All aboard for the Harry Potter rollercoaster

J.K Rowling, who became the world's first billion dollar author on the back of Harry Potter's success, has given the go-ahead for the creation of a Florida theme park dedicated to the schoolboy wizard.

"The plans I have seen look incredibly exciting and I don't think fans of the books or films will be disappointed," Rowling said of the Orlando park that is scheduled to open in 2009.

The park is a joint venture between Warner Bros Entertainment, whose Potter films have so far grossed more than $3.5 billion worldwide, and Universal Orlando Resort.

In a statement rich in entertainment hyperbole, the builders of "The Wizarding World of Harry Potter" said they planned to "create the world's first immersive Harry Potter themed environment."

Barry Meyer, chairman and CEO of Warner Bros. Entertainment, said: "Over the years we've received thousands of letters from fans around the world wishing they could visit Hogwarts (School) and the wonderful locations described in each of J.K.Rowling's beloved stories."

The park's opening could help to quell the withdrawal symptoms of Potter fans around the globe who have bought 320 million copies of her wizard tales and turned every one of the films into a box office hit.

Pottermania is set to scale new heights in July with the last novel hitting the bookstands and the latest film being launched in a deluge of global publicity.

"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," the final installment in her hugely successful series, is being released on July 21.

Rowling is to mark publication with a moonlight reading for fans at London's Natural History Museum.

Sweepstakes are being conducted by her British publisher Bloomsbury Publishing Plc and American publisher Scholastic to pick the winning fans.

"Harry Potter and the order of the Phoenix," the fifth film in a blockbuster series based on the books, is being given its official world premiere in London on July 3.

Rowling, whose books are always released under tight security, has said two characters will die in the seventh and final book but she has refused to give any clues.

The author has appealed to people to keep the end a secret: "I want the readers who have, in many instances, grown up with Harry, to embark on the last adventure they will share with him without knowing where they are going."

U.S. authors John Irving and Stephen King were so worried about the fictional hero's fate that they urged Rowling to spare the bespectacled hero.

The Dystopian Looking Glass

By Drew

The online issue of The New Criterion has a very interesting article by Anthony Daniels, "Blood and Smashed Glass," on dystopian (end-of-the-world, post-apocalyptic, what have you) novels. As Daniels notes, the best of these dystopian novels tend to be from Britain, and back in February I wrote about one of the best and most affecting, On the Beach.

Of the recent novels in the genre, Daniels focuses on J. G. Ballard’s Kingdom Come. (You might recognize Ballard as the author of Empire of the Sun, which was made into a movie by Steven Spielberg.) In Kingdom Come, Ballard writes of a bleak, spiritually empty Britain, where “the ‘spiritual’ focus of life here is the shopping mall, the airport, and the filling station.” In many ways more terrifying than the regressive, post-nuclear worlds we often read about, Ballard describes the not-too-distant future:

They [the inhabitants] lived in an eternal retail present, where the deepest moral decisions concerned the purchase of a refrigerator or a washing machine.

Parking was well on the way to becoming the British population’s greatest spiritual need.

Here, a filling station beside a dual carriageway enshrined a deeper sense of community than any church or chapel, a greater awareness of a shared culture than a library or municipal gallery could offer.

Consumerism dominated the lives of the people, who looked as if they were shopping whatever they were doing.

As Daniels notes, such a life can be deeply unsatisfying. Nationalism (or Balkanization of the culture, if you will), aggressiveness, and violence work to fill the gap, but so does the Oprafied, emotions-on-the-sleeve sentimental mush we seem to crave. In Britain, these contradictory elements are symbolized by the teddy bear for the sentimentality, the English flag for the brutality, both of which, Daniels says, “[serve] to make the country an increasingly civilization-free zone.”

Whenever there is a fatal accident, or a fatal stabbing or shooting, in an English city, teddy bears soon appear at the site, often strapped to the nearest lamppost. They are the lightning conductors of disturbing thoughts and emotions, discharging them harmlessly into the ground. They serve the purposes of shallowness and intensity at the same time; they are the tribute that egotism pays to sympathy. That is why, as Ballard so acutely perceives, they play so large a part in modern English life.

As for the flag, which only a handful of years ago was scarcely ever seen, and then only in the hands of people with the crudest xenophobic sentiments, it is now to be found everywhere. One of Mr. Blair’s greatest achievements, so far unheralded, is the near certain destruction of the 300-year-old union of Scotland and England, with the very real possibility of the emergence once again of destructive hostility. English nationalists will soon find real reasons to hate the Scots, for example because of the vast subsidies they have so thanklessly received for decades; the Scots, suddenly deprived of those subsidies, will find one more reason to loathe the English.

I don’t imagine we recognize much of our own culture in this, do we? Anyway, if you have a strong stomach and some antidepressants nearby, you might want to check this out.

If I haven’t already gotten you down by now, let me mention one additional element form Daniels’ article. In fact, it was the piece that fairly leapt off the page when I read it, for in it I saw the greatest parallel to our own time and culture. Oddly enough, it comes from one of the older of the dystopian novels, E.M. Forster’s The Machine Stops, published in 1909. The Machine Stops tells of a world where “mankind has become entirely subterranean, living isolated lives in temperature-controlled cells where everything is available at the push of a button and all human contact is second-hand, via electronic communication apparatus. First-hand experience of anything except the cell in which one lives is feared and avoided by everyone.”

I read this and I thought, “Internet. Email. MySpace. Virtual reality. Avatars. Self-absorption, the elimination of risk, the decay of neighborhoods. It’s all there, isn’t it. And he wrote this 100 years ago.”

If it’s uncomfortable having a mirror held up to us, if we squirm at the image we see reflected in its glass, we should also be grateful that we’ve been given this looking glass in which we can get a glimpse of what life has become. Of course, the hard part is to do something about it, as we must, before the looking glass turns into the picture of Dorian Gray.

Maybe the Minnesota Opera Should Read This

By Mitchell

Well, we haven’t written much about the Minnesota Opera lately, the 2006-07 season having recently come to a close. The new season has been announced, however, featuring Rossini's classic comedy L’Italiana in Algeri, or as the Minnesota Opera insists on billing it, “The Italian Girl in Algiers.” As the title implies, the story takes place in Algeria. Rossini wrote this piece in 1813, so it’s a fairly safe bet that the setting of L’Italiana in Algeri takes place somewhere in that time frame.

Except, of course, for the Minnesota Opera. Their description of the staging is as follows: “Rossini’s madcap romantic comedy is imaginatively set inside a colorful 1930s pop-up book.”

Right.

Keep in mind that this is the same Minnesota Opera that staged Orazi e Curiazi, which the composer set in the year 650 BC, as an American Civil War epic.

Now, read the following from this week’s print edition of The Onion:

Unconventional Director Sets Shakespeare Play In Time, Place Shakespeare Intended

In an innovative, tradition-defying rethinking of one of the greatest comedies in the English language, Morristown Community Players director Kevin Hiles announced Monday his bold intention to set his theater’s production of William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice in 16th-Century Venice.

“I know when most people hear The Merchant of Venice, they think 1960s Las Vegas, a high-powered Manhattan stock brokerage, or an 18th-century Georgia slave plantation, but I think it’s high time to shake things up a bit,” Hiles said.

[…]

The Community Players’ 1999 production of Othello was set during the first Gulf War, 2001’s The Tempest took place on a canoe near the Bermuda Triangle, and last year’s “stripped-down,” post-apocalyptic version of Hamlet presented the tragedy in the year 3057.

[Hiles] had been planning to center [The Merchant of Venice] around an al-Qaeda terrorist cell before going with an avant-garde take [of setting the story in its original time and place].

Admit it. If I hadn’t told you which story was from The Onion, you’d have had a hard time telling the two apart, wouldn’t you?

I could ask why directors insist on doing this, taking perfectly good stories and tricking them up for no apparent reason other than to draw attention to their own self-conscious cleverness, but let’s have one of the “singers” from The Onion have the last word:

“I guess it’s the director’s dramatic license to put his own personal spin on the play he is directing, but this is a little over-the-top,” said Stacey Silverman, who played Nurse Brutus in Hiles’ 2003 all-female version of Julius Caesar. “I just think Portia not being an aviatrix does a tremendous disservice to the playwright.”

Now, What Was That About TV and Sports, Again?

By Mitchell

Am I the only one who noticed this irony?

Just past the halfway point of the Indy 500 on Sunday, a rainstorm caused a three-hour delay. The race finally resumed, but was again cut short by rain and finally halted before the full 500 miles were run. It made for an exciting race, with the additional element of time adding a layer of drama to an unusually competitive race, but it also left many with a somewhat empty feeling, being cheated out of the thrill of a down-to-the-wire finish.

Now, the irony. A couple of years ago, in an effort by ABC to boost TV ratings, the start of the race was moved back an hour, from 11:00 a.m. to noon, Central time. (The fact that Indianapolis is now on Daylight Savings time has nothing to do with this particular equation.) Understanding that heavy rain early on Sunday morning made it fortunate that the race was even able to start on time, the fact remains that had the race begun at its customary 11:00 starting time, it would almost certainly have been possible to run the entire 500 miles, at least if you include the restart after the first delay.

Changing the starting time of a sporting event in order to accommodate TV is nothing new, of course. As far as racing goes (and you can correct me on this, Bobby or Cathy), I believe the start of the Daytona 500 was also pushed back a couple of years ago for TV. The difference here is that the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is, unlike Daytona and many other race tracks, totally dependant on natural light for the running of a race. Starting the race even one hour late, especially an event as prone to weather interruptions as Indy can be, purely in order to capture the crowd that might otherwise be at church or Sunday brunch, seems to be – what, unfortunate? Besides, most non-racing fans would insist that you don’t need to see the beginning of the race (unless it’s Formula 1, with its traditional first-lap pileup), when it’s only the last hour or so that really matters. True racing aficionados, I suspect, would make sure they were able to see the start of the race if they really wanted to.

Again, it may not have been possible on Sunday due to the early rain, but that doesn’t change the essence of what we’re talking about. Thanks once again to television, the outcome of a major sporting event might have been affected. I certainly hope the money that ABC pays Indianapolis was worth it!

Arnold Schwarzenegger: Fan of Paris Hilton's Sex Tape

Making a sexy home video with your significant other can be risky business. You never know whose hands it will fall into. In Paris Hilton's case, the Governor of her home state of California has even seen her in action. And we don't mean chase scenes.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has no shame about his knowledge of Paris' exploits on home video. During a recent appearance on the Jay Leno show he told the late night host, "I've heard from someone that she said somewhere she isn't even a fan of mine and she has never seen any of my movies, I've seen all of hers."

In legendary Arnold form, he followed up with the observation, " Obviously we both do action movies." The crowd went wild, and I'm sure his wife, Maria Shriver, cringed. But when you're the Governor of California, there isn't much that's out of bounds.

The Governator claims that he was never approached about a pardon for the heiress. He called the whole ordeal "ridiculous."

Meanwhile, Paris was recently spotted at the Buddhist bookstore, Bodhi Tree, in Hollywood.

As pointed out by the Superficial, "Apparently her lawyer have told her to 'live like a nun' if she has any chance of evading jail -so she's taken this to mean getting photographed with as many religious books as possible."

The heiress has also allegedly told friends she's quitting her drinking and partying and"has even replaced her skimpy outfits with a new demure look."

If these latest tactics fail her - Paris will begin serving her time behind bars on June 5th.

This Would Explain a Lot About Why the Blogosphere Isn't Better

By Mitchell

Via the Onion.

Why do I feel as if I know most of those people?

UPDATE: Drew wonders if that last comment of mine was intended to suggest the existence of something such as P.J. O'Rourke's Enemies List, and whether or not any of our fellow bloggers should take umbrage at it. Well, we're far too genteel around here to have something such as an enemies list; and no, if you're listed on the sidebar, you have nothing to fear. However, there certainly have been cases in the past when a blog has disappeared from the sidebar - were they part of the 38%? We report - you decide.

Music Soothes the Savage Beast?

By Drew

Last month I noted the fight that broke out at a Boston Pops concert. Well, today is the anniversary of perhaps the most famous riot in the history of classical music, the mêlée that broke out at the premiere of Stravinsky's Rite of Spring.

Here is a You Tube link to a BBC video reenactment of the premiere performance. Part One A particularly highlights the acrimonious reception which greated the work:

Part One A and B
Part Two A and B

So much for the idea that classical music is dull and bloodless!

People are obsessed with my butt: Jessica Alba

It seems that Jessica Alba cannot figure out why people are so crazy about her butt.

The 'Fantastic Four' star recently told InStyle Magazine that she couldn't decipher the reason behind her numerous crazy butt-loving fans.

"I don't know why people are obsessed [over my derriere]. Well, it's not flat, so maybe they're just not used to seeing an actress who has a figure..," Just Jared quoted Alba, as saying.

"I had womanly curves at a young age. Usually kid actors are a few years older than the roles they play. I was two or three years younger," she added.

Alba also said that she is happy to play a role that is different, especially as has been typecast as "some what of little Tart" in Hollywood.

"My experience in this business is that if people think you're going to put people in seat because you have a fan base, it's more important than anything," she said.

"If you have a womanly figure, you're not allowed to have a brain or any idea of the world whatsoever. You just have to be hot and use your body to get ahead," she added.

Kelly Clarkson

Kelly Clarkson

Biography
The winner of Fox TV's first American Idol: The Search for a Superstar competition during the summer of 2002, Kelly Clarkson went from an anonymous talent to a nationally known singer, performing for an audience of millions of viewers.
One of the show's most naturally gifted singers, the 20-year-old Burleson, TX native's vocal talents were discovered when she was in seventh grade, when her school's choir teacher heard her singing and urged Clarkson to join the choir.After high school, Clarkson cultivated her voice and went to Hollywood to make her name; she appeared as an extra on an episode of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch but no other opportunities materialized. Upon returning to Burleson, Clarkson worked at a movie theater, promoted Red Bull energy drinks, and ultimately worked as a cocktail waitress at a comedy club before entering the American Idol contest.One of 10,000 aspiring singers, Clarkson distinguished herself not only with her big, surprisingly mature voice, but also with her down-to-earth charm and sense of humor; at one of her auditions, she switched places with judge Randy Jackson, who did an impromptu version of R. Kelly's "I Believe I Can Fly."Over the course of the 13-week show, her consistently strong performances of songs like "Respect," "Natural Woman," "Stuff Like That There" and "Without You" earned Clarkson enough audience votes to claim one of the contest's two finalist positions. After singing "A Moment Like This" and "Before Your Love," both of which were written for the show, Clarkson won the American Idol contest with 58-percent of the audience's votes. In addition to the show's prize of one-million dollars and a recording contract with RCA, Clarkson secured a deal with Creative Artists Agency and several bookings, including the national American Idol tour and a performance of the national anthem at the September 11 commemoration at Washington, D.C.'s Lincoln Memorial. Despite her newfound fame, Clarkson opted to remain in Texas rather than move to New York or Los Angeles. Her first single, "A Moment Like This," was released just two weeks after she won the contest and quickly earned platinum sales. Clarkson's debut full-length Thankful was released in spring of 2003, just in time to coincide with the second season of American Idol and right before the American Idol movie, From Justin to Kelly.Breakaway followed in late 2004 and was a huge success, selling over 5 million copies (making it the third best-selling album of 2005) and spawning the hit singles "Because of You", "Behind These Hazel Eyes" and "Since U Been Gone". That song and Breakaway earned Grammys for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and Best Pop Vocal Album, respectively, at the 48th Annual Grammy Awards in early 2006. Clarkson continued her busy touring schedule that spring and summer and announced plans for her third album, which was reported to be in a more blues and rock-oriented vein than her earlier work. ~ Heather Phares, All Music Guide

Car Wash Christianity

By Bobby

With the Religious Left's leaders being Warren, Hybels, and others in The Emergent Church movement, note how many churches have fallen to the trap ofthe Emergent Church. This column has great commentary on it:

All the sermons on Sunday became geared at healing relationships, or how to be a better you, and 10 steps to something I am told I am missing in my life, or the gospel according to the barbecue grill or some other funny little sermon, never about the Holiness, Mercy, Grace, Wrath, Judgement, or Justice of God or the Deity of Christ and I can't tell you the last time I heard the word HELL on a Sunday morning.

The concerns expressed by this author are mirrored in other articles, such as this one.

In a subsequent article, the author of the initial post elaborates on his concerns:

What are some of the lasting effects from the seeker movement on the church when the focus is on contemporary worship, and modernizing every thing in the church? Well it seems that it creates a contempt for church history to the point that it separates the modern church from her past with no connection to history of the Faith, and most today seem to wear it as a badge of honor. Christians today just don't have any connection or respect to the great hymns, their writers, theology, great preachers, and sound doctrine. So there is this dumbing down of the importance of church, a diminishing of the importance of worship, and the diminishing of the importance of the exalted charter of it. Now this appears to be a concentrated effort to systematically cut all ties with the whole history of the church, and in the process we have trained a generation of church goers to have contempt for historical Christianity, and the theology that is at the heart of historical Christianity, and all that is left is a man-centered theology and an emotional entertainment." [NOTE: Excerpt compiled after listening to GTY90 from Grace To You. An interview with John MacArthur and Phil Johnson titled "Straight Talk About the Seeker Church Movement".]

As the author says in the initial post, after talking about the "worship minister with rock star like credentials" who says things like "God is not concerned with putting his stamp of approval on your worship" and the invitational hymn being "Desperado" by the Eagles, "And they have the gall to call this church?"

Jordin Sparks wins `Idol'; ratings drop

LOS ANGELES - An estimated 29.5 million Americans tuned in for the season's final "American Idol" with Jordin Sparks winning the prize — a sharp drop from last year's finale, according to preliminary ratings from Nielsen Media Research.

Last year, 36.4 million people watched Taylor Hicks win. And even though Hicks was featured singing during Wednesday's two hour-plus episode, that represents a 19 percent decrease.

That estimate, however, was sure to be adjusted later Thursday. The preliminary numbers only measured Fox's telecast from 8 to 10 p.m. EDT — and Sparks wasn't announced as the winner until 10:03 p.m.

Sparks grew up on "American Idol," watching the show since she was 12 years old and telling her mother it was what she wanted to do.

"Now I'm actually doing it," the 17-year-old told reporters backstage after winning the competition The Arizona teenager bested Blake Lewis, 25, the beat-boxer from Washington at the Kodak Theatre.

"I've just been trying to top myself each week," Sparks told The Associated Press. "I would sing my song and after I was done I was like, `OK, what am I going to do next week that's going to be ... either just as good or better."

Sparks, with a floor-length gown and movie-star hair, gushed like a teenager when her name was called.

"Thank you so much for everything," she told the crowd. "Mom, Dad, I love you. Nana, Papa, P.J., thank you guys."

Then she began "This Is My Now," the tune picked by viewers in a new online "American Idol" songwriting contest. Both she and Lewis performed the track Tuesday, and judge Simon Cowell reiterated Wednesday the song sold him on Sparks.

"If I'm going to call it, based on the last song, congratulations Jordin," Cowell said, before the winner was announced.

The contest came down to the stronger singer, Sparks, or the better entertainer, Lewis. Sparks delivered her songs simply and powerfully; Lewis' flourishes included beatboxing and sharp dance moves.

Lewis said backstage that he didn't mind coming in second.

"I picked Jordin Sparks at the top 24 as the `American Idol' winner," he said proudly. "I was actually going to try to wear a `Vote for Jordin Sparks' T-shirt last night but they wouldn't let me do it."

Lewis compared his sound to Michael Jackson and Jamiroquai and said his forthcoming album will be "like electro pop, very danceable."

Sparks won a recording contract as part of her "Idol" prize, but Lewis hasn't yet secured a deal.

"Hopefully some creative minds would like to work with me," he said.

The finale pulled out the stops and the stars, with Gwen Stefani,Smokey Robinson, Tony Bennett,Bette Midler, and Green Day among the performers.

Stefani sang her new single, "4 in the Morning," via satellite from a tour stop in Massachusetts.

Midler took the stage as the show drew near its close, singing "The Wind Beneath My Wings."

Past "Idol" winners and this season's contestants got a hefty share of attention, starting with first-season winner Kelly Clarkson. She performed her new single "Never Again," the gritty rock song matched by her black dress and thigh-high boots.

Carrie Underwood, the fourth-season winner, sang "I'll Stand by You" and was honored by legendary music mogul Clive Davis for reaching 6 million in sales for her debut album, "Some Hearts."

Hicks, last season's winner, also had his moment, as did Ruben Studdard, the winner from year two.

Motown great Robinson performed "Being with You" after the top six male contestants, including fan fave Sanjaya Malakar, sang "Ooh Baby Baby," a hit for Robinson and his group the Miracles.

Backstage, Robinson Sparks deserved to win.

"She is an awesome singer. She sings so good it's hard to believe she's 17," he said. "To sing like that, you would have to have lived for a long time. She's an old soul."

Blake, whose beat-boxing scored with viewers and brought a hip-hop element to "Idol," performed with veteran rapper Doug E. Fresh on his old hit, "The Show." It was a signature moment for a contest that has introduced young viewers to Gershwin and other standards.

"True originals," host Ryan Seacrest said of the duo.

Backstage, Fresh called Lewis "an incredibly talented, good guy."

"He just has such an incredible energy and he loves hip hop so much," Fresh said from behind aviator sunglasses.

Gladys Knight took the stage with the six female finalists, belting out "I Feel a Song" and "Midnight Train to Georgia." Bennett performed a mellow version of "For Once in My Life" that ended with a big finish.

"A true idol, Tony Bennett, ladies and gentlemen," gushed Seacrest.

Melinda Doolittle, arguably the best contestant to miss out on the finale, returned to impress the crowd again as she sang "Hold Up the Line" with gospel stars BeBe and CeCe Winans.

"She has proven in the last few months to be spectacular," BeBe Winans said backstage of Doolittle.

The show took a serious turn when Green Day performed "A Working Class Hero is Something to Be," a single from "Instant Karma: The Campaign to Save Darfur," a fundraising album for the embattled region.

Viewers cast more than 74 million votes in making Sparks the winner. Hundreds of "American Idol" fans lined Hollywood Boulevard leading up to the theater before the show.

On Tuesday, judges Cowell and Randy Jackson made it clear Sparks was their favorite. Diplomatic Paula Abdul kept her counsel as usual, praising both singers. Although the judges didn't have a say in the decision, their opinions can sway voters.

This Just In

By Steve

GAO Recommends Downsizing of U.S. Senate
Study reveals Senate "getting along just fine" despite 1/3 of members being away on full-time campaign trail

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- In a move bound to send shock-waves through all three branches of the federal government, the Government Accounting Office has issued a report recommending that the number of U.S. Senators should be sharply reduced, perhaps by as much as 50%.

(Left) Senator John McCain reacts with shock and outrage to the GAO's move to downsize his job.

"This may sound radical, but in the light of the current situation, it's really a no brainer," says GAO head Marvin Brickheader. "We've got nearly a dozen sitting senators running for president or thinking of running for president. People like McCain, Clinton, Obama, Dodd, Biden. A presidential campaign is obviously a full-time job for these people. They're rarely in Washington during a campaign that is now stretching to two years or more in length. That's a full third of their six year term.

"And yet, even without them, the Senate is getting along just fine. Apparently we can downsize, still get the work done, and save taxpayers some money. What's wrong with that?"

The report is receiving negative reaction from the senators themselves. "This is a dumb idea," said Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), who met briefly with reporters after his breakfast meeting at the Rotary Club in Mill Pond, New Hampshire. "I'm keeping up just fine with Senate business. I have a cell phone and a Blackberry. I'm in touch. As much as I need to be." McCain promised to give more detail on his reaction to the GAO report after a luncheon in Dubuque, Iowa and a fund-raising dinner in Hilton Head, South Carolina.

"Let's be realistic," Brickheader countered. "How many working people in America could say to their bosses, 'You know, for the next two years, I won't be in the office much because I've pretty much taken on a second full-time job. But thanks for continuing to pay me a salary and cover all my medical benefits.' Who's going to get away with that? And yet, that's exactly what these senators are doing."

Under the GAO plan, the number of senators would be reduced to 50, one per state. In addition, a senator announcing that he or she is a candidate for higher office would automatically be removed from their senate seat and a special election held to find a replacement. "It could even make some people think twice about running," added Brickheader, "and that might not necessarily be a bad thing."

The Cultural Archaeologist

By Mitchell

We should have seen it coming.

In the February 17, 1968 issue of TV Guide, buried in the yellow "TV Teletype" section at the back of the magazine, was the following brief notation:

NBC's "Heidi" special, which was filmed in Europe, will be shown in the two-hour form instead of the originally planned 90 minutes.

There were more tantalizing clues - the color photo spread of the Heidi cast shooting in the Swiss Alps in the November 9 issue (ironically, an issue including an article entitled, "Inside Story of a Football Telecast"), although it probably didn't attract much notice at the time. And then in the November 16 issue there's the show itself: Heidi, on Sunday, November 17, 1968 at 6:00 Central on NBC, starring Michael Redgrave, Maximillian Schell and Jean Simmons in "Johanna Spyri's story classic." Almost unnoticed – printed with virtually no fanfare – was the game itself.

3:00 Pro Football. New York Jets vs. Raiders at Oakland. Curt Gowdy and Al DeRogatis report. (Live)

The rest of the Heidi Game, as it came to be known, is history. And so was television sports as we knew it.

The Heidi Game, by itself, didn’t spell the end. Mike Celizic’s wonderful book The Biggest Game of Them All illustrates how the 1966 Notre Dame-Michigan State #1 vs. #2 showdown profoundly changed the way in which television looked at sports. This game, created a demand for media credentials unsurpassed in sports to that time (it took the Super Bowl years before it became as big a media sensation), caused Catholic churches throughout the nation to change confession times so as not to conflict with the game, and became the first sporting event telecast live via satellite in Hawaii.

It may be hard to believe now, but through the 60s and early 70s the televising of college football was a closely regulated business. Teams were limited to the number of appearances they could make on TV each season, and even the biggest games were frequently seen on a regional, rather than national, basis. The Notre Dame-Michigan State game, which was hyped to a level that would be remarkable even today, threatened to change everything.

It was seen as a single-handed threat to small or underperforming college teams. (Why would anyone go to watch such a team when they could stay at home and watch the big boys duke it out?) It created fears that Notre Dame might run off and get their own TV network. (As indeed they did, although it took almost 30 years for it to happen.) By bowing to the demands of the viewing audience and showing the top teams week after week (regardless of how many times they appeared), major schools were certain to gain a recruiting advantage in what was rapidly becoming a national, rather than regional, playing field.

In the end, the two teams settled nothing, playing to a 10-10 tie. But as far as television was concerned, the game had taken it to the brink. It would take perhaps one more event to push it over the edge.

Enter Heidi.

The uproar over the game was immense, not only in the immediate aftermath but in the days to follow. It was a featured story on NBC’s Huntley-Brinkley report. It made the front page of the New York Times. For the American Football League, still fighting for respectability and acceptance, it was a public relations bonanza – seldom before had the league gotten the kind of attention it now basked in. (And things would get even better less than two months later, with Joe Namath leading the aforementioned Jets to their shocking Super Bowl victory over the Colts.)

The message to TV from the public came through loud and clear – don’t mess with our sports.

The results were mixed. TV did indeed learn the power and popularity (not to mention profitability) of sports, with the result that they started messing with it more than ever – games starting at the break of dawn or the middle of the night, summer sports in the winter and winter sports in the summer, endless commercial breaks, stadiums constructed around TV sightlines – even leagues created in partnership with networks (the XFL) or partially owned by networks (Arena Football). Entire networks were devoted entirely to the telecasting of sporting events. Leagues started their own television networks. It wouldn’t be much of an exaggeration to suggest that sports became, to a great extent, a wholly owned subsidiary of Corporate America (see Rollerball for further details).

Oh, there was never a repeat of the Heidi Game – at least not exactly. For while an NFL game would never again be cut off before its completion (unless your home team was playing in the second half of a doubleheader, but that’s another story), other sports aren't necessarily as fortunate, as the NHL found out last Saturday afternoon. The NHL learned this lesson the hard way, when the fifth game of the Ottawa-Buffalo series was unceremoniously dumped by NBC (yes, the same network of Heidi) to make way for the Preakness pre-race show. The game was headed for overtime, you see, and as any fan of the NHL can tell you, a playoff overtime game can last five minutes or five hours. For those die-hard fans who wanted to see just how this game wound up, they had to hightail it over to Versus, the NHL’s cable home. If they had access to Versus, that is. Moral of the story: money talks. The NFL has it. The NHL doesn’t. (The NHL hasn't been the only victim of this kind of programming, as this Wikipedia entry shows.)

Now, it may be a stretch to accuse one little girl of causing all this, but then again it might not be such a stretch after all. What is safe to say is that the Heidi Game changed the way television perceived sports, and in some fundamental way sports has never been the same.

And nobody could possibly have guessed it at the time, reading the pages of TV Guide.

Once Again, Truth Stranger Than Fiction

By Drew

You know, we really can't make this stuff up: (H/T Jonah Goldberg at NRO)

Man's Plot to Kill Girlfriend Ends With His Death

A California man who tried to kill his girlfriend by leaving her in a car parked across railway lines was himself killed when an oncoming train hurled the car into him as he fled.

His girlfriend survived, the Associated Press reported.

The man drove the car to the head of a line of traffic stopped at a level crossing in the San Fernando Valley neighborhood of Sunland on Monday, police spokesman Mike Lopez said.

The man, who was seen arguing with the woman, then parked the car on the tracks and jumped out, leaving her behind, Mr Lopez said.

A 450-ton commuter train hit the rear of the car, launching it into the man.

The girlfriend, who was injured , was taken to hospital in a stable condition.

Nothing more need be said. Except, be careful.

Jordan's Queen Noor pressures Bosnia over missing persons

SARAJEVO (AFP) - Queen Noor of Jordan on Tuesday urged greater commitment in the search for thousands of people missing since Bosnia's 1992-95 war.

At a meeting with Bosnian Prime Minister Nikola Spiric in the town of Mostar, Queen Noor, a commissioner of the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP), expressed her disappointment over the lack of progress in making a Missing Persons Institute (MPI) functional, the ICMP said in a statement.

"Today, almost two years after the signing of the agreement...and despite the fact that the Directors of MPI have been appointed and the budget approved, the Institute is still not fully functional", the statement quoted Queen Noor as saying.

Bosnian authorities agreed with the ICMP nearly two years ago to merge missing persons' commissions of the country's two ethically divided parts into one body, the MPI.

However, they have since failed to agree on the appointment of generally acceptable candidates to the management bodies of the MPI, which is hoped to speed up exhumation and identification of the missing as well as to de-politicize the search for the mass graves.

Spiric pledged to "undertake all necessary measures to resolve this issue as soon as possible."

Bosnia's 1992-1995 war split the country into two highly autonomous entities -- the Serbs' Republika Srpska and the Muslim-Croat Federation, handing each entity its own government, parliament and police.

There are still more than 13,000 people missing from the Bosnian war which claimed over 200,000 lives.

The Bosnia-based ICMP was set up in 1996 with the aim of assisting tens of thousands of families hoping to find out what happened to their relatives who disappeared during the 1990s wars in the former Yugoslavia.

Cameramen are horny creatures: Jessica Alba!

Sexy actress, Jessica Alba gets extremely uncomfortable when cameramen focus on areas which should not to be captured on tape.

The ‘Good Luck Chuck’ actress said that it can get really uneasy when camera lingers over awkward places.

“When you see the camera right here you’re like, ‘Uh, that’s my crotch.… I’m going to stand over here,’” Us Weekly quoted Alba, as telling GQ magazine.

“You know? Cameramen are just horny sometimes,” she added.

The actress also opened about how she felt when movie bosses forced her to scuba dive in a bikini, scrapping the original idea of a wet suit.

She added that if she had created a fuss over the change, she would have been called a diva, and that similar incidents will keep happening.

“…The people in charge decided to dumb it down. And all of a sudden, the wet suits went away…If I’d bitched about the change, I would’ve been called a diva. I can’t say it was the first time that ever happened. And I can’t say it’ll be the last,” she said.

The Vision Thing

By Mitchell

My friend Hadleyblogger Gary was complaining about George Bush yesterday. Now, this is nothing new for Gary. As I’ve commented before, Gary would only be completely satisfied belong to a political party named after himself.

What I think is worth mentioning about Gary, and the reason I bring this up, is that until a few years ago most people would have called Gary a staunch Republican type (he eschewed party affiliations himself, but it would have been one of those “if the shoe fits” cases), and he remains a staunch conservative. He supported George Bush in 2000 - he was truly convinced that the younger Bush was different, more conservative, than his father. Perhaps even the heir to Ronald Reagan.

This feeling had, for the most part, dissipated by 2004. I can’t remember if he voted for Bush then, but the ardor had clearly worn off. Today, it’s totally gone – replaced by a withering contempt. In his mind, and in the minds of many like Gary, George Bush has betrayed not only the principles of the Republican party, but those of conservatism as well – the growing federal bureaucracy, the runaway spending, the increasing intrusiveness of the government, the continual erosion of national sovereignty, the war.

Gary is by no means a lone voice in this. What makes it so difficult for many in the conservative movement is that George Bush’s presidency has created such a distorted image, a totally inaccurate picture of what conservatives stand for. Bush isn’t a conservative – at best, he’s a moderate Republican, a return to the party’s pre-Reagan country club roots – but many people, trained over time to link “Republican” and “conservative” are presented with a grossly unfair depiction of what many would think of a “conservative” presidency. The best one can do when discussing politics with others is to stress to them that George Bush isn’t a conservative at all, that he’s not representative of how many conservatives really feel. Don’t judge us by what you see in him, we plead. There is an intelligent, comprehensive, logical ideology out there called “conservatism.” Trust us. We aren’t that bad, we aren’t that stupid.

George Bush has done incalculable damage to the conservative movement, creating stress points, confusion, co-opting the Republican party in the process by forcing many conservative Republicans to choose between party loyalty and ideological belief. Perhaps the worst aspect of this is the seeming tin-ear with which Bush and his administration have gone about alienating the very people to whom they should be looking for support.

The latest fiasco, the immigration “compromise,” just adds fuel to the fire, and in fact it may be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. Many wonder if Bush really cares about this country at all, about its history, its heritage, its common culture – all of which have been diminished during the past 6+ years. David Frum, at NRO, makes the following prediction as to the battle:

As we have seen in both the Harriet Miers fight and the Dubai ports deal, this White House's first instinct when faced with dissent in the ranks is to insult and abuse its strongest supporters. "Sexist"; "elitist"; "registered bigots" were some of the terms cast during the previous fights. Brace yourselves for much, much worse. This is no way to win friends and influence people. And triggering an internecine party conflict on the eve of a difficult and dangerous election is no way to re-elect a damaged incumbent party.

When I spoke with Gary about this, he threatened to become unintelligible altogether, so choked with fury was he. Gary sees in this president a man who has sold out his party, conservative principles, and ultimately his country – and from here, it’s hard to say anything other than that Gary has 20/20 vision.

Check Your Collars!

By Bobby

Women have it easy when it comes to fashion over men when they are singing, and that showed when I found myself wearing a shirt that was a little too tight on the collar, because it interferes with my singing, especially when I am wearing a tie!

Of course, the difference probably is now that I am more generous in collars. While I am officially a 15 1/2 collar for my shirts, I now prefer wearing at least 16 to allow for more leeway in the neck so I have more room to sing without the collar "tightening" the pipes when I sing.

The menswear person said I was a 15 1/2 collar, but it was a little uncomfortable for me, and I prefer the 16 when I sing.

Of course, when you have both 15 1/2 and 16 collar shirts, you find yourself preferring the 16's because they don't interfere with the neck, especially when you're singing. All recent shirts I have purchased are 16 because I prefer that size, but I found an old 15 1/2 yesterday but somehow I forgot that was the tighter size when I wore it to sing, and I could see where I was having problems!

Jolie in Cannes to promote Pearl film

CANNES, France - Angelina Jolie, who plays the widow of slain Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in "A Mighty Heart," said she was overwhelmed by Mariane Pearl's inner strength and her ability to let go of hatred.

Jolie, Pearl and Brad Pitt, the movie's co-producer, were at the Cannes Film Festival on Monday for the premiere of the movie about Pearl's abduction and murder in Pakistan in 2002 while researching a story on Islamic militants.

The film, shot in a naturalistic documentary style, recounts the search to find Pearl's kidnappers and his widow's struggle to come to terms with his death.

"For me, so much of why this film was important to do is because I highly doubt there is anybody in this room who has more reason to hold hate inside herself than Mariane, and she doesn't," Jolie told reporters.

"That is, I think, a lesson for all of us," the 31-year-old actress said.

The film, directed by Michael Winterbottom, begins on the last day the couple spent together in Pakistan, where they were both on assignment as reporters. Pearl — who was more than five months' pregnant when her husband disappeared — was deeply involved in the search to find him.

Their son, Adam, was born a few months later.

Pearl said her friendship with Jolie grew over the course of the project — an adaptation of her memoir.

"I think about the fact that my son will see the film one day, and this is a great moment of pain for me," Pearl said. "And this role was played by somebody who loves me, and it means a lot to me."

Jolie said her own pregnancy during the movie's preparatory stages helped her understand what Pearl went through.

"I remember being six months pregnant and thinking, `I can't imagine at this time not having the father with me ... and being concerned about his life, and trying to eat and trying to remember to get some sleep and trying to take a deep breath and physically even just moving around,'" Jolie said. "As a woman, it just made me so much more connected to her and aware of her."

Pearl was captured by Islamic militants in January 2002. Despite worldwide pleas for his release, he was beheaded nine days later; video of the killing was posted the Internet.

Dan Futterman plays Pearl in Viacom Inc.'s Paramount Vantage film.

Jolie in Cannes to promote Pearl film

CANNES, France - Angelina Jolie, who plays the widow of slain Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in "A Mighty Heart," said she was overwhelmed by Mariane Pearl's inner strength and her ability to let go of hatred.

Jolie, Pearl and Brad Pitt, the movie's co-producer, were at the Cannes Film Festival on Monday for the premiere of the movie about Pearl's abduction and murder in Pakistan in 2002 while researching a story on Islamic militants.

The film, shot in a naturalistic documentary style, recounts the search to find Pearl's kidnappers and his widow's struggle to come to terms with his death.

"For me, so much of why this film was important to do is because I highly doubt there is anybody in this room who has more reason to hold hate inside herself than Mariane, and she doesn't," Jolie told reporters.

"That is, I think, a lesson for all of us," the 31-year-old actress said.

The film, directed by Michael Winterbottom, begins on the last day the couple spent together in Pakistan, where they were both on assignment as reporters. Pearl — who was more than five months' pregnant when her husband disappeared — was deeply involved in the search to find him.

Their son, Adam, was born a few months later.

Pearl said her friendship with Jolie grew over the course of the project — an adaptation of her memoir.

"I think about the fact that my son will see the film one day, and this is a great moment of pain for me," Pearl said. "And this role was played by somebody who loves me, and it means a lot to me."

Jolie said her own pregnancy during the movie's preparatory stages helped her understand what Pearl went through.

"I remember being six months pregnant and thinking, `I can't imagine at this time not having the father with me ... and being concerned about his life, and trying to eat and trying to remember to get some sleep and trying to take a deep breath and physically even just moving around,'" Jolie said. "As a woman, it just made me so much more connected to her and aware of her."

Pearl was captured by Islamic militants in January 2002. Despite worldwide pleas for his release, he was beheaded nine days later; video of the killing was posted the Internet.

Dan Futterman plays Pearl in Viacom Inc.'s Paramount Vantage film.

"I'm not so sure I like what it tells us about ourselves"

By Mitchell

Terry Teachout, in a post from today, stretches back to a January 2004 piece about the Golden Age of Television. Lileks thinks that Golden Age is today. Teachout comments:

For the most part--with some exceptions--I think he's right. But the exceptions are important, and worth remembering. It's true that the Golden Age of Television was mostly Milton Berle and low-budget westerns and mysteries. But it was also Ernie Kovacs, An Evening With Fred Astaire, Noel Coward and Mary Martin, Your Show of Shows, my beloved What's My Line?, The Sound of Jazz, New York City Ballet's Nutcracker on Playhouse 90, Leonard Bernstein's Young People's Concerts, and Toscanini and the NBC Symphony--not every night, but often enough.

And he's right. (Pericles' Golden Age wasn't exactly golden either.) If you pick up any edition of TV Guide from the 50s and 60s, you'll see plenty of stuff that doesn't exactly make the highlight reel. But the point, I think, is not whether everything in the Golden Age was golden - it's to ask whether or not we're even capable of producing something that approximates the best the Golden Age had to offer.

Teachout concludes: "What we do have is an unprecedentedly candid style of TV comedy and drama that reflects the brutal knowingness of our postmodern age with startling, even alarming clarity. I like it. I'm not so sure I like what it tells us about ourselves."

I don’t share Teachout’s enthusiasm about most of today’s shows, by and large. (Although some might question the value of that statement, since I don’t watch most of them, either.) But as to Teachout's concluding thought, I’m in complete agreement. Do we even want to know what it tells us about ourselves? I wonder.

Anna Nicole Smith in posthumous role at Cannes

Reuters Photo: Model Anna Nicole Smith is pictured at a Los Angeles party in this May 9,...

CANNES, France (Reuters) - Former Playboy model Anna Nicole Smith, whose death grabbed world headlines this year, makes a posthumous appearance at Cannes in a science fiction comedy straight from the B movie tradition.

"Illegal Aliens" casts the silicone blonde as one of a "Charlie's Angel"-style trio formed "when three aliens morph into super-hot babes and arrive to protect the earth from the intergalactic forces of evil."

The film, which is being shown by producers in special market screenings away from the main festival, is unlikely ever to win prizes like the Palme d'Or awarded for top film in the Cannes competition.

But it is in keeping with a tumultuous career that took Smith from small-town Texas via a strip club to marriage at 26 with an 89-year-old oil billionaire, Playboy magazine and endless tabloid television appearances.

The tone is set from the outset, when a cartoon spaceship shoots by with the inscription "My other ride is Uranus" on the back and the film is light years away from the highbrow fare on show further along the Croisette.

Whether or not the producers can be accused of cashing in on her untimely death, they certainly make no attempt to minimize her role and at one point the three heroines recline on a sofa, watching the real Anna Nicole Smith on television.

Smith died of an accidental overdose of prescription drugs in February, triggering a media frenzy over her burial, custody of her 6-month-old daughter and the future of her estate.

Demi and Ashton Have Rough Times, Bruce Finds Love

Marriage for the average person is tough. Over half of marriages are doomed to fail. And that’s not even with constant media scrutiny and paparazzi hounding you that celebrity marriages endure. For Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore, it looks as though the tough times could be just beginning.

Ashton would really like to have a child with Moore. Moore has already mothered three children with former hubby Bruce Willis, so it’s not clear that she will do so again with Kutcher. “Ashton desperately wants a baby but is having to cope with the possibility that Demi may never bear his child.” Demi has been making a number of sacrifices and lifestyle changes to enhance her chances of conceiving - and is reportedly expecting Ashton to do the same.

A source told Star magazine: “Demi seems very controlling. She likes to tell Ashton what to do, stand here, meet this person, do that. She wears the pants in that relationship.”

The couple attended a party at a producer friend’s Bel Air home in March and Demi was said to be furious when her younger spouse drank alcohol. A witness said, “Ashton accepted a glass of champagne, after Demi refused the offer. She shot Ashton a look that said ‘I’m not drinking, so you shouldn’t either.’”

“Ashton gave her a defiant look that appeared to say he didn’t care, and he took a sip. She doesn’t want him to do anything unhealthy because of their difficulty in trying to have a baby together.”

The father of Demi’s three other children, Bruce Willis, reportedly has his hands full as well these days. The 52-year-old actor is dating 23-year-old Playboy Playmate Tamara Witmer. Witmer, who is only 5 years older than Willis’ daughter Rumer, is excited to be dating the Die Hard stud. “He’s got the sexiest voice!” she says. “He’s so smooth and suave. I don’t mind the bald head. He’s really good looking in person.”

Eva Longoria’s Still Satisfying Her Man

Eva Longoria has reported that the sex ban on her engagement to NBA star Tony Parker is non-existent. This statement was made to quell rumors that Tony wasn’t getting any until the wedding day.

The whole fiasco started when Longoria was being interviewed on Jimmy Kimmel’s talk show. “Jimmy Kimmel made a joke about how Tony is in the playoffs, so no sex. And I said, ‘Well, good thing the playoffs go until the wedding.’ Now everyone is talking about it. Yes we are still having sex. Confirmed.”

Longoria set things straight on Ryan Seacrest’s radio show earlier this week. When the American Idol correspondent asked the Desperate Housewife about the sex ban, she replied, “I did not say that!”

The 32-year-old actress is scheduled to get hitched to the San Antonio Spur on July 7th in Paris, France. This is becoming a bit of an ordeal though. According to Eva, “250 people were invited, but that’s not what the number will be. You forget we’re having it in Paris where Tony is from. He has a lot more guests than I do. It’s not really easy for us because we have such large families.”

Best wishes to both Longoria and Parker as they get closer to wedded bliss!

Enjoy the pictures of Eva out in France with the Parker family on May 8, as well as some EW UpFront May 15 red carpet shots!

The Forgotten Catholic

By Mitchell

Most famously, there were the bookends from Massachusetts, John Kennedy and John Kerry; the former (according to some sources) a questionable Catholic, the latter perhaps even more so. Before them there was Al Smith, whose Catholicism nobody doubted (which might have cost him the Presidency). There was Ed Muskie and Tom Eagleton (for about ten minutes) and Sarge Shriver, and somewhere in there was Geraldine Ferraro, who was known more for her gender than her religion.

And then there was William E. Miller.

Bill Miller did an American Express card commercial once, one of the "Do you know me?" versions. He was a District Attorney and a U.S. Representative from New York State and a chairman of the Republican National Committee, and in the midst of all that, he somehow managed to squeeze in an appearance as Barry Goldwater's running mate on the 1964 Republican ticket - the first and only Catholic ever nominated for national office by the Republicans.

It is perhaps an indication of JFK's success at putting the religion issue to rest that only four years after his election, a Catholic could appear on a national party ticket without it becoming an issue. (It could also be a measure of the futility of Goldwater's campaign, the idea that it really didn't matter who ran with him.) Hubert Humphrey, who in 1960 benefitted from the anti-Catholic vote in West Virginia against Kennedy (which, it must be noted, he did nothing to encourage) in 1968 chose Edmund Muskie, a Catholic, as his running mate; in 1972 both of George McGovern's running mates - Tom Eagleton and Sargent Shriver - were Catholics. (It must have seemed for a while there as if the number-two post was becoming a designated "Catholic seat.")

According to Theodore White's Making of the President 1964, Miller wasn't Goldwater's first choice for running mate; Goldwater had actually planned to choose the moderate Bill Scranton, governor of Pennsylvania, before Nelson Rockefeller talked Scranton into opposing Goldwater for the nomination. Once Scranton's challenge had been beaten back, Barry turned to Miller, an astute debater with a sharp tongue, in hopes that he could serve as the stalking horse against LBJ in the fall campaign. It never happened, of course - LBJ played it cool, and Miller was too clean a campaigner to launch the personal attacks that might be seen today. His amiable manner won him friends on the campaign trail including the reporters who covered him, with whom he would play endless hands of bridge. (One story has it that a reporter asked Miller, who won consistently, if he would give the reporter a chance to regain his losses by betting on the outcome of the election; Miller was said to have replied that even he wasn't crazy enough to bet on the Republican ticket to win this one.)

Vice Presidential candidates seldom attract lasting fame, and when they do it's usually for the wrong reasons. (Eagleton, Dan Quayle, James Stockdale anyone?) Candidates from the losing ticket have even less chance of being remembered, and to that end William E. Miller's story isn't so uncommon.

But it's worth noting that he was one of only eight Catholics to ever be nominated for national office by a major party, and the only one of the eight from the Republican party. He appeared in a transitory period in American politics, when the issue of a candidate's religion was momentarily less of a factor. (We can thank Roe v. Wade for changing that.) But while the particular faith of many candidates has been forgotten, Bill Miller, who died in 1983, faded almost totally into the background.

At a time when the Catholicism of some of today's candidates is questioned, when the "struggle" between private faith and public policy is stark, it's not a bad idea to take a moment and remember the forgotten Catholic - a trailblazer in his own right, a man who still holds a singular distinction in his party, a man whose greatest pride, other than his family, was in being a graduate of Notre Dame. Not a bad life, one might say.

Angelina Jolie Opens Up

Angelina Jolie (born June 4, 1975) is an American film actress, a former fashion model, and a Goodwill Ambassador for the UN Refugee Agency. She is often cited by popular media as one of the world's most beautiful women and her off-screen life is widely reported. She has received three Golden Globe Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and an Academy Award.

Angelina Jolie Opens Up

If you’ve been grocery shopping or web surfing as of late, you’re probably aware of the rumored troubles of Hollywood’s royal couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. But in a recent interview with Reader’s Digest, Angelina puts all of those claims to rest and gives us an inside look at her relationship with Brad.

The Tomb Raider actress says she and Pitt approach the gossip that surrounds them in a certain way. “Our first question is, ‘What paper is it in?’ “ she says. “The New York Times? If not, do we really need to worry?”

Rather than all the juicy gossip being spread about the supercouple, Brangelina’s biggest issue is quality time with each other. “Right now, that’s [quality time] our problem! We hang out. We try to talk over the swing set. We’ll have a date night once everybody is settled,” she says. Jolie says that their newest family member, adopted son Pax, gets scared if she is gone for more than a few hours so it’s hard to have date nights. “But we’ll get them occupied with a movie and popcorn and try to run off and lock the door for a bit,” she says.

According to Jolie, the huge family she has accumulated with Pitt was a mutual decision. “I met this amazing person, and we realized we had very similar views on how we wanted to live our lives,” she tells Readers Digest. “It’s happened quickly, with so many children. Yesterday, picking up the kids from school, Brad turned around in the car, and there were three of them. He couldn’t stop laughing. We love them and are having a great time.”

Angelina divulges that she and Pitt rarely fight, and when they do, “We’ll get into issues about global events or something that was just on the news.” It’s reassuring that the most beautiful and child-ful couple in Hollywood are doing just fine.

This Just In

By Steve

"Makeover" Star Issues “Apology” for Bad Behavior
Pennington Tells Fans, “You Don’t Pick on My Faults, I Won’t Pick On Yours.”

HOLLYWOOD, CA – The star of the popular TV reality series “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," issued a strongly worded “apology” to his fans following his arrest on suspicion of being under the influence of alcohol while driving.

“I screwed up, I’m sorry - get over it,” said Ty Pennington, who was arrested early last Saturday morning in Los Angeles. “Like none of you have ever done something wrong. Yeah, right.”

He went on, “Despite what I’m accused of having done Friday night, I’m still better than 95% of you out there, and more talented than all of you.”

Pennington, who rose to TV popularity as host of the cable show "Trading Spaces,” acknowledged he shouldn't have been drinking and driving, but was clearly irritated by what he called the "hypocrisy" of his fans.

“I suppose none of you have ever done anything to embarrass me, right?" he asked. "I mean, c'mon, you want me to make a list? Where were you last Saturday night? I'm just the one who happened to get caught. And yet you don’t hear me complaining about what you’ve done, do you?

Obviously warming to the subject, Pennington continued in the same vein. “While we’re at it, what about that horrible kitchen makeover you tried to do on your own, before you wound up spending twice as much to have it done right? It’s people like you who give amateur home makeovers a bad name. Tell you what – you don’t pick on my faults, I won’t pick on yours. OK?”

Pennington was released two hours after his arrest on his own design recognizance and after agreeing to provide free redecorating consultation to the LAPD.

Wish I'd Written That...

By Mitchell

"Whom do you call a Communist? [Wolfe asked.] A liberal? A pink intellectual? A member of the party? How far left do you start?"

Sperling smiled. "It depends on where I am and who I'm talking to. There are occasions when it may be expedient to apply the term to anyone left of center."

Rex Stout, The Second Confession

Diaz Talks About Timberlake Kiss

At the premiere of “Shrek the Third,” Cameron Diaz and Justin Timberlake caused a mini-frenzy as they greeted each other with a kiss. During her media tour this week, Cameron made an attempt to clear the air.

Talking to Meredith Vieira on the “Today” show Wednesday (May 9), Cameron said, “Look, we’re friends so it’s OK. It’s not something that you really worry about. I think all you want is for the person that you care about to be happy. And I think we both are, so it’s easy for us to see each other. And it’s easy for us to greet each other.”

Also during the interview, Diaz made an attempt to describe what it’s like living under the microscope as a celebrity.

“Even underneath the microscope of the world, it’s not really that difficult, you know, because there’s nothing big about it, it’s no big deal,” Cam explained. “It’s like high school isn’t it? We as celebrities are sort of like popular kids and everybody wants to know our business, so people make a big deal out of it but it’s not really a big deal at all.”

“Shrek the Third” is coming to theaters on May 18, 2007… until then, enjoy the pictures of Cameron at the Early Show and the Today Show on May 9th!

Short Notes

By Drew

• Nuns with Manicures? The title of an interesting post by Greg Sandow, with his perspectives on the Met's theater operacasts. He brings up some points that I, frankly, hadn't considered before. Check out the comments section for a nice comment by our very own Mitchell!
• Terry Teachout mentioned last week that he's writing the libretto for a new opera commissioned by the Santa Fe Opera, an adaptation of Somerset Maugham's "The Letter" with music by Paul Moravec. I know the libretto will be good, and based on Terry's recommendation I'm sure Paul Moravec will do a good job as well - but it still doesn't stop me from questioning whether we really need more new operas out there, when there are so many underperformed ones. I know, I know, we've been over this ground before...
• Speaking of Maugham, Michael at 2Blowhards has a very good piece on movie adaptations of two Maugham stories, "Up at the Villa" and "The Painted Veil." Michael's piece serves the purpose of all good reviews - it makes you curious about the films (and books) and helps you decide whether or not you want to see (or read) them.
• I saw this earlier at NRO, but the classical music blog Comparing Notes has this humorous bit on Anna Netrebko and her guns. No, really! I've mentioned how I think she's a great singer, haven't I? I wouldn't dare say anything else...

Pamela Anderson to strip for animal rights

Actress Pamela Anderson is set to pose naked in Stella McCartney's London store window as a stunt for animal group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).

The Baywatch beauty will bare all later this month in a bid to publicise her anti-fur message. A close friend of the curvy actress says, "This is a cause that Pamela is passionate about.

A close friend says: "This is a cause that Pamela is passionate about. She wants to support Stella's fundraising effort for PETA and is in talks to pose naked in her shop window.

There will be other models there, too, and it should last for about 10 minutes."

The Changing Role of the Media, Circa 1975

By Mitchell

“The objective of the ‘scandalous revelations’ filling the airwaves and news columns ought to be reform, but ‘thus far have brought little but cynicism and disillusion.’ "

Talking about O’Reilly, perhaps, or maybe CNN or MSNBC? Think again. It’s Pat Buchanan, quoting U.S. Senator J. William Fulbright, in November 1975.

I wanted to get back to that November 1975 TV Guide I mentioned earlier this week. In it, there were two stories that tell us much about the evolution of the media’s role in news coverage – and that nothing really is new.

The first is Pat Buchanan’s News Watch column (yes, TV Guide actually had a column like that back then), the source of the initial quote. Buchanan is talking about the change in media coverage since Watergate, a change that has brought on an “excessively mistrustful and even hostile” atmosphere.

In pointing this out, we certainly don’t neglect the blame that belongs to Richard Nixon and his crew for creating the problem in the first place. But Buchanan looks at something more, at the natural evolution of such an atmosphere, asking “what will be the ultimate impact upon the democratic system, which itself guarantees freedom of the press?”

The problem, according to Buchanan, is that the media now has a vested interest in scandal – for ratings, for dollars, for prestige. (Little-remembered fact: NBC’s Huntley-Brinkley nightly news used to be presented without commercial interruption, in order to eliminate potential conflicts of interest and signify that the news division was not driven by profit margin.) What happens when that self-interest conflicts with a larger interest – the national interest, for example? Granting that the exact nature of the national interest is often a subject up for debate, Buchanan nevertheless points to the “declining confidence in leaders and institutions” and speculates on the ultimate consequence this will have for the nation.

Buchanan again quotes Fulbright (a Democrat, by the way, never a natural ally of Pat’s), who had recently authored the article "Fulbright on the Press" in the Columbia Journalism Review: “That Puritian self-righteousness which is never far below the surface of American life has broken through the frail barriers of civility and restraint, and the press has been in the vanguard of the new aggressiveness.”

What has changed is not the nature nor the inclination of those in the media to go after their subjects with every weapon at their disposal. What is new now is the very definition of media, which in this sense has come to include every blog, every web page, every podcast – in short, everyone with an opinion, which is just about everyone. As new types of media and new modes of communication have come about, this instinct of which Fulbright speaks has become more invasive, more insidious. Indeed, isn’t this what some here have spoken about, the increasing incivility of the blogosphere? Well, looking at this issue is like seeing the seeds of that harvest being planted.

A lot of people fall back on the “freedom of speech” argument, defending their right to say what they want whenever they want. And this is not an argument that should be taken lightly, because it’s a slippery slope at best. But Fulbright contends that the social contract requires “a measure of voluntary restraint, an implicit agreement among the major groups and interests in our society that none will apply their powers to the fullest.” A measure of responsibility, in other words, which is a commodity that can really be in short supply nowadays.

Now, I mention this not merely because of Pat Buchanan’s words, but because of the echo which the subject matter receives in another article from this issue, Edwin Newman’s “People are Generally Skeptical of Us…and Indeed They Should Be.”

Ed Newman, for you whippersnappers out there, was a respected and literate newsman at NBC in the 60s, 70s and 80s, and the author of several clever, humorous books on language.

Newman shares the concern with the increasing intrusiveness of the media. Asked what was wrong with endless investigation and revelation of public figures by the media, Newman replied, “It degrades public life. If purity tests are to become an accepted part of American life before anybody can go into politics, politics is going to be intolerable. It’s very nearly intolerable now.”

Remember, he said this over 20 years ago.

As for “advocacy journalism,” which was very much in vogue following Watergate (and remains so today – how many young people go to journalism school to “make a difference”?), Newman remains wary: “Advocacy journalism, so-called, cheats the public, which is entitled to make up its own mind.” In other words, as Fox News says, “We report, you decide.” Whether you think they’ve been accurate or not with that promise, one has to appreciate the perceptiveness of the marketing gurus who developed that slogan.

Newman adds, “Anybody in our business should avoid taking on false importance. We should certainly not pretend to be infallible.” Now that’s a novel idea today.

Newman also sounds a cautionary note on something which Buchanan alludes to, the amount of faith (or lack thereof) that people put in their leaders. Buchanan quotes Fulbright: “Bitter disillusionment with our leaders is the other side of the coin of worshiping them.” Such idolatry, says Newman, “leads to all kinds of lunatic expectations about what can be accomplished by politicians and so leads to irrational and disproportionate disappointment…it misleads Presidents about Presidents, so that they are tempted to do foolish things. And I think the press contributes to this for reasons of its own.”

This is a warning we should carefully consider. There’s a pronounced tendency nowadays to put an inordinate amount of faith in human institutions, which always seems to wind up badly. We create institutions, we tear them down, we rebuild them again. It keeps everyone busy, I suppose.

One has only to look at the disappointment felt by many conservative Catholics, for instance, impatient and discouraged that Benedict XVI hasn’t started a new Inquisition. Or politically conservative Christians, so eager to win a place at the political table, now disillusioned by the experience, realizing they should have stuck to Christ’s table at the Last Supper.

In many ways, the sins of the 60s culture were starting to be felt in the 70s, and would continue to be felt in subsequent decades. So one can see, as far back as 1975, a growing concern with cynicism in society, a disregard for institutions, a press displaying an “anything for a story” attitude. Again, there’s nothing new here, as it was not new then. But as communication expanded beyond the newspaper to radio, beyond radio to television, and beyond broadcast television to cable and satellite; as letters gave way to email and the internet, and as information once taking hours or days to transmit is now given instant analysis and parsing through the blogosphere, so also the consequences of such concerns are magnified, enlarged, and become even more troublesome.

There really isn’t anything new out there, only new ways of expressing it. And, it seems, new ways of ignoring old truths and concerns.

See what you can learn from old TV Guides, Cathy?

*****

On that topic, a big shout-out to Billy Ingram at TVParty for his kind link to our site and his nice words about us. Keep up the great work, Billy, and we look forward to staying in touch!

More Words Of Wisdom From Cameron Diaz

Us weekly recapped an interview Cameron Diaz did with Movies.com where she talked about how the last few years of her life have been a living HELL! And I completely understand what she is talking about. Isolated from friends and family, living on the streets, loss of loved ones, one health crisis after another… Who wouldn’t make a statement like that after going through all those trials and tribulations? Here is more:

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On being in hell:

“The last couple of years were hell. Like, I can’t even tell you, it was so hard. I didn’t know how to handle it. But I think I’m in a much better place now, because I stepped away for a second and took a breath. Hollywood is a funny place. It offers so much, but it can also take a lot away from you.”

On pretty prejudice:

“If a woman who’s a successful actress weighs 300 pounds and has warts, nobody ever asks her, ‘Do you think you made it because you’re ugly?’ So why should there be prejudice against someone who’s had some success in films and looks a little better than average. It’s all in my genes, so don’t hold it against me.”

On her trips to Hawaii:

“I was just there doing a lot of surfing. I love it. It’s definitely a spiritual experience, the closest you can get to Mother Nature, which is God to me. You get to ride all this energy that’s traveled across the ocean for thousands of miles, and you get to usher this distant traveler to its destination on the shore.”

Ashlee Simpson won't Get Naked for Playboy

Ashlee Simpson has tuned down a $4 million offer to pose nude for Playboy.

The sexy singer, the sister of 'Dukes of Hazzard' star Jessica, was approached by the world famous men's magazine to strip off in their pages.

Although she is said to have seriously considered the offer from the publication - owned and founded by legendary lothario Hugh Hefner - Ashlee has decided to keep her clothes on.

But, Ashlee's publicist Rob Shuter told TMZ recently, that the newly glammed Simpson is not interested in posing for the provocative men's publication, and has thus declined the lucrative deal.

However, sources close to Ashlee claim she should pose naked for Playboy to raise her profile.

A source at US mag In Touch said, "Ashlee figures she's never looked better, so this may be the perfect time to do it.

"She feels confident and sexy and thinks this is one way for her to separate her image from (sister) Jessica's.

Sarah Harding

*Girls Aloud’s Sarah Harding has finished with boyfriend Joe Mott after around six months of dating. Sarah initially revelled in the idea of a quiet life with the journalist but a source told the Sun that she quickly got bored of nights at home. The source added: “They were constantly bickering towards the end so it comes as no surprise that they decided to call it a day.”

*Sarah’s bandmate Cheryl Cole is so adamant to steer clear of the WAG-tag that she reportedly turned down a £130,000 Bentley Continental GTC when her footballer husband Ashley Cole offered to buy it for her. She has said in the past: “I work hard for my money. I don’t ask Ashley for a penny.”

*After successfully launching her fashion range in New Look stores this week, Lily Allen is reportedly thinking of trying acting next. The Smile singer told SkyNews recently: “I’d love to do something in a period drama where I could get to dress up and look elegant for once.”

*While her Girls Aloud bandmate Nadine Coyle might be planning to avoid cosmetic surgery, Sarah Harding has joked that she would love to go under the knife/needle. She said recently: “I want some Botox now! I’ve got an elastic forehead. [And] I’d love to have valves in the side of my boobs so some days I could have large ones and, on other days, small ones.”

*Kevin Costner has become a father for the fifth time after wife Christine gave birth to a baby boy on Sunday night. Cayden Wyatt Costner was born in a Los Angeles area hospital and is Christine’s first child. The couple married three years ago. Kevin’s publicist Paul Bloch confirmed the birth and added: “Both mother and son are doing well.”

*As rumoured last week, Neve Campbell has married fiance John Light in a weekend ceremony in California. The usually London-based couple, who met in 2001 on the set of Investigating Sex, got engaged in February 2006 and according to Neve’s spokesperson, “married in a small ceremony in Malibu on Saturday”.

*Sarah Harding has claimed her Girls Aloud bandmate Kimberley Walsh was drugged at a London nightclub last month.

*Kimberley was photographed being carried out of Embassy by her boyfriend Justin Scott and was initially thought to have just had too much to drink, but Sarah has now claimed someone slipped a ‘date-rape’ drug into her drink.

Sarah said this week: “Her drink was spiked. I’ve never seen her like that.”
“This time she was very unwell - it was totally out of character.”

“You have to be so careful. You can never leave your drink unattended these days.”
Sarah, who is the one usually photographed being helped out of clubs, added that she’s cut down on her partying of late too: “I’ve cut right down. I’ve had too many hangovers - it’s just not worth it.”