December 2010

Discovery Cancels Ghoulish Autopsy Show

The head line: "Discovery cancels Michael Jackson autopsy TV show."

legacy/michael jackson.jpg

Good. One for a little decency and respect for a family's memory of a love one.

Reuters reports -- "The Discovery television network on Friday said it canceled plans to air a reenactment of the autopsy on Michael Jackson's body, citing an upcoming court hearing and concern by the late pop star's estate. The show, Michael Jackson's Autopsy: What Really Killed Michael Jackson, had been set to air in several countries of western Europe and in the United Kingdom on January 13. The Discovery's show, which was not scheduled to air in the United States, was an unofficial, fictional account of what the autopsy must have been like and its results. "

The New Year is Here Already

legacy/new year.jpg

Some wag might wonder out loud, why does man celebrate the coming of every new year? Why hasn't man figured out by now that every year, the 'new year' is no improvement over the one that is leaving, and that folks are glad to see the back of? Well, the answer is obvious: man is a race of optimists. And that is a good thing.

From the Associated Press --"Sydney touted its claim to be the New Year's Eve capital of the world with a spectacular display over the iconic Harbour Bridge using 7 tons of fireworks, its largest since 2000."

The year begins in the East and heads West. Every hour,  the new year comes in, and people celebrate, until the new year has come into every part of the earth.

Billy Taylor, R.I.P.

legacy/Billy Taylor.jpg

Billy Taylor could play the piano better than most and he could talk about jazz better tha anybody. He could show one in a few musical words what jazz means, letting the music speak.

What does jazz mean? To me it is spirit music, heart music, soul music. It is feelings expressed in music. Jazz is feelings reaching out at you and calling a response from you. Billy Taylor's music could call out and get one to respond.

Billy Taylor, jazzman, pianist, composer, educator, broadcaster, promoter died Tuesday of a heart attack in Manhattan. He was 89.

Hugh Hefner -- His life Is A Male Fantasy

legacy/hefner-engaged.jpg

Hugh Hefner, 84, engaged to 24-year-old Playmate -- Hmmm. There's a part of me that want to say: Hee, hee, hee. There's another part that says: That's a sixty year age difference. Man and grand daughter?

But Hugh Hefner is Hugh Hefner, and he isn't and has never been like the rest of us. He has his own set of rules. He shows. He leads. He doesn't follow. Although, he was born eleven years after Frank Sinatra, he was of Sinatra's generation, and was the guru of that generation, who took the rat pack cool of the early 1950s and early 1960s far beyond Sinatra. He was the prophet of the generation of the rat pack cool.

Keep Your White Christmas

legacy/snowandice.jpeg

When weather makes the news it is almost always bad. This Christmas Eve, the weather has been making the news all across the Northern Hemisphere. The weather is wicked and out and out inconvenient. In these United States: Rains in California and mud sides, In Atlanta the weather is an icy mess. In Central Indiana, heavy snow. Central North Carolina is under a winter storm watch. On the East Coast flights have been delayed and canceled. Those dreaming of a white Christmas in many places might get their dream? Not! Might get a bone breaking, ice slipping, and snow shoveling night mare.

Sicilian Santa Arrests Mafia Dude.

legacy/santamaffiaarrest.jpg

Santa Knows Who's Naughty, Who's Nice.

It's Christmas in Scilly too, in Mafia country. Christmas for the bad boys too. Christmas like it goes in the song, "Santa Is Coming To Town."

'You better watch out. You better not cry. Better not pout. I'm telling you why. Santa Claus is coming to town ...'

See the video. It's a ho-ho, and a ha, ha, and a Santa's gotcha too. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all but, maybe not really for the mafia dude who got busted by Santa.

Like in Santa "making a list and checking it twice; To find out Who's naughty and nice."

Santa ?

A Santa? A cop with an elf? In? surprise, who checked that list, and I suspect, checked it twice to pick up the naughty, and hopefully without a fight.

Christmas In Thailand

legacy/santaelephants.jpg

Item from ITN News --"Children in Thailand were delighted to see a group of elephants dressed in Santa Claus costumes handing out treats and dancing." See the video.

Take a away the elephants and this could be a video of a scene from so many places. This is a video of a lot of happy young faces, with smiles and with mouths full of squeals of glee. This is what Christmas is.

Christmas is for the children just being children and just enjoying themselves.

Christmas is the best time of the year to be a child. Is when their whole world stops and takes an appreciative look at them, and fills their lives with --?

Pillow Fight!

legacy/pillow-fight.jpg

A Romantic Evening? Yes.

Item from ITN News -- "Thousands gather in Prague's Old Town Square for a massive festive pillow fight." See the video.

I like to see videos like this -- Scenes of thousands of people gathered in a town's square having a good time. Is there a better way for friends to have fun? Well, this is about pillow fights.

It is about young people getting that energy flowing! Whopping the stuffings out of some one whom they love. Whop! Whop! Whop!

This is about reality TV in the streets, unscripted and live. This is about street theater, where the actors are the performers and the performers are any person with a pillow whopping friends.

Kudos To Betty White

legacy/bettywhite.jpg

Betty White AP Entertainer of the Year!

Another well deserved honor for Betty White. A very astute judgment on the part of the Associated Press.

Betty White has been entertaining, making people laugh, for years. This year, 2010, she has been a winner by popular demand. The grass-root Facebook campaign, the hosting of Saturday Night Live, the co-starring in a new TV series, and the out pouring of fans, young and old, all happened because fans appreciate what she does.

She makes doing what she does seem easy, but being a great entertainer isn't easy. It requires talent and skill. And doing what she does is important, because entertainers are important. The laughter they bring makes the world better.

Gold-dispensing ATM Debuts

legacy/goldbars.jpg

Item from the Associated Press --"Imagine being able to buy some gold just about anywhere. Now a mall in super luxe Boca Raton, Florida, is the first in the U.S. to have a gold dispensing machine." See the video."

Buy gold everywhere? Why? I smell a gold head conspiracy wonk? A get out of the dollar dude, and a trust the gold in your teeth, not the Federal Reserve, clyde.

Gold is a commodity that goes up and down, and could very well bounce up and down on one, between the time one puts his dollars in to the machine to buy the gold and gets the gold out of the machine. I am not one of those trust in gold people.

The world's most expensive Christmas? Tree?

legacy/xmasstree.jpg

A Very Pagan Tree

tem from ITN News -- "The luxury Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi displays a tree decorated with $11 million of jewelery." See the video.

Somebody doesn't get it. Just doesn't get what Christmas is supposed to be about.

Okay, so sometime in ancient times, after Christians took over the Roman Empire, the big festival and celebration for the sun god held on December 25th, was taken over by the Christians, and so the day was all so pagan. But for a while now, the 25th of December has been Christ's day.

I'm talking Jesus Christ.

And Jesus wasn't about putting million of dollars worth of jewel on a tree. The old pagan gods could have appreciated the gesture.

Larry King's Fond Farewell

legacy/larry king.jpeg

Larry King has not died. He hasn't even left TV for good. Last night, Thursday, he signed off / ended his regular show on CNN Larry King Live and the media is like holding a wake for a king. Do a Google news search. This morning there were all 1,292 news article about Larry King's last show. Don't get me wrong, I am a Larry King fan and he deserves kudos

From the LA Times -- "Larry King's last Larry King Live show was a nonstop promenade of high-profile names and faces Thursday, including a current and a former president, a gaggle of news anchors and the like and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declaring it "Larry King Day." Tony Bennett serenaded the host with "The Best Is Yet to Come." But the standout, perhaps, was Katie Couric. Who wrote a poem. For Larry."

Blake Edwards, R.I.P.

legacy/Blake Edwards.jpg

Blake Edwards, the director and writer of comic movies, known for his farce, wild comedy and screwball comedies, died last night, Wednesday, in Santa Monica. Mr. Edward made the Pink Panther movies, the great ones with the late Peter Sellers, which are broad farce. Blake Edwards Peter Seller's movies are among my favorites. Two other comic gems are The Great Race and 10. He was 88 years old. The Associated Press reports that his wife of "nearly half a century," Julie Andrews, was at his bed side.

Bacon Love

legacy/bacon.jpg

I am living in a sea of pigs. Literally, I am swimming around in a sea of bacon. Everywhere I look, I see bacon and I fully expect the bacon problem to get worse before it gets better.

 

Kevin Bacon, Bacon soda, Bacon Bras.

 

Bacconaise, bacon-flavored lip balm, and more. I expect to see bacon ornaments hanging from Christmas trees made by bacon-loving elves in stores near me.  I’m expecting the next You-Tube sensation to  be “Bacon Rain”. (Because suddenly bacon is the new chocolate, only it’s not nearly as healthy as chocolate.)

 

Rip Torn Unripped?

legacy/Rip Torn.jpg

Rip Torn is a major American character actor of movies and television, who has stumbled, apparently. Last January, Rip Torn was arrested after he allegedly broke into a Connecticut bank, while drunk and with a loaded gun. Yesterday, after pleading guilty to charges, he was sentenced to a 2 1/2-year suspended sentence and to three years of probation. Mr. Torn is 79.

He is one the best character actors. He was great on The Larry Sanders Show. He was excellent as Richard M. Nixon in the 1979 TV mini-series, Blind Ambition. He was outstanding in a number of movies, including Men in Black