Burlesque entertainer, actress and writer Gypsy Rose Lee was born 100 years ago today. Dismissed as "untalented" by her own mother, she remains a source of inspiration four decades after her death.
Born in Seattle as Rose Louise Hovick to a teenage mother fresh out of a convent, Louise (as she was then called) got an early start in show business, appearing alongside her younger sister June as a vaudeville act. It was soon evident that “Baby June” was the more naturally talented performer of the two, and Louise was from a young age relegated to the background while June, even before she could speak, was pushed into the limelight. The family relocated to Hollywood and the act was renamed “Dainty June, the Hollywood Baby, and Her Newsboys.” Rose also pushed her young progeny into film – if a director needed tears for a shot in a silent two reeler, mother Rose would tell June that the family dog had died. Her overbearing determination to see her young daughters have successful stage careers soon led to a divorce from her husband.
Beginning in their teenage years, Louise and June were responsible for supporting the family with their act. They travelled the country, playing cheap vaudeville theatres, living out of suitcases and avoiding formal education altogether. But when June was 13 (or possibly 15 or 16 – Rose had five different birth certificates for June and routinely shaved years off her true age), she broke up the act by briefly eloping with fellow vaudevillian Bobby Reed.
Louise was unable to sustain the act on her own. Aged 17, stranded in Kansas City without a booking, she was approached by an agent about appearing on a burlesque stage (the usual stripper had landed in prison). Over her mother’s objections (or because of her mother's insistence -- accounts vary), Louise took the job.
Thus was born Gypsy Rose Lee.
Not long after, she made her New York debut on April 1, 1931, at Minsky’s famous 42nd Street theatre The Republic, the first to feature burlesque on Broadway. Comedians like Abbott & Costello, Phil Silvers, Red Buttons and Rag Ragland rounded out the bill, but the star attraction were the striptease artists, who, during the height of the Depression, made between $700 and $2,000 a week. Gypsy Rose Lee would play 12 weeks straight at The Republic, setting a record for the theatre. Her arrest during one of the many police raids on Minsky’s theatres only heightened the public’s awareness of burlesque’s rising star.
Many were at a loss to explain why she, of all the pretty girls losing clothing onstage, became such an attraction. As a 1942 Life magazine article in noted, “She shows less than Margie Hart, is less suggestive than Ann Corio, less ‘hot’ than Georgia Sothern. She scorns the use of either bumps or grinds, fundamental gyrations of a burlesque routine…her routine for years has been a slow strip which she accompanies with a smart patter song.” Her smart patter may have been just as big an asset as her slow reveal – in those days, women made up nearly half of the typical striptease audience – and she became famous for her sophisticated onstage wit and casual banter.
Gypsy Rose Lee was involved with every aspect of her act, making up her own song lyrics and designing her own clothes, and an armchair psychologist might conclude that her perfectionism was driven by being labeled the ‘untalented one’ so early in her youth. Her sister had by then gone on to a successful career in Hollywood as June Havoc, and the two of them maintained a sibling rivalry throughout their lives, though they remained closely bound by the shared experience of growing up in showbiz under a domineering, manipulative mother.
In 1937, Gypsy Rose Lee’s notoriety earned her a Hollywood contract with Daryl Zanuck’s Fox Studio, but church groups and the Legion of Decency complained so loudly that the Hays Office forced her to drop her burlesque name and revert to her given name of Louise Hovick. Her skills didn’t translate particularly well to the silver screen, and she was soon back on the burlesque stage, though she would occasionally appear in films for the rest of her career.
Though her charms may not have won over cinemagoers, her humor and life experiences helped her win over readers as she embarked on an unlikely third career as a writer. In 1941, her novel The G-String Murders, became publishing’s best-selling mystery since Dashiell Hammett’s The Thin Man. She published another mystery, Mother Finds A Body in 1942, but her best known work today remains 1957’s Gypsy: A Memoir.
Prior to its publishing, she’d already sold autobiographical snippets to The New Yorker, Harper’s Bazaar, Mademoiselle and Collier’s, but now freed from fear of libel suits by her mother’s death, Gypsy Rose Lee turned a harsh light on her upbringing, using the book to paint Rose as the mother of all stage mothers. The memoir was adapted into the hugely successful Broadway musical Gypsy: A Musical Fable, with the Mother Rose character being played over the years by Ethel Merman, Tyne Daly and Bernadette Peters. Rosalind Russell and Bette Midler have played in her film and TV productions. Gypsy Rose Lee was played by Natalie Wood in the 1962 film.
Gypsy would provide its author a steady income for the rest of her life, but it would also lead to estrangement from June, who took issue with her portrayal and that of her mother in the stage production (her reservations were muffled with a cash payout). Her personal relationships never less than chaotic, Gypsy was married and divorced three times and had a son out of wedlock by film director Otto Preminger. Named Erik Lee, he would be the only constant man in her life and would later pen his own memoir, My G-String Mother, chronicling his experience working as her stage manager beginning when he was only eight years old.
In her later years, Gypsy Rose Lee appeared on television, hosted her own radio show and entertained troops in Vietnam during USO tours. After being diagnosed with lung cancer, she reconciled with her sister, joking that the disease was their mother’s revenge. Gypsy Rose Lee died on April 26th, 1970.
In 1942, Life magazine wrote, “It is safe to assume no culture but our own could fashion such a unique national character as Gypsy Rose Lee. She cannot sing, dance or act but she earns more on the stage than Helen Hayes or Katherine Cornell.”
Just this week, The New York Times reported that Barbara Streisand was in talks to star in a remake of Gypsy. Whatever you think of their relative talents, it’s safe to assume no one is currently planning a film based on the life of Helen Hayes of Katherine Cornell.
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The Untalented Gypsy Rose Lee
Obama Picks William Daley For Chief Of Staff Post
President Obama on Thursday appointed William M. Daley — a former Clinton administration official and part of the famed Chicago political family — as his new chief of staff, calling him an "experienced public servant."
Daley, a sometimes-ally, sometimes-critic of the president, will step into what is traditionally the most influential advisory job in the White House – acting as the president's day-to-day sounding board, gatekeeper and scheduler.
Daley "possesses a deep understanding of how jobs are created and how to grow our economy," Obama said at the White House.
"Few Americans can boast the breadth of experience that Bill Daley brings to this job," the president said.
Stepping down from the post is Pete Rouse, who has held the job on an interim basis since Rahm Emanuel resigned three months ago as chief of staff to run for mayor of Chicago.
Rouse, who did not want the job permanently and recommended Daley as his replacement, will remain as a counselor to the president, an elevated position from his former job as senior adviser. Daley is expected to start in the next couple of weeks.
Daley is the youngest of late Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley's seven children. He is credited with helping his older brother, Richard, win their father's old office and hold onto it for the last 22 years.
On the national stage, William Daley helped craft successful campaigns to elect President Clinton and was named Commerce Secretary under Clinton in 1997.
At the White House announcement on Thursday, Daley thanked the president, praising him for his "proven leadership."
Daley, who is currently Midwest chairman of J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., said in an interview with The New York Times last year that the administration had "miscalculated" on health care and moved too far to the left. He has strong centrist credentials and joins the White House just as it finds itself in need of making more bipartisan compromises to get things done.
Word of Daley's appointment brought praise from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which has frequently been at odds with the administration.
"This is a strong appointment. Bill Daley is a man of stature and extraordinary experience in government, business, trade negotiations, and global affairs. He's an accomplished manager and strong leader. We look forward to working with him to accelerate our recovery, grow the economy, create jobs, and tackle America’s global challenges." Chamber of Commerce President Thomas J. Donohue said in a statement.
The new job will thrust Daley, 62, into the heart of national politics just as Obama adapts to a new reality in Washington. Republicans now control the House and are working to gut his signature health care law, as well as pushing for major cuts in spending.
For Obama, the move comes amid other major shifts in White House staffing –- among them the impending departure of White House press secretary Robert Gibbs, who said on Wednesday he would step down by early February. Senior adviser David Axelrod will also be leaving soon, and both of Obama's deputy chiefs of staff, Jim Messina and Mona Sutphen, are exiting soon. David Plouffe, a key member of Obama's inner circle as his former presidential campaign manager, will be joining the senior staff of the White House on Monday.
But the chief of staff position is considered the most consuming job in the White House, helping shape nearly everything that the president deals with - how he spends his time, how he pursues his strategies on foreign and domestic policy, how he deals with Congress and the public.
When Obama launched his presidential campaign, the Daley family put aside its deep connections to Bill and Hillary Clinton and endorsed the young Illinois senator. Until then, Obama and the Daleys had operated in mostly separate spheres of Illinois politics. After Obama's victory, Daley helped oversee the presidential transition.
Daley laid out his political ideology last year upon joining the board of Third Way, a moderate Democratic think tank.
"We must acknowledge that the left's agenda has not won the support of a majority of Americans - and, based on that recognition, we must steer a more moderate course," he said at the time.
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Elizabeth Edwards' Will Makes No Mention of John
The late Elizabeth Edwards makes no mention of her estranged husband, John, in the will she signed days before her death last month.
Edwards, who died after a six-year battle with breast cancer on Dec. 6, appointed her eldest daughter Catharine, as the executor of her will.
Cate Edwards, 28, will also serve as guardian for her two younger siblings -- Emma Claire, 12, and Jack, 10 -- if anything happens to John Edwards, the former U.S. senator and presidential candidate who admitted to fathering a child with his mistress, Riley Hunter.
"All of my furniture, furnishings, household goods, jewelry, china, silverware and personal effects and any automobiles owned by me at the time of my death I give and bequeath to my children who shall be living at the time of my death," the will states.
Edwards had long indicated that she had faith Cate would take care of the family after her death. In a 2007 interview, Edwards said she had prepared her children for the possibility of her death and that Cate had already stepped in to take on new responsibilities, both in the home and outside.
The will, first posted in full by Inside Edition, was signed on Dec. 1, just four days before Edwards died in her North Carolina home.
It makes no mention of John Edwards.
It's no surprise that the former political wife left her estranged husband out of the will. The two separated last year after 32 years together, although their divorce was never finalized.
John Edwards was by his ex-wife's side during her final days but did not speak at her funeral.
Elizabeth Edwards was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004, at the height of her husband's unsuccessful vice-presidential campaign with presidential contender John Kerry.
Elizaebeth Edwards' Will Omits John Edwards
The cancer returned in 2007 as Edwards was engaged in his own unsuccessful presidential run, and late last year, the mother of three announced she had stopped all treatment.
Just days before her death, Edwards wrote a moving message on her Facebook wall, stating: "You all know that I have been sustained throughout my life by three saving graces: my family, my friends, and a faith in the power of resilience and hope. These graces have carried me through difficult times and they have brought more joy to the good times than I ever could have imagined."
"The days of our lives, for all of us, are numbered. We know that. And, yes, there are certainly times when we aren't able to muster as much strength and patience as we would like. It's called being human," wrote Edwards.
"But I have found that in the simple act of living with hope, and in the daily effort to have a positive impact in the world, the days I do have are made all the more meaningful and precious. And for that I am grateful."
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Gibbs stepping down as White House press secretary
White House press secretary Robert Gibbs confirmed Wednesday that he is leaving the administration in the coming days, saying he will play an outside advisory role and give speeches before helping President Obama gear up for the 2012 campaign.
Gibbs, addressing reports of his departure at his daily briefing for the first time, said the major staffing changes about to hit the White House will benefit Obama.
"You have to admit there's a bubble in here to some degree," Gibbs said.
The decision to leave the White House for the private sector came as something of a surprise: Gibbs, 39, has worked by Obama's side for nearly seven years, and other advisers had expected him to move into a senior advisory role. One of his colleagues said just a few months ago that Gibbs could be counted on to last all eight years if Obama were reelected - and would be the one to "turn out the lights."
Gibbs had also been rumored to be a potential chairman of the Democratic National Committee. But the current DNC chairman, Tim Kaine, said he would not leave the post. And amid a broader personnel reshuffling - and with former campaign manager David Plouffe assuming a major job in the West Wing starting Monday - it became difficult to see what portfolio Gibbs would manage if he remained inside the administration as a senior adviser, one official said.
With the the 2012 campaign rapidly approaching, the new arrangement will give Gibbs the flexibility to help the president from the outside. But first, he said, he plans to decompress - and drive his young son to school.
"Obviously, this was not an easy decision," he told reporters who peppered him with questions about how he had decided to leave. "I think this is a very natural time period to make the decision to recharge a little bit."
His last day will be in early February, he said. He said he expects his successor to be named before then. A full staff sweep is on the way, with Obama planning to announce his his head of the National Economic Council, replacing outgoing Lawrence Summers, on Friday during a visit to a window manufacturer in the Washington area. Obama will then name his permanent chief of staff - former commerce secretary William Daley appears to be the front-runner. That announcement could happen Friday or early next week.
Gibbs said Obama has not spoken to Daley so far this week. But when asked whether that conversation could occur, he replied: "It's certainly possible, yes."
In addition to those three vacancies, there are at least five other key positions the president must fill in the days ahead: two deputy chiefs of staff; a new director of the Office of Public Engagement to replace Tina Tchen, who will be Michelle Obama's chief of staff; a potential new political director; and a possible replacement for Peter Rouse, who left his senior adviser post to become interim chief of staff.
White House aides said Gibbs began telling his colleagues about his plans over the past few days, evoking an emotional response. Like departing White House senior adviser David Axelrod and Plouffe, Gibbs has been "universally adored" by the people who work for him, always ready with a homespun Alabama quip or a joke, even during tense times, said White House spokesman Tommy Vietor, who has worked with Gibbs for nearly the duration of Obama's presidency. "He is someone you know would go to bat for you and has your back all the time."
Judgments from the outside were not always as generous. Gibbs sparred frequently with reporters, sometimes in ways viewed as glib or condescending. He made frequent promises from the podium to answer questions later in the day, then did so only occasionally. Colleagues joked that he enjoyed spending time in meetings with the president more than calling reporters back.
But Gibbs did go to bat for the press on several memorable occasions, scuffling with Chinese officials during a trip to Copenhagen over access for the White House press corps, and again during a trip to India in November. His enthusiasm for the job appeared boundless, and unlike many of his predecessors, he had wide-ranging access to the president and top-level meetings, lending his answers from the podium a high degree of credibility.
Beyond giving speeches and advising Obama from the outside, it is not entirely clear what work Gibbs will now do.
He did not rule out taking on corporate clients, saying he would do so if he felt comfortable with them. He did, however, say he has no plans to write a book in the near future.
And the president, Gibbs said, will likely be his last political client: "Seems like a pretty good one to stop on."
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Latest Liberal Talking Point: Repealing Obamacare Would Add to Deficit
House Republicans announced Monday that they would vote to repeal health care reform legislation next week. The legislation that they would repeal, according to an estimate by the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, would reduce the budget deficit by $143 billion over a decade.
According to the rules laid out by the incoming House Republican majority, the House must pay for all new legislation that increases federal spending - and a repeal bill, of course, is a form of legislation. That would suggest that they must come up with $143 billion to make up for the cost of repealing the health care bill.
Skirvin Crying Baby
Skirvin Crying Baby,I flew to Oklahoma City on Wednesday through See during play a home game “on my bucket list. After the Nets beat the Zombies, I joined friends at Mickey Mantle (local restaurant) for a late dinner and some beers before heading back to my room. I stayed at the Skirvin, a local hotel that is supposed inhabited by a ghost named Effie. According to legend, Effie got hit by the guy who owned the hotel in the 1920s, then jumped from a window with the baby. She was allegedly haunting the place since.
When we were in control, I jokingly asked the clerk to put me on one floor haunted. She said she did. We laughed and that was the end of it. That night, I was so tired that ghost stories never entered my mind. I prepared for bed, called my wife, watched 10 minutes of “SportsCenter” and fell asleep. So you know I am a heavy sleeper. Once I got out, I’m out.
That’s what makes it so strange when I woke up at 4:30 with a beating heart. I swear on Tom Brady’s ACL that the following events: Initially, I heard a baby crying and I realized why I woke up. I thought it was one of my own children before remembering that my kids are not babies, then remembering that I was in Oklahoma City, not Los Angeles. Suddenly it dawned on me that I was not alone. I had an unbearable feeling that someone else was in the room. Until you’ve experienced this feeling, you can not understand what it is. Your blood is humming in your veins at 200 mph; you do not understand why – your body reacts a few seconds before your brain does.
I decided to turn on the light. Stretching my right to switch out of nowhere, I heard the sound of (what sure as hell looked like) a baby who cries urgently to my extreme left (right near the window). Wahhhhhhh. Wahhhhhh. Wahhhhhh. Wahhhhhhh. The emergency and I freaked out as much as him to cry. I fumbled for the switch, could not find it, dig, dig a little more, then finally turned on the light. The sound stopped crying. I jumped out of bed and turned on every light in the room. I turned on the television and pushed the volume. Then I grabbed my Blackberry and googled “Skirvin baby cry.”
I kept the lights on. And television. And that’s how I spent the next three hours and half and half-asleep, half awake and totally scared. The words “Man Up” do not enter the equation. Not even a little. I came to Oklahoma City to Durant and Westbrook left and tell stories about Baby Effie. Just know that the next time someone tells me a ghost story, I think.
http://usspost.com/skirvin-crying-baby-25010/
'We Can Do It!': Geraldine Doyle, WWII Poster Inspiration, Dies
She was the fresh-faced 17-year-old who helped inspire the American home-front during World War II. Geraldine Hoff Doyle died Sunday at 84.
You probably don't know her name, but you've seen her face. Doyle was 17 and working in a Michigan steelworks when her picture was taken by the United Press. That image - well, the face at least - became part of the 'We Can Do It' poster commissioned from artist J. Howard Miller during World War II, used to motivated a nation of female workers called into manufacturing jobs to support the war effort overseas.
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Book Report: Sarah Bernhardt -- The First Cause Celeb
Sad but true: few people today are familiar with Sarah Bernhardt’s illustrious career and personality. History and film buffs know that Bernhardt was the first artist to market her talent to modern audiences by creating an adoring following. In other words, she was the first celebrity. Unfortunately, not many of us today know why she was so famous.
Former Simon and Schuster Editor-in-Chief Robert Gottlieb pieces together the person and the persona in Sarah: The Life of Sarah Bernhardt. Although it’s a biography, Gottlieb’s book reads like a novel, with highly digestible anecdotes and propulsive narration.
Gottlieb admits researching Bernhardt's life was a difficult task. Considered the most famous person in the world, Bernhardt was a dramatist who preferred story to fact. Biographers can't look to her for accurate accounts of dates, places or even birth parents. Perhaps this is why Gottlieb’s is the first English-language biography of Bernhardt. Her childhood reads like a rewrite on Les Miserables. Starting in 1844—or, as Gottlieb questions, “Was it 1843?”—in Paris, Sarah bounced around to various homes as a foster child. Despite a cruel and detached mother, and no father at all, she had an extraordinary will to survive, if only for vindictive triumph. At age 9, Bernhardt adopted her lifetime motto: Quand meme, loosely translated as “Against all odds.”
Her acting career began at the Comedie-Francaise theater, though she later signed on with the famous Odeon in 186l. Sarah was constantly compared to the celebrated memory and reputation of Rachel, a classic tragedienne of the time.
By 1880, she had carved out a name for herself by taking the lead in Joan of Arc, Camille, and even Hamlet (as the Danish prince himself). Death scenes became her stock in trade, and she was especially revered for her melodramatic onstage suicides. Her beautiful voice and delivery repeatedly charmed sold-out audiences.
Gottlieb notes that Bernhardt’s mix of personal eccentricities and onstage talent made her the most fascinating human alive. At the peak of her career, Bernhardt traveled with a coffin, which she sometimes slept in. Her notorious private zoo housed three dogs, a parrot named Bizibouzon, a monkey named Darwin, a cheetah, seven chameleons, and a wolf.
Bernhardt also collected men. In a letter to one lover, she writes, “My heart demands more excitement than anyone can give it.” Her long string of suitors included writer Victor Hugo and Jacques Damala, a bigoted gambler who didn’t love her and was the model for Bram Stoker's Dracula.
The actress never revealed the father of her son, Maurice. She did boldly admit her love for her illegitimate son throughout her life, though, in no way trying to conceal her status as an unmarried mother.
Sarah Bernhardt was not only the first celebrity, she was also the first cause celebrity. Her strongest legacy, which Gottlieb covers in great detail, was her dedication to causes other than acting. She knew how to parlay her fame into awareness for women’s rights, civil rights, and religious freedom. Bernhardt ran a hospital during World War I, working in the trenches to take care of wounded soldiers. On her first voyage to America, she helped a young woman in steerage give birth, and saved an elderly woman from plunging headfirst down a dangerous staircase. Although raised Catholic, Bernhardt was born Jewish, and she always stood firm against anti-Semites of the age. Being Jewish to Bernhardt was a matter of race, not belief.
Despite an amputated leg, for which P.T. Barnum offered $10,000, Bernhardt continued acting until the last moments of her life, famously claiming she tortured the French paparazzi just as they had tortured her. Her brilliance, avarice, and sexuality make her a personality that eclipses even the likes of Lady Gaga or Madonna.
By the time you finish Gottlieb’s account of Bernhardt’s life, you will be in as much awe of the woman as her audiences were. Gottlieb has distilled the truths of Berndhardt’s history. He lets his readers form their own opinions: Was Bernhardt mostly diva, actress, or missionary?
Sarah Bernhardt lived life like a performance. It's only fitting that her biography follows suit.
Suspicious online 'dead body' posting ignites anger among Chinese netizens
The online posting of a scary dead body has created fury against the Chinese Government among netizens, who have claimed that Qian Yunhui was killed by officials to silence his six-year campaign to protect fellow villagers in a land dispute.
Although seizing illegal lands by officials are common in China, but horrific photographs of Qian's death on Saturday have ignited widespread fury, forcing local officials to offer explanations in a news conference, the News York Times reports.
Within 36 hours, the initial post attracted nearly 20,000 comments. Tianya and two other Web sites that reported on the case together received 400,000 comments.
However, officials of Yueqing in Zhejiang Province, which supervises Qian's home village, have said that the photographs indicate that he had met with a terrible accident. But some Chinese reporters and residents of Zhaiqiao say that they are 'foul play and a sloppy cover-up.'
Qian, the former Communist Party representative in the village, had reportedly travelled to Beijing to file a petition with the central authorities.
In the news conference on Monday, city officials said that Qian was arrested, found guilty of criminal conduct and imprisoned at least twice. Qian continued his crusade after recently being released from prison.
Before his death, he had become the villagers' favourite for the post of village chief in the coming election, the paper said.
On Saturday morning, he was run over by a red truck, and his body crushed beneath the left front tire, the paper quoted Chinese Business News that cited Qian's wife, Wang Zhaoyan, as saying.
Meanwhile, an eyewitness has claimed that several men wearing security uniforms held down the victim in the road. One of the men waved his hand, and a truck then drove slowly over Mr. Qian, the paper added. nternet users and Chinese reporters are continuing to question the explanation by city officials, pointing to discrepancies revealed by the photos. (ANI)
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Tucker Carlson: Michael Vick 'should have been executed' for running dogfighting ring (VIDEO)
Cable news host Tucker Carlson on Tuesday took issue with President Obama's support of quarterback Michael Vick's stunning turnaround, saying that he thought Vick "should have been executed" for his crimes.
Carlson, who is guest-hosting the Fox News program "Hannity" this week, made the remark during a discussion about Obama's call to Eagles' owner Jeffrey Lurie in which the President said he was happy the team gave the troubled quarterback a second chance after he was convicted of running a dog fighting ring.
"I'm a Christian, I've made mistakes myself, I believe fervently in second chances, but Michael Vick killed dogs, and he did [it] in a heartless and cruel way," Carlson said. "And I think personally he should have been executed for that. He wasn't."
"But the idea that the President of the United States would be getting behind someone who murdered dogs [is] kind of beyond the pale," he said.
During Obama's call, which was first reported by Sports Illustrated's Peter King and confirmed by the White House, Obama condemned Vick's crimes but praised the Eagles for showing faith in the idea of giving someone a second chance.
Professional golfer Ben Crenshaw, one of Carlson's guests on the show's Great American Panel, said he agreed that Vick's crimes were horrific but he was happy to see him back on the field.
Carlson later said he was "all for forgiveness," but he felt that that Vick's crimes were unforgivable, and asked why the President chose to make the call.
"He's some creepy, rich, overpaid football player, I mean, come on," Carlson said. "If the President said there's some guy who was dealing crack as a kid, grew up in a poor family, you know the story, and he's turned his life around, you know, fine. I get that."
Since his reinstatement in 2009, Vick has given speeches around the country apologizing for his crimes.
Earlier this month, Vick said that he was considering getting another dog as part of his rehabilitation process.
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals said in a statement that the terms of Vick's probation prohibit him from owning a dog until late 2012.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals told The Washington Post Tuesday that Obama's call was appropriate.
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Ed Rendell, Philly's Chuck Norris
It's been a big week for badasses.
The Coen Brothers' remake of the John Wayne classic, "True Grit," has pulled in $36.8 million since opening on Wednesday night, in large part due to the tough-as-nails performance from 14-year-old newcomer, Hailee Steinfeld. On Sunday night "Samurai" Mike Singletary, one of the toughest S.O.B.s ever to take the field (and a real screamer on the sidelines, too), refused to resign from his post as coach of the 49ers, forcing the team to fire him. And all weekend, Mother Nature -- no doubt the biggest badass there is -- dumped snow all across the Eastern seaboard, shutting down airports and trapping people with their in-laws.
But even with "True Grit" soaring, the snow falling and Singletary standing his ground, the biggest tough guy of the week was Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell, who blamed the cancellation of Sunday night's Eagles/Vikings game on the "wussification" of America.
On Monday afternoon, Rendell sounded like football's answer to Chuck Norris, unloading on Mike Missanelli's show on 97.5 The Fanatic Philadelphia. The Governor, a self-proclaimed Eagles fanatic (or is it Phanatic out there?) was irate over the league's decision to move his team's game from Sunday night to Tuesday due to an impending snowstorm.
"I think it goes against everything that football is all about," Rendell said. "It's a game that should be played in all weather conditions."
According to Rendell, the postponement was just further proof that America's gone soft.
"My biggest beef is that this is part of what's happened in this country," he told Missanelli. "I think we've become wusses."
"The Chinese are kicking our butt in everything," he continued. "If this was in China, do you think the Chinese would have called off the game? People would have been marching down to the stadium, they would have walked and they would have been doing calculus on the way down."
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Clearly Rendell went a step too far there; it's tough to argue that an NFL "snow day" on a regular-season Sunday night game is the reason why our country is falling behind. That being said, the whole calculus thing -- as politically incorrect as his statement was -- does make you think. Earlier this month, The New York Times detailed the debut of international standardized testing in Shanghai and the resulting panic among this country's educators when Chinese students outperformed American kids across the board.
As for the safety of the fans in what was expected to be about 11 inches of snow, Rendell said, "I for one, and I've been stopped by tons of Eagles fans today, we were looking forward to sitting in the snow. It would have been a one in a lifetime experience. And we could have made the decision for ourselves if it was safe or not."
"We're worried about the fans getting home and driving?" Rendell cried. "Well if they're so worried about the fans, let's ban alcohol at the pregame and let's ban the sale of beer and alcohol in the stadium. So don't you think we're being a little hypocritical here?"
Absolutely. Just a week ago the Vikings/Bears game was moved to an outdoor college stadium that wasn't equipped to host a mid-December NFL game. Despite offers from other teams to hold the game in an indoor NFL stadium, the Vikings went to a lot of trouble to keep the game -- and the money! -- in Minnesota. "M-O-N-E-Y," as Rendell put it, is the holiday gift that really motivates the NFL's decisions. Fan safety is just a nice bow to put on top. Moving the game to Tuesday night means the NFL has games scheduled on Thursday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday of this holiday week. Finally, something besides "A Christmas Story" will get nearly round-the-clock TV time.
Sunday ended up being Philly's 17th-heaviest one-day snowfall on record but most agreed, in hindsight, that the game could've been played. We're certain the other badasses out there would agree with "Chuck" Rendell that the show should have gone on, and that The Linc would have been packed. He stepped on some toes during the interview but, for the most part, Rendell spoke the truth. You never want to put fans in danger, but you also don't want the great game of football -- the truest test of grit there is in sports -- to go the way of the wusses.
Luke Worrall feels Kelly Osbourne's wrath on Twitter
Luke Worrall hears from Kelly Osbourne via Twitter Luke Worrall, Kelly Osbourne's ex-fiance, got a piece of her mind late Monday night via Twitter, as the singer and reality TV star let loose with an expletive-filled series messages accusing the British model of using her and cheating on her. The two broke up in July amid rumors of infidelity.
The drama appears to have begun Saturday, when the "Dancing With the Stars" contestant tweeted, "wow just found something out that has hurt my feelings so bad :( and christmas was going so well..."
She followed that up Sunday morning with messages about being lied to, and having been "painted out 2 be the crazy 1 when all I did was tell the honest to gods truth."
"Tell us if you'd rather watch Iron Man(R) 2 or Sex and the City(R) 2. Then get a $100 movie card FREE, details apply."
Here's the essence of the messages, which have been deleted from @MissKellyO's timeline but are still visible to users who aren't logged in on the social networking site:
"@Luke_worrall ... has been trying to get back w/ me I only came home for Xmas to see him mean while he has been [sleeping with] 100's of girls as we as men behind my back all he did was use me all girls beware of @Luke_worral ... He used me for my money and a free ride he is lucky I am not spilling the hole truth about what he did! He is the worst thing that ever happened to me I don't [care] what happens to him anymore. Iam and always will be 2 good 4 @luke_worrall darling ur pretty face will only get you so far because u don't have the brains to back it up."
Worrall responded simply on Tuesday with, "lies on twitter awesome" and "im not going to spill personal business over twitter im not that low!"
Osbourne had a follow-up early Tuesday: "Dont think I have ever felt so stupid he made a fool of me going to be off Twitter for a while never felt heart brake like this in my life."
Worrall, who just turned 21, and Osbourne, 26, broke up in July, posting angry messages on Facebook and Twitter. They got engaged in November 2008 after dating for six months. She had a relapse into painkiller addiction and hit rehab for a month in January 2009. Ozzy Osbourne's daughter said early in 2010 that they were too young to get married, and could "be engaged for a while."
After calling off the engagement this summer, she said on Twitter, "thank you all so much for your support but the matter is private and [I] will not be commenting enough damage has already [been] done!"
Apparently not?
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If the Walls of the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles Could Talk
In 1927, an attorney began plans for the Chateau Marmont on Sunset Boulevard. Who knew it would become a cultural landmark?
When you’re vacationing in the City of Angels, you obviously have a multitude of choices as far as where to lay your head after a long day of sight seeing, star gazing and luxury shopping on Rodeo Drive – unless it’s a business trip, and you just want to sleep.
At 8221 Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood, California, you’ll find an 83-year-old classic known as Chateau Marmont. The famous hotel has a storied history as far as who has stayed there and the crazy things that have taken place in the near century of the hotel’s existence.
Famous rock stars and musicians have partied hard at Chateau Marmont. For example, British rock band Led Zeppelin stayed at the hotel, and during one stay, members of the band rode their motorcycles through the lobby of the hotel. Only modest damage was inflicted, and crowds of people actually cheered.
In one of the most bizarre moments of musicians staying at Chateau Marmont, pop star Britney Spears allegedly covered her face with the dinner she was served one night in 2007. Spears was reportedly banned from that hotel after other diners asked management to have her removed from the hotel. Supposedly, Spears is now on Chateau Marmont’s “Black List”.
Chateau Marmont also serves as the setting for some influential media. There are opinions that “Hotel California”, a song recorded by L.A.-based rock band The Eagles, gets its inspiration from the hotel. English playwriter Charles Wood set his play “Across From the Garden of Allah” in the hotel.
Most recently, Sofia Coppola, daughter of famous “Godfather” director Francis Ford Coppola, celebrated her 21st birthday at Chateau Marmont. Coppola is currently shooting her new film “Somewhere” starring Scarlett Johansson and Stephen Dorff. It’s just another moment for a hotel that is riddled with stars of screen and stage embracing the hotel for its rich history.
Local attorney Fred Horowitz began construction for Chateau Marmont in 1927 as a sort of tribute to the Chateau d’Amboise in France’s Loire Valley. There has already been plenty of history for the hotel, and as the hotel approaches its centennial in 2027 (yes, it seems a bit far), there is plenty of time for even more memorable moments.
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Santa Anita Racetrack: How Has The New Track Been Recieved?
Santa Anita racetrack is debuting a new racing surface today and as the park reopens after Christmas, there's a lot of excitement around the racetrack.
“There’s a buzz here for this opener, for sure,” veteran trainer Barry Abrams said to the media. “There are higher purses, a new racetrack, good or bad. It’s something new, so it’s exciting. It’s like buying a new car and you can’t wait to get behind the wheel to drive it.”
The track is dirt and that's different from the synthetic surface that used to be installed at Santa Anita and the reception has been overwhelmingly positive.
“It’s the difference between square wheels and round wheels,” Karen Headley said to the media. “When you ride a horse on synthetics, it’s like riding on square wheels. When you ride on dirt, it’s a smooth, flowing forward ride, rather than a jarring ride.”
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The Pan digital Novel Multimedia e-Reader, Nook & Kindle Helping Readers Create Their own library
E-Readers are taking over the world of technology and just may very well put the old school book stores out of business in the near future. Who ever first came up with the idea to make a hand held device that allows users to download multiple e-books into one device is pure genius. Some may say that carrying around a device that weighs the same and is just about the same size of some books, is pointless. But anyone who has experienced what e-readers such as the Nook and Kindle have to offer, knows that there is no comparison when it comes to advancing technology.
No more library cards and grumpy old ladies to tell you to keep your voice down thanks to what today’s electronics can now do. Be as loud as you want and create your own personal library using some of the latest hand held devices such as the Nook, The Pan digital Novel multimedia eReader, and the ever so famous Kindle. Kindle is one of the top products sold on Amazon.com, right up there with many of the other name brand electronics. People are always looking for an easier way to do everything, and thanks to advancing technology, something as easy as reading a book can now be done electronically.
All the e-Readers are small in size, light in weight, and offers a user friendly interface. This slick and savvy hand held device is a must have for any person that enjoys to kick back and relax with a good book. While all the the e-Readers tend to sound the same after researching each one, Amazon.com breaks it down in comparison to one another and helps shoppers make an informative decision.
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I Got It But Now…How to Activate iPhone 4
How to activate iPhone 4 is the only question I have now that I have unwrapped my prize possession from Apple. I’m a forty year old woman and you can’t even imagine how excited I was to unwrap my iPhone 4 earlier today. I have been waiting anxiously for months to get it and now it is finally here. So now I have only one question. How to active iPhone 4? Is it one of those things that spring will come around and I still won’t have my phone working.
Actually no, I have found the answer and the folks at Apple / Apple Store are standing by to get all these things activated. Of course your service provider has something to do about it to. So here is what I did. First I, took a nice glass of Mimosa, installed my beautiful case and then started reading.
Phone 4 is the latest and most advanced phone Apple has ever produced. It is THE bomb everyone is been waiting for so long and with early announcement dates, this little critter has gotten a lot of pressure around it. There was a staggering 600,000 pre-order for this wonderful device only in the first day! Imagine how that number will multiply over the next weeks!
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Sidney acting like we've enabled him to
There was Renardo Sidney, up in the stands throwing haymakers at his Mississippi State teammate, fresh off a one-game suspension from his coach and a week or so removed from an NCAA-imposed suspension that lasted all of last year and the first nine games this season.
Clearly, Sidney’s a mess.
The 6-foot-10, 275-pound Mississippi native should know better. No, make this he has to know better than to get into it with teammate Elgin Bailey with all the world to see.
Big Sid isn’t 15 years old and at ABCD Camp anymore. He just turned 21 a couple of weeks ago, and his reputation doesn’t exactly allow him much margin for error.
While another one of his teammates claims Sidney didn’t start this altercation — and that might well be the case — he could have ended it.
Without any punches being thrown.
However, let’s not place all the blame on the ultra-talented Sidney, either.
There are others who belong in the fault line here, too.
How about his father, who decided to capitalize on his son’s potential and move the entire family from the deep south all the way to Los Angeles?
How about Reebok, which employed and enabled Mr. Sidney?
How about the grassroots basketball culture and all the agents, runners and other hangers-on who I’ve seen toss heaps of praise on Big Sid after he walks off the court following yet another uninspiring performance?
Some kids and their families are able to handle all the success that comes with being a child prodigy. Some others just aren’t.
For every Kevin Durant and Blake Griffin, there are two or three Lenny Cookes and DeAngelo Collinses.
Sidney was, at one point in time, considered the latest can’t-miss prospect. Just about everyone had him pegged as the No. 1 player in the country at one time.
He possesses as much God-given ability as anyone in college basketball right now. Yes, that includes Kyrie Irving, Jared Sullinger, Perry Jones and even Enes Kanter.
Just think of a bigger, stronger and just as versatile Lamar Odom.
Sidney can dominate in the paint, step out and make shots from the perimeter, handle the ball in the open court — and also rebound and block shots.
If he feels like it.
The problem is Sidney has been enabled.
By everyone.
His parents never held him accountable, either on or off the court. It was the same for guys like former sneaker company czar Sonny Vaccaro and his right-hand man, Chris Rivers.
So now Sidney stands at a crossroads where, if he somehow makes the right decision, could lead him to a lengthy career in the NBA.
Or — and this appears far more likely — he takes the path that makes him the topic of conversation of hoops diehards.
"Whatever happened to that kid, Renardo Sidney? Man, he was one hell of a player who just disappeared.”
His college basketball debut came last week in near-anonymity, in front of a few hundred fans in the Bahamas in a game that wasn’t even televised. One college coach in attendance said Sidney was “skilled but out of shape.”
Another texted me the following: "Talented DOG. Bad Teammate. Not a winning player.”
Given recent developments, it’s hard to argue with that.
Here’s a kid who waited nearly two years to make his college basketball debut after a year-long NCAA investigation that concluded he received improper benefits and was also guilty of unethical conduct by lying to the NCAA during its investigation.
Just hours after his debut, Sidney, according to sources, got into an altercation with a walk-on at practice.
Mississippi State coach Rick Stansbury had no option but to suspend Big Sid, but the damage had already been done.
Sources told FOXSports.com that many of his teammates want Sidney out of Starkville.
But Stansbury did what everyone else has done with Sidney his entire life: He looked the other way.
Maybe Stansbury needs to talk with Memphis’ second-year coach, Josh Pastner, who dismissed talented freshman Jelan Kendrick – a McDonald’s All-American – before the start of the season for his inability to respond positively to authority and coexist with teammates.
Instead, Stansbury hit Sidney with a one-game suspension and Big Sid was back on the court Thursday, putting up 19 points and grabbing six rebounds in a win against San Diego in Hawaii.
Then, hours later while watching games in the stands, a fight broke out. There was no video of Sidney’s debut down in the Bahamas, but the scuffle was caught on tape – and it’s embarrassing for everyone involved – including Mississippi State.
There’s Sidney and another heavyweight, the 6-foot-8, 265-pound Bailey, trading punches with fans only a few seats away.
Mississippi State athletic director told The Clarion-Ledger that it’s "disappointing. Still gathering information, but it’s not how we want our school represented."
Sidney isn’t a kid anymore, but he’s still acting that way.
It doesn’t matter whether Bailey started it or not.
Sidney made yet another mistake.
Why?
Because Sidney, believe it or not, doesn’t always comprehend right from wrong.
I spoke with him hours after his college debut en route to Hawaii. He had scored 12 points in 25 minutes, and there he was talking about how he can’t be stopped and how – after a few more games to get into shape – we’d all see the Young Renardo.
The one who had everyone in awe back at Vaccaro’s ABCD Camp.
However, after his involvement in an embarrassing incident that took place while most of the nation slept on Friday morning, I’m not sure we’ll ever see the Young Renardo again.
Young Renardo was the one who told me he was committing to Alabama back in the eighth grade. Young Renardo was the one who was leading the fast break and making his teammates better.
That was the Renardo I fell in love with back in the day. But now he’s gone. And he's likely gone for good.
Blame him, but he’s not alone in all of this. There is plenty to go around this holiday season.
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Aton Impulse Viking Amphibious 4×4
A company based in Russia, Aton Impulse LLC, has created one awesome 4×4 vehicle that is also amphibious as well. Their Viking vehicles can be used on road with a Vehicle Type Approval Certificate. They have done many years of research to develop this versatile truck that targets the corporate, government and recreational off-road and amphibious markets.
The Aton Impulse Viking can also be ordered in a 6×6 configuration as well. It can seat between 3-12 people in th cabin area, and can carry a load of 800-2600 kg. Self powered trailers can help with heavy loads.
In the water, the high-flotation boat frame, combined with a water propulsion system, can drive the Aton Impulse as fast as 15 kilometers per hour against the current.
The truck has a low center of gravity to reduce the possibility of a rollover accident that is common with other off road vehicles.
The suspension system is pneumatic all the way around and suspension height is adjustable also. Tire pressure can also be adjusted from the comfort of the cab.
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Jersey Shore Season 3: MTV surprised cast with new housemate, Deena Cortese
By now it's no secret that Jersey Shore Season 3 includes a new housemate - Deena Nicole Cortese - but today MTV confirms the other housemates were shocked by her arrival when they returned to Seaside Heights. Examiner.com has learned, with the exception of Snooki, producers of the hugely popular reality show didn't tell the other housemates that Deena was gonna be moving in. "None of them know Snooki has invited her BFF Deena Nicole Cortese to fill the void (left by Angelina's departure)," MTV confirms.
The first time The Situation, Pauly D, Vinny, Ronnie, Sammi and JWoWW will meet Deena is during the Jersey Shore Season 3 premiere. While Deena knows her housemates personalities from watching the two previous seasons of Jersey Shore - they don't know her - and that leads to a blowout fight on the first night.
Deena actually submitted a Jersey Shore audition tape before the first series ever premiered in 2009, but was passed over by Jersey Shore casting directors. But when Angelina stormed out of the shore house in Miami, that opened the door for Deena, who got her second chance. "This cast is about to double their pleasure because like her diminutive, fireball bestie Snooki, Deena is going to prove that big fun and big drama continue to come in small packages," the network confirms in a statement.
Jersey Shore Season 3 premieres on MTV on January 6, 2011 at 10pm ET/PT.
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