Anger In Music

By Bobby

We associate rock music most with anger, if you've heard the loud bangs and the garble that these "artists" sing. But in attending the National Symphony Orchestra's concert at the Koger Center for the Arts Tuesday night, I wondered why William Schuman's Prayer in the Time of War composed an element which the program states Mr. Schuman found no element in glory, and even took a solemn theme.

But at the time it debuted in 1943, and the reason for its composition in 1942, and the other war music, I wondered the similarities and differences between then and now.

The United States was at war with a clear enemy in 1941 when our bases in Pearl Harbor were attacked by bombers of the Tojo régime dead-set on attacking us. The next day, the country, after having the defense give up a touchdown (the attack on Pearl Harbor), decided to go on the offense, where we continued until victory. In 2001, the United States, after playing a hard "peace dividend" and giving up the necessities of protecting the nation (lost many bases; military was converted for other unauthorised uses), found the lack of defense led to the attacks on September 11, with a commerce building and defense building destroyed, and the potential of a major government building being attacked by Al Qaeda homicide bombers. The offense started attacking terrorists afterwards.

Textbooks today glorify the one Congresswoman who voted not to authorise the nation to go on offense, and defeated; her peace activism is more glorified than the heroes who fought in Guadalcanal, Midway, and our victories in both Europe and Asia (the United States was forced to war when Germany, like Japan, declared war on the United States). The modern liberal thought is to glorify the one Congresswoman who refused to support the war.

When I listen to compositions composed during wartime, I expect an aggressive march to symbolise our troops in the fight of their lives against the enemy of enemies, and from the fight to a long tussle, and then to victory. Cheerful compositions reminding us of the victory ahead meant much to the troops. Think about the major rock hits that taught an anti-war message, and did not preach to America the sign that victory against Communism was a must, as it should.

While walking from the parking lot to the concert hall, I saw signs endorsing a pullout from Iraq, and they defended it by saying the Americans lost nothing and did not lose the war by pulling out of Vietnam. Unfortunately, they do not understand that the pullout led to the confidence of the Communists, who ransacked South Vietnam, and later took over the entire nation. The victory of the Communists was a major confidence-booster, which led to major takeovers by the Left in other nations, knowing the Free World would not fight. That win gave us dictatorships in Nicaragua, Granada (shot down by the US), Angola, and even dictatorships in Iran.

Who knows if the Americans pull out of Iraq what will happen. But it's clear dictatorships and terrorists would use it as a sign of our weakness, just like what happened 35 years ago after the fall of Vietnam. To modern liberalism, keeping self-esteem means more, and losing is acceptable. That is unacceptable when we are at war.

The only think that matters when we are fighting the enemy is to go for the win.

As for the music from the hall, I wonder how Leonard Slatkin altered Ravel's interpretation of Pictures at an Exhibition. Is it correct for a conductor to change it to run the real meaning of the work? I wonder why he altered it considerably from what it really is intended to be.

End of an Era

By Drew

Just over the wire: William F. Buckley, Jr., died this morning. I know we'll be doing an obit on him this week, but I think it appropriate that we take an immediate moment to note his passing. He was truly a titan of modern conservative thought, a man who made it respectable, if not fashionable, to be an intellectual and political conservative. He was witty, erudite, and a whole bunch of other things. Most of all, he will be missed. There are many who would say that the political movement he represented for so many years had faded away long before his death, taken over by the neocons - but regardless, there can be no question that it will not be the same without him. More later. R.I.P.

Nicole Kidman Does Tokyo

Nicole Kidman Does Tokyo

She's a huge movie star with a Country Music star as a husband and a baby on the way. Nicole Kidman is at the top of her game.

The "Moulin Rouge" actress was spotted at a photocall today (Wednesday) for her movie "The Golden Compass." And it's clear that the Japanese people love her.

Nic wore an avant-garde black semi-see-through dress with furry-fluffy shoulder accents and the beginnings of a cute baby bump.

The 40-year-old actress explained the delicate balance between work and kids during a recent interview. "My Bella and Connor are 13 and 15. So they have seen the film [The Golden Compass] and they loved it...my child inside won't see the film for a long time. But I think once you have children you want to balance the work you do because they give up so much of you to your work. So occasionally you want to make films that they can take their friends to, they can go to the premiere of… that they celebrate."

nd Kidman said being pregnant gives her a new perspective on her travels. "I have been to Tokyo quite a few times. But this is the first time I have been to Tokyo pregnant. I am very glad to be here this way."

Fropki

Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman Hit the UK

Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman Hit the UK

With less than two weeks until their new movie "The Other Boleyn Girl" hits theaters, Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman are racking up mega frequent flyer miles on their promotional trail.

Having just spent some time in Germany and Spain, these two lovely ladies touched down in London, England for the film's UK premiere.

This evening the Cinema & Television Benevolent Fund hosted a glitzy event at the Odeon Leicester Square. And there was plenty of eye candy for the paparazzi to capture on film.

Scarlett turned heads everywhere she walked in a shiny silver one-shoulder gown, while Natalie added some color to the evening's festivities in a burgundy dress with matching sash. These girls are the consummate media darlings wherever they go!

Fropki

Jennifer Love Hewitt: One Hot Hostess!

Jennifer Love Hewitt: One Hot Hostess!

When planning an Oscar party, every little detail is of the utmost importance. And the folks over at the "The Envelope Please" shindig made a great call in asking Jennifer Love Hewitt to host their evening for the fourth year in a row.

The gig took place at Los Angeles hot spot The Abbey and it wasn't just about beautiful people getting together for cocktails and a gourmet dinner. They had a higher purpose.

Reportedly, the event benefited the AIDS Project Los Angeles, and has raised over $1.2 million over the years for the charity. And executive director Craig E. Thompson had nothing but good things to say about the event.

"Despite all the uncertainty surrounding the strike and the Oscar telecast, the importance of this annual event has never diminished for APLA and the people we serve," said Craig E. Thompson, executive director of APLA, which is now in its 25th year of operation. "This evening has become one of the top fundraisers of the year for our organization and we are more excited than ever to roll out the red carpet for all our friends and guests on Oscar night."

Jennifer Love Hewitt looked positively perfect in a white one-shoulder (there it is again!) gown, complete with her fiancé Ross McCall. She told press how much she was looking forward to the party.

"Gathering with friends to watch the Academy Awards is one of my favorite traditions, and I am honored to join APLA's supporters once again for a great evening at The Abbey. We are looking forward to a memorable event with entertainment, food, and friends, and most importantly, a chance to raise much-needed funds for an important organization."

Barry Morse, R.I.P.

By Mitchell

The Canadian actor Barry Morse died earlier this month and in a way it’s appropriate that we’re late getting around to writing about it, for in his most famous role Barry Morse was often arriving on the scene just a step or two behind.

Although he was an actor for over 50 years, it was as the relentless Lieutenant Philip Gerard in The Fugitive that Morse came to greatest fame. For four seasons Gerard tracked his prey, the escaped Dr. Richard Kimball, and that step or two by which he trailed Kimball would always make the difference. Gerard was a brilliant lawman, often displaying a stunning instinct for anticipating Kimball’s thinking – hardly the stereotype of the bumbling, slow-witted cop – but ultimately he would miss Kimball by just that much. With that slight advantage Kimball might form relationships with people who would then aid him in eluding Gerard, or he would slip unnoticed out of a room just as Gerard entered it, or he would snatch the last seat on a bus pulling out of town just before Gerard arrived at the station. It might be different from week to week, but it would always be something.

It may be hard to appreciate now, but The Fugitive was quite the counter-cultural program when it debuted in 1963. Sponsors and network executives alike had a real problem with the idea of the police pursuing (some might say persecuting) a man whose innocence, in the opening credits of each episode, had clearly been established. Series creator Roy Huggins recalled a programming executive at ABC who railed at “how un-American it was, how it was a slap in the face of American justice, week after week.” Indeed, the idea that an innocent man could be arrested, tried, convicted, and sentenced to death made a great idea for a movie or dramatic special, but was a bold idea for a television series – as was the idea of having, as a series regular, a man determined to bring the innocent hero to justice, a role guaranteed to generate the ire of every viewer in America. This was the part Barry Morse played to perfection.

For, as Morse once said, the role of Lt. Gerard was "carefully designed to be disliked.” As the show increased in popularity, so did the reactions of fans. "Elderly ladies bashed me across the head with their handbags, or some hulking great man would come up to me in a bar and say: 'Don't you understand? The guy's innocent!' It was an enormous compliment -- and quite dangerous." Morse reveled in the reaction: “I was the most hated man in America, and I loved it.”

Gerard was hardly a one-dimensional villain, though. He constantly defended Kimball when other lawmen would attempt to implicate the doctor in various crimes. Gerard understood that Kimball was not a run-of-the-mill killer – the murder of wife, for which Kimball had been convicted, was presumed to have been a crime of passion. Nor was Gerard particularly surprised at the many acts of kindness and charity which Kimball would perform in the various cities and towns through which he passed. Kimball even became involved in Gerard’s own life from time to time, saving his lost son, befriending his troubled wife, and more than once saving Gerard from people who would want to kill him as a favor to Kimball.

It wasn’t that Gerard wasn’t grateful for Kimball’s actions, but it didn’t change what was for him the central fact of the matter: Kimball had received a fair trial and had been convicted by a jury of his peers. As an officer of the law, it was not Gerard’s job to determine Kimball’s guilt or innocence, but to carry out the decision of the court. Gerard was the anti-Oprah – a man determined not to let feelings or emotions get in the way of his duty. It may have been maddening, but there was a true dignity and nobility in the way in which Gerard did his job. It also made for great television.

As time went on, one could sense more and more that doubts were beginning to creep into Gerard’s mind. The one-armed man whom Kimball had seen fleeing the scene of his wife’s murder, a man whom Gerard had initially viewed as a figment of Kimball’s imagination, now began to appear with increasing regularity. It could be that Kimball had convinced himself this particular man (whom we learn is named Fred Johnson) was responsible for his wife’s death – or it could be that Kimball had been telling the truth all along. No matter how Gerard tried to remind himself that this was not his job, it was becoming harder for him to dismiss the possibility. Finally, in the climactic final episode, Kimball is able to persuade Gerard to give him a chance to trap Johnson and prove that he is the real killer. (One can almost sense Gerard thinking, “How did I let myself get talked into this?”) Kimball’s plan backfires – after admitting his guilt, Johnson tries to kill Kimball as well, and Gerard is forced to kill Johnson in order to save Kimball’s life. But even this is not enough for Gerard – since he didn’t hear Johnson’s confession, there still is no evidence of Kimball’s innocence. It’s only when a heretofore unknown witness to the murder steps forward and fingers Johnson that Kimball is truly cleared.

In the epilogue, as Gerard stands outside the courtroom and offers his hand to the now-exonerated Kimball to shake, it is clear that he is asking Kimball to see him as a cop who was just doing his job, that it wasn’t anything personal. And it wasn’t. There was no room for emotion, for personal feelings, in the job that Philip Gerard did, and that’s what made him a good cop. There was room for instinct and intuition though, and that’s what made him a great cop. It is also what made Barry Morse a great actor and the role of Philip Gerard one of the best in the history of television.

Miley Cyrus at the 2008 Academy Awards

After days of rehearsals and months of planning the Academy Awards are finally here. And it wouldn't be a proper Oscar shindig without some fabulous red carpet royalty showing off for the shutterbugs.

Miley Cyrus began her journey from the arrival area into the Kodak Theatre wearing a sexy, sassy red dress and turned heads wherever she went.

Part of the fun of Oscar night is seeing how the stars choose to express themselves with their glamorous ensembles, and the Hannah Montana star definitely scored an A+!

With so much talent in one location, it's no wonder Hollywood's elite pull out all the stops to outshine each other on this glitzy evening.

Marion Cotillard Wins Best Lead Actress Oscar

Marion Cotillard Wins Best Lead Actress Oscar

An Oscar statuette is the most coveted prize in acting. So it comes as little surprise that Marion Cotillard was nearly ecstatic after picking up Best Actress in a Leading Role for her work in La Vie En Rose.

The 32-year-old Frenchwomen broke down in tears when her name was announced - having a tough time gaining her composure as she took the podium.

Handed the award by past Oscar winner Forest Whitaker, Marion attempted to say: "Thank you life! Thank you love! It is true there are some angels in this city. Thank you! Thank you so much!"

The win at the Academy Awards follows trophies collected by Marion at the Golden Globes and the British BAFTAs

Wish I'd Written That

By Mitchell

Few entertainers were smoother or could prick the balloon of Hollywood pomposity better than Johnny Carson. With this being Oscar® night tonight, here’s a sample of Johnny’s quotes from his years hosting the show:

As you all know by now, this is the 51st annual Academy Awards. Two hours of sparkling entertainment spread out over a four-hour show.
1979

I see a lot of new faces. Especially on the old faces.
1979

This is the night that Hollywood puts aside its petty jealousies, and brings out its major jealousies.
1982

You people who just tuned in at home, this is the Academy Awards. Warning: contents may cause drowsiness; do not drive or operate heavy machinery.
1984

Okay, folks, we're into our fourth hour now. Let's check the board and see how much we've raised.
1984

Valentine's Day at Katsuya

Valentine's Day at Katsuya

Last Thursday was Valentine's Day, and it seems the hot spot for celebrity romantic celebrations was none other than Katsuya Restaurant in Los Angeles, California. Just ask Elisha Cuthbert, Nicole Scherzinger, and Christina Milian.

Elisha looked positively lovely as she made her way into the celebrity-laden sushi restaurant wearing a black multi-layer belted mini-dress and that cute short blonde 'do.

Nicole Scherzinger "loosened up her buttons" at the Hollywood hotspot, donning a tank top/long skirt combo completed by some killer leather motorcycle boots.

And never one to be left out, Christina Milian looked festive in a red off-the-shoulder satin dress, topped off with a crushed velvet stole.

Enjoy the pictures of Elisha, Nicole and Christina at Katsuya (February 14).

Kim Kardashian and Reggie Bush's All-Star Getaway

Kim Kardashian and Reggie Bush's All-Star Getaway

Later on tonight, the world's best basketball players will take center court for the NBA All-Star game in New Orleans. And, as with any big sporting event, celebrities are sure to be nearby.

Leading up to the big game, Fropki spotted Kim Kardashian and her Saint boyfriend Reggie Bush at Zo & Magic's 8-Ball Challenge Valentine's party.

Wearing a luscious red and black cocktail dress, Kim and her football playing boyfriend schmoozed it up with basketball legends including Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Julius Erving.

The following day, Alyssa Milano took to the bench alongside the likes of Bill Walton, Terrell Owens and Master P, helping with coaching duties in the McDonald's NBA All-Star Celebrity Game.

From here, the 57th NBA All-Star Game airs at 8 pm tonight (February 17) on TNT, where there's sure to be even more star power in the stands!

In the meantime, enjoy the pictures of Kim, Reggie and Alyssa enjoying NBA All-Star weekend.

Oscar Red Carpet stunners!

Oscar Red Carpet stunners!

The Oscars are almost upon us. One of entertainment's biggest nights is renowned for it's lavish ceremony, its A-listers and of course, its winners. And then there is the Red Carpet. Many have glided over it, wearing outfits ranging from the drop-dead gorgeous to downright weird.

Fropki.com presents a look at the memorable ones.

Aussie actress Nicole Kidman stands out in this stunning red gown as she attends last year's Academy Awards

Beyonce Knowles makes an entrance at last year's Oscars' in this chiffony gown with interesting detail along the collar, reminiscent of the Greek's simple flowy gowns.

Jessica Alba looks fantastic in this gorgeous gown as she arrives for the 2006 Academy Awards

Arriving for the 78th Academy Awards is Rush Hour's Ziyi Zhang, who looks very fetching in a black bodice and full skirt

Actress Gwyneth Paltrow looks very pretty in this satiny off-shoulder number during the 2005 event.

Super Secret Memo

By Kristin

With Fox's recent announcement that the hit series "24" wouldn't return until January 2009, we couldn't help wondering just what Jack Bauer would be doing with all that free time. We can now report, after having obtained a copy of this confidential memo, that an ordinary day in the life of Jack Bauer isn't that much different from yours or mine.

Memo
To: Jack Bauer, Ops.
From: Clark C. Miller, Accounting
Re: Expense Report 01/20/2007

Mr. Bauer,

I am writing to clarify a few items on your expense form dated 02/20/2008. Specifically, items A, B, D, and E have been cleared: one armored tank, one keg of Heineken, two rolls of duck tape and 12 feet of electrical wiring.

However, items C and F are still waiting approval pending further explanation. As you may recall, the addendum to Budget Section 17, subsection (A), entitled "Thermonuclear Weapons," specifically requires authorization in triplicate from the chief administrative officer of Branch 6, Unit 10, in cases where a proper receipt for said weaponry has not been submitted. Since you did not include either the authorization or the receipt with your form, I am forced to deny your expense claim as stated on Page 2, Section 5, Line H. Should you wish to appeal this decision, please submit Form R28-9 (10/03), along with a narrative stating why you were not able to obtain prior authorization and were not able to provide a copy of the receipt.


Memo
To: Jack Bauer, Ops.
From: Clark C. Miller, Accounting
Re: Expense Report 06/13/2007

Mr. Bauer,

Regarding your recent request, may I remind you that Budget Memo XZ7-2, dated 12/17/2003, specifically requires that all expenses in excess of $3 (three) million dollars be subject to pre-approval by your department head. Your expense item for Twelve million Canadian Dollars is, therefore, four times the pre-approved amount allocated to field agents. Your years of dedicated service and self sacrifice noted in your request form were not sufficient explanation to justify that amount. Also, your request for lauch codes for the nuclear weapons stationed in Nebraska is highly irregular, to say the very least.

Please note that your cooperation is respectfully requested in the future when submitting your expense report. Failure to provide required information in a timely manner can result in undue delay in processing your request, as well as creating a great deal of additional work for the Accounting Department.


Memo
To: Jack Bauer, Ops.
From: Clark C. Miller, Accounting
Re: Expense Report 10/24/2007

All right Bauer, just where do you come off asking for reimbursement of expenses due to collateral damage resulting from the use of 1 (one) Sidewinder shoulder-launched ground-to-air missile. Do you think we're made of money here? $28 (twenty-eight) million doesn't just grow on trees, you know, not even for the great Jack Bauer.

Oh, that's right, you were just saving the world. Again. We just forgot. We’ll get right on that! You know Bauer, you don’t get all the tough assignments around here. Balancing budgets is no easy task, buddy. I bet you couldn’t even run a standard PT Report. If the Finance Department was run the same way your Ops Department functions, this agency would be bankrupt in 6 (six) months. Then who'd keep your precious butt afloat, huh?

On behalf of the Accounting Dept. I would like to personally wish you luck on your super secret mission to Canada. I hope you break a leg!

Dad Fights "Brazen" Attempt to Move Brit Case

Dad Fights "Brazen" Attempt to Move Brit Case

Los Angeles (E! Online) - Despite some adamant claims to the contrary, Britney Spears' troubles are still very much an L.A. story.A U.S. District Court judge has given attorney Jon Eardley—the latest legal eagle enlisted by the "Toxic" songstress to battle her father's conservatorship status—until Feb. 29 to provide a legitimate reason to remove the case from Los Angeles to federal court. (View the order.)

A hearing on the matter has been scheduled for Mar. 17.

Sam Lutfi's publicist filed a petition to transfer the case Feb. 14 on behalf of the New York-based Eardley. The complaint alleged Britney's civil rights had been trampled by the court's refusal to properly investigate her family's claims that she's unfit to manage her finances, choose what company to keep and make various other decisions regarding her welfare.

Michael Sands, acting as spokesman for both Lutfi and Eardley, said last week that he had filed the documents before a court commissioner extended Jamie Spears' temporary conservatorship until Mar. 10, thereby making the action null and void.

Meanwhile, an L.A. Superior Court spokesperson said Friday that all Britney business remained under their jurisdiction.

"Jon Eardley is very happy that the judge will look at the explosive documentary evidence in the Britney Spears conservatorship railroad," Sands told E! News Tuesday.

This is a very positive step that the judge is concerned. Jon Eardley will have court papers filed by Feb 29th...This is the first step in the victimization of Britney Spears by LA Superior Court."

But just in case Eardley can come up with an argument to sway U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez, Britney's father has cooked up plenty of reasons to block the switcheroo.

Jamie Spears' camp—arguing that Britney isn't capable of hiring counsel and, therefore, Eardley is "an attorney without a client"—filed a motion Tuesday objecting to Lutfi & Co.'s "brazen—but vain—attempt to strip a probate court of jurisdiction before it could enter Orders" prolonging the conservatorship. (View the motion.)

Eardley's "well-pleaded allegations" do not present an issue of federal law, the filing states, adding that any charges on Eardley's part that Jamie Spears "supplements" his daughter's medication "disregards the fact that the Probate Court has not granted Mr. Spears medical powers and that medications therefore do not fall within the scope of the conservatorship."

In response to Eardley's contention that Britney's "unenviable status of having virtually no privacy in her life" and her "suffocating confinement" at the hands of her conservators could affect the effectiveness of her treatment, the conservators argue, once again, that the probate court did not grant Jamie authority over the troubled pop star's medication.

"Because there is no logical relationship between Britney's fame and the alleged federal interest to be addressed," Eardley's concerns about Britney's medical treatment under her father's care are a moot point.

The conservators are also asking that Eardley foot the bill for this latest round of attorneys' fees because he "lacked any reasonably objective basis" for filing the removal request.

But it's the fact that Britney was previously ruled incapable of hiring her own lawyers that will likely prove the largest obstacle to sending the case to federal court.

"In Britney's case, the commissioner revoked her power to retain her own legal counsel," Kevin Whittaker, a San Francisco-based litigation attorney, who's not involved in the Spears case, told E! News last week. "Oftentimes, the conservatee can retain their own legal counsel. This wasn't the case with Britney. So the new attorney's claim to be her legal counsel will be found invalid."

A reason why Jamie's camp is arguing that papers filed on her behalf listing Eardley as counsel of record don't amount to a hill of beans.

Jamie and attorney Andrew Wallet were named temporary conserators of Britney's multimillion-dollar estate on Feb. 1, the day after she was admitted to UCLA Medical Center's psych ward for evaluation.

Although Britney was spotted dining out with her dad in Hollywood over the weekend, sources close to her have said she is anxious to extract herself from his legal grip.

She has not met with Eardley in person, Sands said, but they have spoken several times, and sources close to the situation have said Britney has been in contact with Lutfi—through an intermediary.

Lutfi, who has continued to avoid being served with the Spears family's restraining order against him, "is at war with Jamie," a Spears insider told E! News Friday. "This is his first strike."

Kristin Chenoweth ready for Oscar stage

Kristin Chenoweth ready for Oscar stage

LOS ANGELES - Sets are being built. A stretch of Hollywood Boulevard is closed. Rehearsals have begun. With the writers strike finally in the rear-view mirror, round-the-clock preparations are under way for Sunday's Academy Awards.On Tuesday, Oscar's head honchos traded their offices at the Kodak Theatre for seats inside the landmark Capitol Records building, where conductor Bill Conti and his 61-piece orchestra practiced the year's nominated songs. Joining them was Broadway star Kristin Chenoweth and singer Marlon Saunders, who are set to perform "That's How You Know" from the movie "Enchanted."

Chenoweth, a Tony Award winner and film and TV star, said it's "nerve-racking" to prepare for the Oscar stage.

"It's the biggest audience I've ever had," the 4-foot, 11-inch performer with the outsized voice told The Associated Press. "I've played many of the famous concert halls in the world but this is something altogether different. I'm just going to try to perform the song and make it about the music and not get too nervous."

Her nerves didn't show during the rehearsal. The diminutive star even warmed up with an operatic aria that drew applause from the orchestra's brass section, which filled half the room. The other half held the strings section and 16 backup singers. Conti wielded his baton from the center as Chenoweth and Saunders donned headphones inside individual glass booths.

Show producer Gil Cates and director Louis J. Horvitz, along with associate producer Michael Seligman and talent coordinator Danette Herman, watched from soft sofas in the adjacent mixing room. The song was recorded so the singers could get a sense of their performance when backed by the orchestra.

"I have one bad note," Chenoweth confessed as she finished a take. "I had a big crack."

She listened to the playback and cringed when she heard the offending note. They tried it again.

"Very good. Very good," Cates told her. "I just love hearing you sing. It's superb."

Chenoweth smiled and curtsied in response.

She was invited just weeks ago to perform the song and had to learn it in a hurry. The composer and writer, Steven Schwartz and Alan Menken, who are nominated for three of their "Enchanted" tunes, are colleagues of hers from Broadway.

"If they're happy, I'll be happy," she said.

But first she's got to deal with those nerves.

"I'm trying to think of it like another gig, even though I know it's not the Met or Carnegie Hall. It's the Oscars and it's several billion people," she said, pretending to gag at the overwhelmingness of it all.

"I'm really excited about my dress and I'm really excited about the whole night. Of course I'm rooting for anything from 'Enchanted' to win."

Mary J. Blige to perform at Oscar party

Mary J. Blige to perform at Oscar party

LOS ANGELES - Two longtime AIDS activists are seeking to make beautiful music together on Oscar night: Mary J. Blige will join Elton John on stage for a duet at John's AIDS Foundation Academy Awards viewing party SundayElton John is one of the most inspirational musicians and philanthropists in this industry for me," Blige said in a statement Tuesday. "I respect him with all my heart, and it is truly a pleasure to be performing with him on such an important night as we look to raise awareness and vital funds for the fight against HIV/AIDS."

John's annual Oscar party has raised more than $15 million over the past 15 years. Blige's AIDS-awareness efforts date back to 2000, when she worked with MAC Cosmetics on its Viva Glam fundraising campaign.

Did You Hear the One About St. Peter and the Senator?

By Mitchell

The following comes from a friend who knows us well enough to know we'd appreciate this story:

*****

While walking down the street one day a US senator is tragically hit by a truck and dies. His soul arrives in heaven and is met by St. Peter at the entrance. "Welcome to heaven," says St. Peter. "Before you settle in, it seems there is a problem. We seldom see a high official around these parts, you see, so we're not sure what to do with you."

"No problem," says the senator. "Just let me in,"

"Well," St. Peter replies, "I'd like to, but I have orders from higher up. What we'll do is have you spend one day in hell and one in heaven. Then you can choose where to spend eternity."

"Really, I've made up my mind. I want to be in heaven," says the senator.

"I'm sorry, but we have our rules." And with that, St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to hell.

The doors open and he finds himself in the middle of a green golf course. In the distance is a clubhouse and standing in front of it are all his friends and other politicians who had worked with him. Everyone is very happy and in evening dress. They run to greet him, shake his hand, and reminisce about the good times they had while getting rich at the expense of the people.They play a friendly game of golf and then dine on lobster, caviar and champagne.Also present is the devil, who really is a very friendly guy who has a good time dancing and telling jokes. They are having such a good time that before he realizes it, it is time to go.

Everyone gives him a hearty farewell and waves while the elevator rises...The elevator goes up, up, up and the door reopens on heaven where St Peter is waiting for him. 'Now it's time to visit heaven.'So, 24 hours pass with the senator joining a group of contented souls moving from cloud to cloud, playing the harp and singing. They have a good time and, before he realizes it, the 24 hours have gone by and St. Peter returns.

"Well, then, you've spent a day in hell and another in heaven. Now choose your eternity." The senator reflects for a minute, then he answers, "Well, I would never have said it before, I mean heaven has been delightful, but I think I would be better off in hell."

So St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to hellNow the doors of the elevator open and he's in the middle of a barren land covered with waste and garbage. He sees all his friends, dressed in rags, picking up the trash and putting it in black bags as more trash falls from above.

The devil comes over to him and puts his arm around his shoulder. "I don't understand," stammers the senator. "Yesterday I was here and there was a golf course and clubhouse, and we ate lobster and caviar, drank champagne, and danced and had a great time. Now there's just a wasteland full of garbage and my friends look miserable. What happened?"

The devil looks at him, smiles and says, "Yesterday we were campaigning...... Today you voted."

(Appropriate on a primary day, don't you think?"

Washington's Rules of Life

By Drew

Speaking of Washington as we were yesterday, there was this bit from CNN on Washington's "self-help" tips. They come, of course, from Washington's Rules of Civility, a little book that everyone should have, or at least read once in their lifetime. (I'd recommend the version linked to above, with commentary by Richard Brookhiser.)

The list of 110 rules, based on a compilation from French Jesuits, was something that Washington worked on as a young man, and became the foundation on which he based his life. Some people have commented that many of them are simply common sense (don't talk with your mouth full), but common sense is something that seems to be increasingly in short supply nowadays, and at any rate it doesn't hurt to be reminded of it every once in a while.

Anyway, here are some of the rules CNN mentioned, and I think they're worth sharing in an age when civil discourse, whether in politics or the blogosphere, often seems to be lacking. Some of the language may be slightly antiquated, but the wisdom contained is timeless.

Let your countenance be pleasant but in serious matters somewhat grave.

Shew not yourself glad at the misfortune of another though he were your enemy.

To one that is your equal, or not much inferior, you are to give the chief place in your lodging, and he who 'tis offered ought at the first to refuse it, but at the second to accept though not without acknowledging his own unworthiness.

Mock not nor jest at anything of importance, break no jests that are sharp, biting, and if you deliver any thing witty and pleasant, abstain from laughing thereat yourself.

Let your conversation be without malice or envy, for 'tis a sign of tractable and commendable nature, and in all causes of passion permit reason to govern.

Speak not of doleful things in a time of mirth or at the table; speak not of melancholy things as death and wounds, and if others mention them, change if you can the discourse. Tell not your dreams, but to your intimate friend.

Be apt not to relate news if you know not the truth thereof. In discoursing of things you have heard name not your author. Always a secret discover not.

In company of those of higher quality than you, speak not till you are ask'd a question, then stand upright, put off your hat, and answer in few words.

Speak not evil of the absent for it is unjust.

How many of us can say that we strive to live by even a few of these rules? The best I can say is that I try, but often fall short. You could take many of these into the confessional with you and make a pretty good confession.

I have a feeling we'll be visiting many of these precepts again in the near future. They are wonderful food for thought - and action.

Britney Spears Shops Miss Sixty with Mom

Britney Spears Shops Miss Sixty with Mom
It was shopping time for Britney Spears, as the Gimme More singer ventured out to Miss Sixty on Melrose with her mother Lynne and a friend on Tuesday afternoon.

Britney, who was escorted by bodyguards, made a change of clothes into something more pleasing before being led out of the trendy shop and heading off to Millennium Dance studios.

Meanwhile, the most recent development in the battle over Britney tells that her father, Jamie Spears, tried to fire her business manager after he provided her with a car in violation of a court order.

According to press reports, "Papers filed in a Los Angeles court state Howard Grossman had been asked to deliver a car to Jamie Spears, who has temporary control of the star's estate. But the 26-year-old was seen driving around Los Angeles shortly after being released from a psychiatric ward."

In response, papa Spears responded: "The temporary co-conservators have lost all confidence in their ability to work with Mr Grossman."

So far, Mr Grossman has refused to confirm or deny whether he has been relieved of his duties.

Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman: Sister Act

Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman: Sister Act

The Today Show studios got a special treat this morning as Scarlett Johansson showed up to do a little press for her upcoming film.

Joined by co-star Natalie Portman, the "In Good Company" actress chatted about "The Other Boleyn Girl," slated to open February 29th.

Johansson confessed, "I came to the project originally because Natalie was attached to it and I desperately wanted to work with her. I'd been a fan for so long and how many opportunities do you have?"

Portman gushed, "That's why I was so excited to do it. It's so rare to get to work with someone you admire so much and who is in your same age range. It's such a great opportunity to get to see how this actress that you love works up close. I got to watch how she prepares and got to have her as a scene partner."

With the mutual admiration society contained within, "The Other Boleyn Girl" is definitely worth a try.

Scientists find 'Devil Toad' fossil

Scientists find 'Devil Toad' fossil

WASHINGTON - A frog the size of a bowling ball, with heavy armor and teeth, lived among dinosaurs millions of years ago — intimidating enough that scientists who unearthed its fossils dubbed the beast Beelzebufo, or Devil ToadBut its size — 10 pounds and 16 inches long — isn't the only curiosity. Researchers discovered the creature's bones in Madagascar. Yet it seems to be a close relative of normal-sized frogs who today live half a world away in South America, challenging assumptions about ancient geography.

The discovery, led by paleontologist David Krause at New York's Stony Brook University, was published Monday by the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

"This frog, if it has the same habits as its living relatives in South America, was quite voracious," Krause said. "It's even conceivable that it could have taken down some hatchling dinosaurs."

Krause began finding fragments of abnormally large frog bones in Madagascar, off the coast of Africa, in 1993. They dated back to the late Cretaceous period, roughly 70 million years ago, in an area where Krause also was finding dinosaur and crocodile fossils. But only recently did Krause's team assemble enough frog bones to piece together what the creature would have looked like, and weighed.

The largest living frog, the Goliath frog of West Africa, can reach 7 pounds. But Krause teamed with fossil frog experts from University College London to determine that Beelzebufo isn't related to other African frogs.

It seems to be a relative of South American horned frogs, known scientifically as Ceratophrys. Popular as pets, they're sometimes called pacman frogs for their huge mouths.

Like those modern frogs, Beelzebufo had a wide mouth and powerful jaws, plus teeth. Skull bones were extremely thick, with ridges and grooves characteristic of some type of armor or protective shield.

The name comes from the Greek word for devil, Beelzebub, and Latin for toad, bufo (pronounced boo-foe).

The family link raises a paleontology puzzle: Standard theory for how the continents drifted apart show what is now Madagascar would have been long separated by ocean from South America during Beelzebufo's time. And frogs can't survive long in salt water, Krause noted.

He contends the giant frog provides evidence for competing theories that some bridge still connected the land masses that late in time, perhaps via an Antarctica that was much warmer than today.

George Washington's Birthday

An Our Word Flashback

From February 20, 2006:

In this fascinating little tidbit from The Corner, John J. Miller provides the answer, courtesy of Matthew Spalding of the Heritage Foundation:

The third Monday in February has come to be known - wrongly - as President's Day. ... Although it was celebrated as early as 1778, and by the early 19th century was second only to the Fourth of July as a patriotic holiday, Congress did not officially recognize Washington's Birthday as a national holiday until 1870. The Monday Holiday Law in 1968--applied to executive branch departments and agencies by Richard Nixon's Executive Order 11582 in 1971--moved the holiday from February 22 to the third Monday in February. Section 6103 of Title 5, United States Code, currently designates that legal federal holiday as "Washington's Birthday." Contrary to popular opinion, no action by Congress or order by any President has changed "Washington's Birthday" to "President's Day."

I’ve always had a great admiration for Washington. He towers over the history of our country, even in those scenes in which he doesn’t directly appear (in the musical 1776, for example, Washington’s presence is always there through the dispatches he sends the Second Continental Congress, even though Washington himself is not a character in the story). There’s a nobility about him that made quite an impression on his contemporaries, a nobility that seems to be missing from much of our culture today, political or otherwise.

Washington had quite a different view of the presidency (an office that was tailor-made for him, as the documents from the Constitutional Convention show) than we do today, believing that the president should be more of an impartial adjudicator of events, a man whose first priority was to represent the interests of the nation as a whole, even as Congress had their own personal constituencies to represent.

There is much to admire in Washington, both as a man and as president. He is, in my estimation, the greatest American (which is not to denigrate men such as Franklin and Lincoln, who would stand out in any age). There are many outstanding books on Washington; two of my favorites are the multi-volume biography by James Thomas Flexner (available in this handy one-volume printing), and the brief, excellent Founding Father by Rick Brookheiser. A pity that so many schoolchildren nowadays, when they hear of Washington at all, are taught merely that he was a slave-owner.

So, at a time when our political discourse seems to sink lower and lower into irrelevance and our "leaders" provide very little leadership other than in raising money, let us take a moment to remember with gratitude our first president, the Father of His Country, perhaps the greatest American ever: G. Washington.

Kirk Browning, R.I.P.

By Mitchell

Longtime readers will recognize Kirk Browning as the director of the premiere telecast of Amahl and the Night Visitors in 1951. He was, therefore, one of the few major figures remaining from the Golden Age of Television and one of the last to still be active in television production, which he was right up until his death on Sunday at age 86.

Kirk Browning started out as a chicken farmer and wound up as one of the icons of the technical side of the tube. His obit in the New York Times relates the wonderful story of how one of his egg customers, Samuel Chotzinoff, the director of NBC’s music division, helped get him a job with the network. He worked with everyone from Arturo Toscanini to Frank Sinatra to Arthur Godfrey in a career that ran from 1947 to 2008, and his productions won 10 Emmy Awards.

It was for classical programming that he became most famous however, as director of the long-running PBS series Life From Lincoln Center. He directed 185 telecasts, and was in fact working on the post-production of the March telecast at the time of his death. He was known for his innovative techniques, including his use of sports technology such as the small "lipstick" camera, to generate views for the television audience that no person in the concert hall could ever see.

And it would require an innovative mind for perhaps the single most enduring program with which Browning was involved, the 1951 telecast of Amahl. Browning often said that the opera's composer, Gian Carlo Menotti, was the decisive force in the production, but there is no question that it was Browning's skill and understanding as a director that shaped the production of television on opera. It is difficult to appreciate the complexity of putting on that live broadcast; Browning and Menotti worked closely to frame the action on the small screen, to block out the camera angles, to create an air of intimacy that would itself be an innovation in the world of opera. Singers used to broad gestures would have to contrict themselves so that their movements would not break the frame of the screen. Camera shots would have to be orchestrated in such a way that the noise generated by the lens change would not be heard on the telecast. Closed-circuit hookups would be arranged so that the orchestra, working from a separate area behind the set, would still remain in visual contact with the singers. And all this would be done, live, in an environment where union rules prohibited the television director (Browning) from communicating directly with the cameramen - all such communication would have to go through a technical director.

Needless to say, it worked - not just with Amahl, but with the hundreds of shows on which Browning worked through a half-century of television. Working in a brand-new medium frequently results in genius born of necessity, and the work of Kirt Browning, then as now, was just that.

Heather Graham Takes In G Star Show

Heather Graham Takes In G Star Show

As Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York City rages on, the celebrity presence in the Big Apple has been overwhelming. And Heather Graham was certainly not one to be left out this season.

The "Boogie Nights" actress has been laying low lately, but surprisingly showed her face at Gotham Hall to attend the G Star fashion show.

Graham wore a show-stopping combination of a sheer, see-through top over a black bra with a denim skirt, black leather boots and a trench coat.

For some reason, the "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me" actress had a blank stare as she posed for the paparazzi. Of course, all those flashbulbs can get pretty annoying!

What a Visitor to Earth Might Say About the American Political Process

By Drew

"Look on the bright side. If this is the best they've got around here, in six months we'll be running this planet."

Rod Serling, dialogue for Planet of the Apes

Jackie Chan promotes Beijing Olympics

Hollywood Kung Fu star Jackie Chan will take time out this year to promote the Beijing Olympics, so he saddled up for a video to promote equestrian events.

While Kung Fu may be more his thing, Chan happily pulled on his horse riding boots and hard helmet to publicise Hong Kong's fringe Olympics role this summer, with Beijing having switched equestrian events to the city after it failed to establish a disease-free zone for horses.

"See you in Hong Kong 2008, Olympic equestrian co-host city," said Chan while holding the reins of a dark former racehorse called "Fortune Tycoon," as the cameras rolled at the Hong Kong Jockey Club's Beas River country club, which will host some of the former British colony's Olympics equestrian events this summer.

Hong Kong will be one of only a handful of cities to host Olympics events outside of Beijing this summer. The north-eastern city of Qingdao is another and will host a few watersports events.

As a goodwill envoy for the Beijing Olympics, Chan has devoted himself this year to promoting the Games, and has taken part in activities including running the Olympic torch in Greece and recording an Olympics countdown song.

He's also appeared in prominent Olympics-themed commercials for credit card giant Visa, alongside Chinese basketball star Yao Ming.

Spielberg shuns away Beijing Olympics

Steven Spielberg is ending his involvement as an artistic adviser for the Beijing Olympics.
The American film director made the decision yesterday, hours after actress Mia Farrow and several humanitarian groups assailed him for working with the games' Chinese organisers.

At issue for both Farrow and Spielberg is China's close relationship with Sudan, where thousands have been killed and millions displaced in the Darfur region.

China buys two-thirds of Sudan's oil exports. In turn,China sells weapons to the Sudanese government and has defended Khartoum in the UN Security Council.

Spielberg already had sent a letter urging President Hu Jintao to use China's influence during the Olympics to help the situation in Darfur.

Thus,the chapter of the involvement of a genius of an artist with China,gets closed.

Christensen unhappy with Hollywood

Hayden Christensen of Star Wars fame is unhappy with the overwhelming ambition in Hollywood to get ahead. Sourecs quoted him as saying,"I would say I have an ambition, but not an ambition that fits with any sort of greater endeavour, you know? You might achieve a lot but I gauge it by the experience I have on set. It's such a struggle to protect your integrity and dignity in this industry."

"They really want to attack your morality and your beliefs. They need you to give up a certain part of yourself before they'll initiate you into 'stardom'. I've always been kind of a hermit. I find my joy in the little things they want to take away from me. Prior to all this, I took pleasure from being the observer. Now I'm the observed," he said.

The actor has bought a farm and is busy setting it up.

"I got the farm about a year ago and just really turned my hand to it. Organic farming interests me. Although so far I've only planted a small vegetable patch but I definitely want to get the pigs, cattle and horses.", he added.

Christensen said, "It's a new endeavour and I'm not very good at it yet but I'm trying to figure it out. I'm learning new things and it's a great challenge. It's also really pleasurable. There's throwing the dirt around, getting your hands dirty and watching things grow."

Poetry Wednesday

By Mitchell

Here's a poem suitable for a lead-in to St. Valentine's Day, from Lord Byron (1788-1824):

She Walks In Beauty

She walks in beauty, like the night
Of cloudless climes and starry skies;
And all that's best of dark and bright
Meet in her aspect and her eyes:
Thus mellow'd to that tender light
Which heaven to gaudy day denies.

One shade the more, one ray the less,
Had half impair'd the nameless grace
Which waves in every raven tress,
Or softly lightens o'er her face;
Where thoughts serenely sweet express
How pure, how dear their dwelling-place.

And on that cheek, and o'er that brow,
So soft, so calm, yet eloquent,
The smiles that win, the tints that glow,
But tell of days in goodness spent,
A mind at peace with all below,
A heart whose love is innocent!

A Philharmonic Incident

By Bobby

Recently, I attended a performance of the South Carolina Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, where great young musicians begin their training with great masterpieces and sometimes even a movie selection or two. I almost wished Radio Television Luxembourg would even return "Pink Panther Theme" to The Price Is Right (from 1976-1992, the pricing game "Safe Crackers" used the theme; Mark Goodson had to pay the copyright holders, so it was dropped, despite it being a signature of the game) after hearing the youth orchestra play it.

However, while the music showed the proficiency of the youth (in three groups), I wonder about the dress code of an orchestra today, as the attending parents and friends have even tripped over the dress codes that I have learned over the decade I have attended orchestral events.

Female Conductors
Is a skirt with a high slit on the front corner appropriate where as she is walking on stage, where she is baring her left leg as she walks on stage? The slit was very high from my perspective. You do not wear a slit where almost the entire body can be shown as you walk to your perch at the centre of the orchestra where the players can see your bare leg!

The fact the bare leg showing is dangerous is ironic, considering the younger orchestra members are wearing black tops and slacks, something which has changed over the past forty years, when full black dresses were the rule (and still is for singers). But instrumentalists today have the choice of a jacket and slacks, something female vocalists do not have.

The younger boys did not wear the formal clothing as the older ones do, but that is understood. They had to wear identical clothing. But any young music leader should understand what you wear matters! In the "senior" group of the youth orchestra, the lead violin player herself had a jacket she took off when she was the featured soloist, with the bare-shouldered look for the feature.

General Audience
Some of the youth who attended the concert seemed to violate the cardinal rule of concert dress. Why do kids think jeans, tee-shirts, and shorts are appropriate for these events? Now this is a youth event, and some parents followed the rules, but some parents and a slew of youth violated the cardinal rule of concert dress. Who would attend a Philharmonic event dressed as if they were going to rock concerts, or even church?

Yes, I mean church. Today’s generation, who has attended Emergent Church services where the Bible is ignored for popular culture, or where teen dancers who jiggle to rock has replaced sacred music, is known for their rag-tag looks. One year I observed a few leaders wearing Viagra tee-shirts! In another situation, one adult had Viagra memorabilia pasted on the back of her car window and bumper sticker!

Youth need to remember when going to a concert, please wear a suit or a dress, and ladies, make sure the hems are calf-length or below, and absolutely no cleavage. This should be a place of modesty.

Shah Rukh is on for television

Bollywood megastar Shah Rukh Khan, who started his career as an actor with TV serial Fauji, says that whatever he has achieved in life is all because of television.

"I started my career with television. I am what I am today because of TV. I owe my life to the small screen and stage," King Khan said.

"It is a welcome change to see the way television has evolved over two decades. There is an amazing change in TV programmes both quality-wise and technically. In fact, films and media (print and electronic), everything has changed," he said.

"Earlier, when we used to go for press conferences there used to be hardly five cameras. Today the count is more than the fingers on your hands," reminisced the star.

He was in the capital Tuesday to promote a new quiz show, Kya Aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tez Hain, to be telecast on STAR Plus, which he will host.

The show, based on international TV show Are you Smarter than a Fifth grader?, will have adult participants contesting to win a whopping Rs.50 million.

Asked if he himself is smarter than a fifth grader, SRK quipped: "I am not as smart as a fifth class student, otherwise I wouldn't have been an actor."

So how was Shah Rukh as a student? "I was very naughty and was nearly suspended once from school but my parents never pushed me very hard. They always said that I must do enough (in studies) so that they are not ashamed. And I did fair in life!"

"I remember my teachers said that I have a devil's smile. Every time I played a prank, I used to smile with dimples on my cheeks and they would let me go. But I was punished many, many times," he added.

Commenting on whether he would like his son Aryan and daughter Suhana to take part in any reality show, he said: "I don't want that for my children, being Shah Rukh Khan's son and daughter should not become an achievement."

"I prey to god and hope when they grow up they achieve something on their own," he said.

Knightley has no marriage plans

British actress Keira Knightley has ruled out marriage in the near future because she believes she can look after herself.

The 22-year-old star of Pirates of the Caribbean is involved in a steady relationship with her boyfriend Rupert Friend. Contactmusic.com reports that she is following her mother's advice to not depend on a man for financial and emotional needs.

"I'm from a very liberal upbringing. My mum's like, 'No, you get a job, you support yourself, never look to a man to support you.' I think getting married and having children would be lovely. But not right now or really any time soon," she said.

McConaughey to be a dad

Matthew McConaughey is going to be a dad.

The actor's publicist Alan Nierob confirmed that McConaughey and his girlfriend, Brazilian model Camila Alves, are expecting a baby. Nierob said McConaughey is "excited."

McConaughey made the announcement on his website.

"Got some blessed news... a celebration of life and bounty... a newborn conceived... yes, my girlfriend Camila and I made a baby together," McConaughey wrote.

The actor said Alves' three-month pregnancy was going well.

"We are stoked and wowed by this miracle of creation and this gift from God, and so excited for the adventure that will come in raising this child, being a mother and a father," he said.

McConaughey goes on to say, "wish us the best, keep us in your prayers, and God bless evolution."

McConaughey, a Texas native, has appeared in such films as The Wedding Planner and Sahara and was People magazine's 'Sexiest Man Alive' in 2005.

His latest film Fool's Gold is due to be released next month.

Roberts children unlike her

Actress Julia Roberts is hoping her three children will at least inherit some of her personality traits because she doesn't think they look anything like her.

According to sources Roberts thinks they look like her husband Danny Moder, her mother and her sister.

She said, "I have a good looking husband, so we're alright."

Roberts added, "There is still hope (for some of her traits) in their personalities. We still hope there will be some sass passed down. No brown eyes, but some attitude."

Moscow premieres film on Putin

Controversial Russian film A Kiss - Off the Record premiered in Moscow on Monday.

The film is the life-story of a politician that very much resembles that of the Russian leader, but at no point does it mention Putin's name.

The main character speaks German, lives in Saint Petersburg and has a secretive job. He goes on to marry a stewardess, becomes the father of two daughters and is elected President - all details which tally with Putin's own life.

But the filmmakers remain ambiguous about the correlation between the storyline and real life events, claiming it's just a movie about a woman who fell in love with a politician, rather than a romantic tale about the Russian leader.

They claim that it is a love story first of all, not a documentary.

"Of course there are certain facts in our movie which coincide with the life of our leader, but we tried to focus not on the life of a leader as the life of a politician. We were interested in the other side of the story", film producer Anatoly Voropaev said.

"It's about a woman, about her love, about her man.", said Darya Mikhailova, who plays the president's wife.

One of the premiere guests Natalya Serebrovskaya from Saint Petersburg, who knew Vladimir Putin when he worked in the Saint Petersburg's Mayor Office, said the main character very much resembles the acting president.

The movie was shot from 2002 to 2003 in Moscow, Saint-Petersburg, Dresden and Berlin, and it was already completed five years ago.

There have been rumours that the Kremlin delayed the release. A Kiss - Off the Record will be distributed only on DVD on 14 February.

The movie was shot from 2002 to 2003 in Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Dresden and Berlin, and it was already completed five years ago

Atonement bags best film at BAFTA

Atonement, the film adaptation of Ian McEwan's best-selling novel, was named Best Film at the star-studded BAFTAs, Britain's showpiece movie awards.

Daniel Day-Lewis was named Best Actor for his role in There Will Be Blood, and French actress Marion Cotillard was the surprise winner of the Best Actress award for "La Vie En Rose", in which she played singer Edith Piaf.

The British Academy Film and Television Arts awards took on increased importance this year, after a writers' strike in the United States reduced the Golden Globes, traditionally the second-biggest film awards after the Oscars to a mere news conference.

Overall, though Atonement, a romantic drama about life and love in World War II, had been nominated in 14 categories, it managed to win only two, with the other coming in the Production Design category.

While Day-Lewis was the favourite to win the Best Actor gong, Cotillard's victory meant Julie Christie, for Away From Her, and Keira Knightley, for Atonement, left empty-handed.

The former was favourite to win.

Cotillard's award comes after she won a Golden Globe for the same performance, and the 32-year-old has also been nominated for an Oscar.

La Vie En Rose finished with four awards -- it also won in the Music, Costume Design and Make-up categories, with Cotillard having to play Piaf as a 19-year-old and, eventually, as a frail woman who died aged 47.

Mumbai Murmur: Sanju Baba to become Sanju Papa

Mumbai: A day after Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt married his long-time girlfriend Manyata in Mumbai, newspaper reports on Tuesday suggested that Manyata is pregnant with Dutt's child.


Mumbai's Midday newspaper quoted an industry insider, who is close to the Dutts as saying that the couple went ahead with the wedding hurriedly "because they have a more special announcement to make shortly." And that explains the need for Monday's formal shaadi, the newspaper claimed.


On Sunday, Manyata deliberately showed up at an event teeming with media, with sindoor in her maang, sparking media speculation about her marriage with Sanjay.


Surprisingly, Sanjay Dutt's immediate family was nowhere to be seen at his wedding on Monday. His sister, Priya Dutt, when contacted, said she had not been informed or invited for the wedding.


“Maybe he needed to formalise the relationship. He has been going on with Manyata for more than a year. I didn’t know about the wedding. We wish him all the happiness especially after all he has been through,” Priya said.


The couple, incidentally, formalised their relationship with a court marriage in Goa, earlier this month. The Hindu marriage ceremony, which started around noon on Monday, concluded around 1700 hours IST.

Obama sweeps 3 states, Huckabee takes 2

Obama sweeps 3 states, Huckabee takes 2

WASHINGTON - Sen. Barack Obama swept the Louisiana primary and caucuses in Nebraska and Washington state Saturday night, slicing into Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's slender delegate lead in their historic race for the Democratic presidential nomination.
The Illinois senator also won caucuses in the Virgin Islands, completing his best night of the campaign.

"Today, voters from the West Coast to the Gulf Coast to the heart of America stood up to say 'yes we can'" Obama told a cheering audience of Democrats at a party dinner in Richmond, Va.

He jabbed simultaneously at Clinton and Arizona Sen. John McCain, saying the election was a choice between debating the Republican nominee-in-waiting "about who has the most experience in Washington, or debating him about who's most likely to change Washington. Because that's a debate we can win."

Clinton preceded Obama to the podium. She did not refer to the night's voting, instead turning against McCain. "We have tried it President Bush's way," she said, "and now the Republicans have chosen more of the same."

She left quickly after her speech, departing before Obama's arrival. But his supporters made their presence known, sending up chants of "Obama" from the audience as she made her way offstage.

Obama's winning margins ranged from substantial to crushing.

He won roughly two-thirds of the vote in Washington state and Nebraska, and almost 90 percent in the Virgin Islands.

Nearly complete Louisiana returns showed Obama with 57 percent of the vote, to 36 percent for the former first lady. As in his earlier Southern triumphs in Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina, Obama, a black man, rode a wave of African-American support to victory in Louisiana. Clinton won the white vote overwhelmingly.

In all, the Democrats scrapped for 161 delegates in the night's contests.

In incomplete allocations, Obama won 72, Clinton 40.

In overall totals in The Associated Press count, Clinton had 1,095 delegates to 1,070 for Obama, counting so-called superdelegates. They are party leaders not chosen at primaries or caucuses, free to change their minds. A total of 2,025 delegates is required to win the nomination at the national convention in Denver.

McCain flunked his first ballot tests since becoming the Republican nominee-in-waiting. He lost Kansas caucuses to Mike Huckabee, gaining less than 24 percent of the vote. Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor, got nearly 60 percent of the vote a few hours after saying, "I majored in miracles, and I still believe in them." He won all 36 delegates at stake.

Huckabee also won the Louisiana primary, but fell short of 50 percent, the threshold necessary to pocket the 20 delegates that were available. Instead, they will be awarded at a state convention next weekend.

McCain won the third Republican race of the night, Washington's caucuses. None of the state's delegates will be awarded until next week.

For all his brave talk, Huckabee was hopelessly behind in the delegate race. McCain had 719, compared with 234 for Huckabee and 14 for Paul. It takes 1,191 to win the nomination at the national convention.

The Democrats' race was as close as the Republicans' was not, a contest between Obama, hoping to become the first black president, and Clinton, campaigning to become the first female commander in chief.

The two rivals contest primaries on Tuesday in Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia, all states where Obama and his campaign are hopeful of winning.

Preliminary results of a survey of voters leaving their polling places in Louisiana showed that nearly half of those casting ballots were black. As a group, African-Americans have overwhelmingly favored Obama in earlier primaries, helping him to wins in several Southern states.

Obama was gaining about 80 percent of the black votes statewide, while Clinton was winning 70 percent support among whites, the exit poll showed.

One in seven Democratic voters and about one in 10 Republicans said Hurricane Katrina had caused their families severe hardship from which they have not recovered. There was another indication of the impact the storm had on the state. Early results suggested that northern Louisiana accounted for a larger share of the electorate than in the past, presumably the result of the decline in population in the hurricane-battered New Orleans area.

McCain cleared his path to the party nomination earlier in the week with a string of Super Tuesday victories that drove Romney from the race. He spent the rest of the week trying to reassure skeptical conservatives, at the same time party leaders quickly closed ranks behind him.

His Kansas defeat aside, McCain also suffered a symbolic defeat when Romney edged him out in a straw poll at the Conservative Political Action Conference meeting across town from the White House.

The day's contests opened a new phase in the Democratic race between Clinton and Obama.

The Feb. 5 Super Tuesday primaries and caucuses in 22 states, which once looked likely to effectively settle the race, instead produced a near-equal delegate split.

That left Obama and Clinton facing the likelihood of a grind-it-out competition lasting into spring — if not to the summer convention itself.

With the night's events, 29 of the 50 states have selected delegates.

Two more — Michigan and Florida — held renegade primaries and the Democratic National Committee has vowed not to seat any delegates chosen at either of them.

Maine, with 24 delegates, holds caucuses on Sunday. Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia and voting by Americans overseas are next, on Tuesday, with 175 combined.

Then follows a brief intermission, followed by a string of election nights, some crowded, some not.

The date of March 4 looms large, 370 delegates in primaries in Ohio, Texas, Rhode Island and Vermont.

Mississippi is alone in holding a primary one week later, with a relatively small 33 delegates at stake.

Puerto Rico anchors the Democratic calendar, with 55 delegates chosen in caucuses on June 7.

If Super Tuesday failed to settle the campaign, it produced a remarkable surge in fundraising.

Obama's aides announced he had raised more than $7 million on line in the two days that followed.

Clinton disclosed she had loaned her campaign $5 million late last month in an attempt to counter her rival's Super Tuesday television advertising. She raised more than $6 million in the two days after the busiest night in primary history.

The television ad wars continued unabated.

Obama has been airing commercials for more than a week in television markets serving every state that has a contest though Feb 19.

Clinton began airing ads midweek in Washington state, Maine and Nebraska, and added Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia on Friday.

How the Democrats Can Win It

By Drew

As Jim Geraghty points out at NRO, there is one thing that the Democrats can do that will improve their chances of victory in November more than anything else:

Avoid antagonizing people.

I mean it. A number of us have talked about this in the past, how we’re all tired of having voted against candidates instead of voting for them. And when you keep doing negatives rather than positives, it does tend to wear you down.

This is something that liberals have often overlooked. You’ve heard the joke about comparing the Democrats to a firing squad standing in a circle with the guns pointed inward? Well, that's the Democrats in a nutshell. This party, even more than the Republicans, seems to have perfected the art of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

Think about what Geraghty says. How many times can you remember the in-your-face attitude of so many liberals who literally drive you to vote for someone, anyone, besides their candidate? It happened (as Geraghty reminded us) with Cameron Diaz suggested that Bush would legalize rape in his second term, with Paul Wellstone’s memorial/pep rally, after convention speeches by Ann Richards and Ted Kennedy and any number of Democratic stalwarts, after appearances by race-baiters like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton. It happens after you read the cruel, crude, relentless, conspiracy-laden, over-the-top hype from sites like the Huffington Post and MoveOn.org, and it happens every time you see Rosie O’Donnell or Whoopi Goldberg or Barbra (I’ll move to Europe if the Republicans win) Streisand or any number of smug, self-satisfying Hollywood types. They remind good, decent people everywhere of why this culture seems to be in such lousy shape, and who's responsible for it. You might find yourself getting angry about it all over again just reading this.

In fact, you’re probably starting to recall the number of times you weren’t planning to vote at all until someone pushed you just too far, walked into your wheelhouse and dared you to go into the booth and mark that ballot. Which is what you did, and their candidate wound up losing. You remember those times, don't you? The wonder is that the Democrats don't. At least, perhaps, until now.

Looking back at Mitchell’s piece from earlier this week, I'm struck by a couple of things. First, that the Democrats might take his advice, look into their own echo chamber of history, and learn the lessons that come from the school of hard knocks. Second, it seems as if the most likely way that conservatives will rally around McCain (and thus give him any chance of victory) is if the Democrats make this mistake again. But if they can just play it cool, if they can keep their supporters under control and avoid what a friend of mine would call “walking into the crosshairs of a stationary cannon” (i.e. one that can hurt you only if you stand right in front of it and wave your arms), if they can just let sleeping dogs (and conservatives) lie, then they improve their chances dramatically.

It’s always dangerous trying to predict the future, especially a future that’s nearly nine months away. (Just ask yourself how accurate your TV weather guy has been lately.) But barring the unforeseen (note to aspiring pundits: always leave yourselves wiggle room, or, as we say in the political game, "plausible deniability"), you have to think that having these liberals revert to type is just about the best chance John McCain has. If, as Geraghty suggests, they’ve actually figured this out – if, in other words, they don’t blow it – then McCain might want to forget about wooing conservatives, and start writing his concession speech instead.

Theron dances way to Hasty Pudding award

Theron dances way to Hasty Pudding award

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Before Charlize Theron could pick up her Woman of the Year award, she had to prove she was worthyThat meant dancing to disco music, striking modeling poses and wooing someone wearing an elephant suit and a pink sparkly bra — all to delight of the cast members of the Hasty Pudding Theatricals at Harvard University, the nation's oldest undergraduate drama troupe. Theron's efforts landed her a gold-colored pudding pot.

"I hope you all know I'm a high school dropout. I just thought I'd be clean with you guys," Theron said Thursday.

Actor Christopher Walken is to receive the Hasty Pudding Man of the Year Award on Feb. 15, prior to the opening night performance of "Fable Attraction."

The awards are given each year to performers who have made a "lasting and impressive contribution" to the world of entertainment.

"She's done so many different projects, she has such a range, she's someone we can look up to," said Talisa Friedman, a spokeswoman for Hasty Pudding.

Theron, 32, led a parade through Harvard Square as part of the festivities that precede the annual roast. She said after the parade that she plans to put her award to practical use.

"I'm going to make a stew, then I'm going to eat it," she said.

She also talked about one of her latest projects, "Battle in Seattle," a movie written and directed by her longtime boyfriend, Stuart Townsend.

"It's really impressive when you're dating somebody for eight years, then all of a sudden they do something that you never thought they could do, and then they do it really well. He's a really talented writer and director. I really loved working with him."

What a New Left Would Offer

By Bobby

The dangers of a Presidency of the Left is one that we must be aware as we continue the Chase to the Presidency. Sadly, too many people do not understand the point of history we are facing, and do not understand what a vote on the Left would mean:

Energy Policy:

A federal speed limit of 55 MPH, similar to 1974 policy misguided by a Democratic supermajority, is almost assured as one of the “save the earth” mantras that fit with the “save fuel” mantra that together, will easily be part of a liberal agenda to regulate automobiles to fit with standards in Europe.

A federal energy policy banning drilling in ANWR, and all new drilling of oil in all areas of this country, including waters. This policy will be accompanied by new “National Monuments” imposed near areas where coal, shale, and other oil developments are found to ban energy independence. Under the Clinton administration, the Grand Staircase Escalante monument in Utah was added to prevent American clean coal from being mined, and instead force us to buy Chinese Communist coal.

Continuing federal light bulb regulations that will ban anything that does not fit within the mantra of made-in-ChiCom, mercury-poisoning lightbulbs.

Continuing automotive regulations to force Americans into 2-seat, 2 or 3-cylinder minicars, including bans on large automobiles.

Continuing the purchase of Japanese hybrid small cars as federal policy.

Mandatory alcohol fuel in cars.

A windfall profits tax to charge 100% taxation of all profits on oil companies. All profits to government mean oil companies would have to leave the country or quit the business. The taxes would go to fund what liberals request, including numerous pork (think of “peace parks” in highway bills).

Health Care:

Socialised medicine that would effectively create bans on health research except for baby-killing research (which is protected by liberal mantra).

To cut costs, clinics such as Mayo and other massive cancer centres would be closed, and their medical research will be banned. This will prevent life-saving cures from being considered, since they are considered to be a harm.

Long lines in single-payer clinics where even basic health care will be rationed. People with even the flu will not be permitted to be treated for such.

Federal windfall profits tax on health care. Profits to government social control.

Federal controls of the health care system where no new doctors will be created, and no new innovations will happen because of policies designed to destroy the market.

Taxation:

A 50% tax rate (or higher) will be imposed on income taxes. This not only repeals the 2001 and 2003 Bush tax cuts, but adds to the Clinton-era tax rates.

A Capital Gains tax rate of 50% (or higher) will be imposed to discourage investing. Add the anti-investing mantra to the windfall profits tax and onerous government regulation to kill industries will create a country where investing will be discouraged and instead people will be asked to spend.

New consumption taxes on gasoline.

New taxes on internet usage.

New environmental taxes to ensure everyone drives the minicars.

More taxes for the government to take land away from people they wish to strip property (speedway owners, churches) so they can create more earth-worship parks.

The destruction of Wall Street, especially the stock market, when Reagan-era policies encouraging investing are repealed for a New Left-era policy discouraging investing and creating more dependence on government.

Media Regulations:

New onerous media regulations include the re-implementation of the Fairness Doctrine. In the 1960's, the Johnson administration used the Doctrine to get their way to have laws passed when opposition rose.

New media regulations will dictate the political slant of radio. Bans on conservative talk radio will be added with mandatory “public service” announcements to force-feed listeners to participate in rallies to support same-sex “marriage”, declaring the Bible as hate speech, and to push people to support higher taxes, government regulations, and anti-business tax codes.

Media controls of Hugo Chávez-style proportions, similar to what he did with RCTV.

The federal government will control the airwaves by banning anything that does not fit with the new liberal speech codes.

A ban on Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Dr. Laura Schlessinger, and even Fox News, because they do not fit the agenda of the media control bureau.

Speech codes that even Congress will regulate. My Congressman, Joe Wilson, cannot even speak in the House because of onerous regulations on who can speak.

The Family:

Declaring the Bible as hate speech as part of a homosexual agenda.

The homosexual agenda will become the law; even declaring it is a sin will be a crime, and laws will be written to mandate where child molesters can work in schools will be required.

Education standards will be rewritten to redefine family.

Abortion on demand will become federal regulation, and the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban will be voided.

New laws will be created to allow criminals to have rights, while victims will not have any.

Refugees of Communist nations and other despots will be forced to return to the land of the dictator they came, as the Elián Gonzáles case was one where the US under a pro-Communist leadership forced a kid who escaped the dictator back as part of a Lenin's Birthday celebration.

Lenin's Birthday will usurp Washington's Birthday as a major celebration in the United States; currently, kids are more aware of Lenin's Birthday (through a veiled “Earth Day” celebration) than of Washington's, because the philosophy of the Soviet dictator is celebrated on Earth Day.

Our Courts:

The courts of the new liberal Presidency will declare laws passed in Europe usurp the laws of the United States, hereby moving the capital of the United States to Bruxelles, Belgique.

The Law of the Sea, which surrenders sovreignity of the seas of our country, will become law and third-rate dictators control this nation's resources.

Rogue Nations and the War on Terror:

Usama bin Laden and his Henchmen will start invading Iraq and winning the minute the United States leaves under liberal requests.

To conform to the Leftist World, the United States will leave Iraq, making it a more dangerous area where terrorists will use to create the next major attack. The Left has made it clear conforming to what their fellow liberals want, and not going full-on to attack terrorists is priority #1. They would rather be praised by the world for losing than to go all-in for the win, and we learn in the Bible to not be of the world, and liberals prefer to be of the dangerous world that does not believe in going for the win, but keeping their self-esteem.

Iraq will become a more dangerous nation without support from the Free World because of the Leader's decision to leave to please the MOVEON.ORG organisation.

The People's Republic of China will have the right to invade, and destroy, Taiwan with the blessing of the new Administration.

Other Things of Danger:

MOVEON.ORG will become the massive think tank that will effectively rent more space, and force the Heritage Foundation, TOWNHALL.COM, the Cato Institute, and other major organisations leaning conservative to leave town under orders that only one side of political thought would be allowed.

Is this the type of government we want to elect? Such is the dangers of the New Left and their attempt to take back America for the sake of turning this nation into a totalitarian dictatorship of the extremists. After studying this, I know this is not the world I want to have after November 2008.