Leslie Moonves knew—he was away on vacation Dec. 27 and unreachable—but it's clear that Mr. Letterman didn't want to kick up a lot of
fuss about his plan, which he briefly discussed on the air during a Dec. 26 Late Show taped just hours after he, Mr. Schaffer and Mr. Henderson returned to New York.
"This was a very personal affair for Dave," said U.S.O. director of entertainment Mitch Marovitz, who helped orchestrate Mr. Letterman's visit and
accompanied the Late Show trio to the U.S. base in Kandahar. "He just wanted to go out and say thank you. He certainly didn't want anyone to have the
slightest inkling or feeling that he was doing this for publicity. This was personal.
"Mr. Letterman was clearly moved by the experience. "These people over there truly are America's best," he said when he talked about the trip on the Late Show.
With Mr. Henderson, a Vietnam veteran, seated beside him, he showed off a handful of snapshots he took himself and joked that the troops were unimpressed by his show-business background.
For the rest of a good read, Dave Letterman
Of Cattle Prods & Crushes
Hunter S. Thompson
Hunter S. Thompson let Book magazine into his home with a camera, and the photo that resulted contains clues to the gonzo journalist's damaged psyche. Of the dented hood over his stove,
Thompson explained: "That's me in a fit of real anger . . . I imagine my hand must have been swollen for a real long time. I think it had something to do with Jann Wenner." Of his Powermax
Stun Baton: "It's a serious cattle prod. Well, it's for people, but I guess it could be used on cattle. The only other person I know who has one of these is Keith Richards. It was a present
from me." Of pictures of actress Charlotte Rampling: "I have a crush on her, always have."
Hunter S. Thompson
Reunited On 'King Of Queens'
Stiller & Meara
Real-life husband and wife Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara will be reunited on screen on the CBS sitcom "The King of Queens."
Meara will guest star as the mother of Spence (Patton Oswalt), a buddy of Doug Heffernan (series star Kevin James), in an episode to air during the February sweeps period.
Her character ends up in a gigolo-like scenario with Doug's father-in-law (Stiller), who tries to get money from her.
Stiller, 75, and Meara, 73, make up the longtime comedy team Stiller & Meara. They were part of the improvisational group that became Second City and have appeared
together in about 20 movie and TV projects, including son Ben Stiller's movie "Zoolander" last year.
Stiller & Meara
"The King of Queens" Web site
Visits Kosovo With NATO
Angelina Jolie
Angelina Jolie visited with Kosovo's minority community, along with NATO peacekeepers and local leaders, during a three-day visit to the troubled region.
The Oscar-winning actress, who is a goodwill ambassador for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, said she was troubled by the conditions of minorities there.
Kosovo, legally part of Yugoslavia, has been run by the United Nations and NATO since 1999, when the alliance bombed Serb troops loyal to former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic to stop
their crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists.
Jolie visited the area of Kosovo's capital, Pristina, and the ethnically divided town of Kosovska Mitrovica, which remains a hotbed of tension.
The 27-year-old actress, who was appointed goodwill ambassador in 2001, has visited refugee camps in several regions, including Sierra Leone, Tanzania and Pakistan. She plans to return to Kosovo in the spring.
Angelina Jolie
United Nations High Commission for Refugees Web site
In The Kitchen With BartCop & Friends
Camp at Madison Square Garden
Phish Fans
Hundreds of Phish fans camped out at Madison Square Garden Tuesday in the hope of landing seats to the jam band's first concert in more than two years.
Phish has long attracted a devoted following that's willing to travel thousands of miles to hear them play.
Tuesday's event was a huge draw. Phish is known for its New Year's Eve shows, and the Vermont-based rock quartet hasn't performed in concert since October 2000.
Tickets sold out almost immediately at $49.50. Those waiting outside Madison Square Garden were hoping to buy one from scalpers or Phish fans with extras.
Phish Fans
Official Phish Web site
Manila
Roast Pig
A worker applies extra fat on an array of roast pigs on display along a Manila street to have a shiny look as he waits for customers on New Year's eve Tuesday, Dec. 31,
2002. Filipinos celebrate the New Year by attending mass, exploding firecrackers and a sumptuous midnight meal known as Noche Buena or Good Night.
Photo by Bullit Marquez
Makes Deal With Vodka Makers
Roc-a-fella Records
For years, rap and hip-hop videos and songs have featured various brands of liquor in what has amounted to free ads for the products.
Now, Roc-a-fella Records is looking to make the references as profitable for the label as it is for the booze-makers.
The Wall Street Journal reports that the label has released a super-premium vodka from Scotland named Armadale. It's triple-distilled and retails for about $30.
The brand is now distributed only in New York, Los Angeles and Miami, but Roc-a-fella says it plans to move it into other markets soon.
Roc-a-fella CEO Damon Dash told the Wall Street Journal that he decided to invest in the distiller after he saw the response to rapper Jay-Z's mention of Belvedere vodka in one of his videos.
Roc-a-fella Records
Lower Manhattan Plan Scrapped
Guggenheim Museum
A plan to build another Guggenheim Museum in the city has been scrapped because of economic constraints, the foundation in charge of the museum announced Monday.
In an e-mail, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation announced that it, the city and the state's Economic Development Corp. had pulled out of the $950 million project because the economy made it "not realistic at this time."
Unveiled in April 2000, the 40- to 45-story structure on three piers would have overlooked the East River in lower Manhattan.
The original Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, a landmark white spiral structure designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, is one of the city's architectural gems. The Guggenheim also opened a small branch in New York's SoHo
neighborhood in 1992. The museum has branches in Berlin and Venice, Italy.
The Guggenheim recently closed a branch in Las Vegas and has cut its staff and operating budget over the past year.
Guggenheim Museum
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
Formerly 'The Vidiot'
Slammed by Watchdog for TV Swearing
BBC
The BBC was rapped by TV watchdogs Tuesday for allowing excessive swearing in several of its programs.
The Broadcasting Standards Commission said viewers had complained about overt sexual innuendo and repeated use of the word "bastard" in daytime reruns of the programs "Have I Got News for You" and "Just Good Friends."
The commission said such language was inappropriate for an afternoon audience, which includes a large number of children, and had "exceeded acceptable boundaries."
The BBC disputed the findings, saying not all daytime programming "had to be suitable for a pre-school audience."
It said that the "Have I Got News for You" rerun had been carefully edited and any sexual overtones remaining "would have meant nothing to any children who did happen to be watching."
The BBC said it would examine the commission's report.
BBC
Scotland
Hogmanay
Edinburgh`s Hogmanay celebrations start early at a fair ground near Edinburgh castle, Scotland, Tuesday, Dec. 31, 2002.
Photo by David Cheskin
Jumped 6.3 Percent (On Average)
Cable TV Rates
U.S. cable television service rates soared 6.3 percent in the year ended June 2002 as the number of new subscribers slowed, the Federal Communications Commission said in a report issued on Tuesday.
Of the vast majority of Americans who subscribe to pay television service, about 68.8 million receive it from cable operators. But satellite companies are making inroads, with approximately 18 million subscribers, the FCC said in its annual competition report.
Cable operators added only about 250,000 new subscribers during the 12-month period, compared with the roughly 2 million subscribers who signed up during that time for satellite services provided
by EchoStar Communications Corp. and Hughes Electronics' DirecTV service.
The agency said data showed cable rates soared 6.3 percent during the 12-month period -- well above the 1.1 percent inflation rate and the 4.24 percent rate increase registered in the previous 12 months.
Several companies in recent weeks have started a new round of rate hikes.
Cable TV Rates
Folding on Broadway
'Hollywood Arms'
"Hollywood Arms," the play based on Carol Burnett's memoir "One More Time," will close Sunday after a Broadway run of 75 performances.
The play, which the 69-year-old actress-comedian wrote with her daughter, Carrie Hamilton, opened Oct. 31 at the Cort Theatre to mostly downbeat reviews and has been struggling
at the box office ever since. It stars Linda Lavin as Burnett's feisty grandmother and Michele Pawk as her mother.
Hamilton, an actress, writer and musician, died of cancer in January before "Hollywood Arms" had its world premiere at Chicago's Goodman Theatre. She was 38.
'Hollywood Arms'
CSI Wins The Week
Ratings
In a week when people worried more about holiday celebrating than television viewing, CBS rode its "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" franchise to a ratings victory.
Two repeat episodes shown Thursday were among the three most-watched prime-time programs of the week, according to Nielsen Media Research. The spinoff, "CSI: Miami," hit Nielsen's top 10.
In a Sunday-night movie clash, a classic musical trumped action and comedy. ABC drew 11.5 million viewers to "The Sound of Music," while "You've Got Mail" on CBS and "Die Hard With a Vengeance"
on Fox both had audiences of 10.3 million at the same time.
A ratings point represents 1,067,000 households, or 1 percent of the nation's estimated 106.7 million TV homes. The share is the percentage of in-use televisions tuned to a given show.
For the week of Dec. 23-29, the top 10 shows, their networks and ratings: "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," CBS, 13.0; "NFL Monday Night Football: Pittsburgh at Tampa Bay," ABC, 11.6; "CSI: Crime Scene
Investigation" special, CBS, 10.6; "NFL Post-Game Show," Fox, 9.3; "Everybody Loves Raymond," CBS, 9.0; "Friends," NBC, 8.7; "Law & Order: SVU," NBC, 8.5; "Without a Trace," CBS, 8.4; "NFL Monday Showcase," ABC, 8.3; "CSI: Miami," CBS, 8.1.
Ratings
In Memory
Mohammed al-Fassi
Mohammed al-Fassi, the Saudi Arabian sheik whose bizarre, lime-green mansion touched off a firestorm in normally staid Beverly Hills and who later ran afoul of the Saudi royal family, has died at age 50.
Al-Fassi, who had been ill for much of the past year, died on Tuesday in Cairo of complications from a liver infection, high-profile divorce lawyer Marvin Mitchelson said. Sources with the Egyptian security sources confirmed his death.
Mitchelson, who represents Al-Fassi's estranged first wife in a bitter court fight between the couple stemming from their legal separation, said Al-Fassi developed the liver infection during treatment for a hernia in his back.
Al-Fassi touched off a furor in Beverly Hills in 1978 when he paid $2.4 million in cash for a mansion in an exclusive neighborhood that was also home to Hollywood superstars Zsa Zsa Gabor, Rock Hudson, Debbie Reynolds and Red Buttons.
Soon after moving into the elegant, 38-room mansion on Sunset Boulevard, al-Fassi began to redecorate -- painting the house a shocking lime green, replacing its red tile roof with bright copper and filling planters with plastic flowers.
He painted classic nude statues on the sprawling estate in flesh colors, adding lifelike hair and genitalia. The strange tableau stopped traffic on busy Sunset Boulevard and attracted tourists to the neighborhood, infuriating his wealthy neighbors.
"The mobs were immense on Sunset and they'd all stop and point it out like it was the second coming of the Lord," Mitchelson said. "It became a famous stopping-off place. He had all these statues out in front of the house painted in different colors with pubic hair and everything else."
"He thought it was artistic," Mitchelson said. "He said he was entitled to do what he liked with his own house and he thought he had an artistic touch."
The house was torched in 1980, allegedly by someone who lived nearby, while al-Fassi and his family were in Europe, Mitchelson said. Neighbors gathered to watch the blaze, he said, cheering and chanting: "Burn! Burn! Burn!"
The rubble of the mansion was razed and the lot remains vacant.
By the early 1990s, al-Fassi was back in the Middle East, where he began criticizing the Saudi royal family in radio broadcasts from Baghdad. Mitchelson said al-Fassi's actions ultimately landed him in jail and then house arrest in Saudi Arabia.
He spent three years under house arrest before he was freed and banished from the country, Mitchelson said.
Mohammed al-Fassi
Bronx Zoo
James XII
James XII, a Rothschild's giraffe, right, stands next to his mother Clara Monday, Dec. 30, 2002, in his compound at the Bronx Zoo in New York. James XII weighed
in at approximately 140 pounds and measured 5 feet 5 inches tall at birth on Christmas Day, Dec, 25, 2002, and can grow to 18 feet tall and weigh over 4,000 pounds at maturity.
Photo by Dennis DeMello)
'The Osbournes'
'The Osbournes' ~ Page 4
'The Osbournes' ~ Page 3
'The Osbournes' ~ Page 2
'The Osbournes' ~ Page 1
