'Best of TBH Politoons'
Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Alison Bechdel: What the Little Old Ladies Feel (slate.com)
How I told my mother about my memoir.
All About Me? The state of the modern memoir (slate.com)
Welcome to Memoir Week at Slate.
The Comics Page Goes to War (ctnow.com)
Mature work has been creeping onto the comics pages for years, with strips like The Boondocks, Candorville and others joining Doonesbury in tackling contemporary political issues -- but what of once reliably non-confrontational strips like Beetle Bailey?
John Updike: The Valiant Swabian (newyorker.com)
Einstein loved America, and having the greatest mind in the world around lifted U.S. spirits. This valiant Swabian showed us how to be free...
Joel Stein: I am a venti scribe (latimes.com)
Some of his latest work can be found on a Starbucks cup.
Lynn Peril: College Girls: Bluestockings, Sex Kittens, and Co-Eds, Then and Now (powells.com)
To an extent, the history of higher education for American women can be traced through the gradual erosion of parietals. As more and more young ladies began to leave their families not for marriage but for a college education, and then to slowly be granted the freedom of the campus, something profound began to change.
Hacked! McCain's MySpace Page (motherjones.com)
"Today I announce that I have reversed my position and come out in full support of gay marriage. Particularly marriage between passionate females."
They are either victims or drunk, foul-mouthed bullies. Why are we in such a panic about children? (guardian.co.uk)
Marcel Berlins: We no longer think of the giggling girl in the pub as a bit tipsy - she is bingeing.
Mark Morford: When Liberals Rule The World (sfgate.com)
Stats say the GOP is dying. But red-staters are breeding like drunken ferrets. Who wins?
Wikipedia braces itself for April Fools' Day (guardian.co.uk)
Jenny Kleeman: The online encyclopaedia anyone can edit has been the target of joke contributions since its launch in 2001, but April Fools' Day has proved an irresistible opportunity for internet pranksters, as well as normally trustworthy contributors inspired to let their hair down.
Reader Comment
Pittsburghese
Marty,
You've probably seen this before -- but it's nice to
go back now and then:
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Sunny and seasonal.
Honorary International Emmy
Al Gore
Al Gore will receive an honorary International Emmy award recognizing his role in launching the interactive Current TV channel.
The International Academy of Television Arts and Sciences said this week that it will present the award to the former vice president in a Nov. 19 ceremony in New York.
The Founders Award is presented to a person or organization "which crosses cultural boundaries to touch our common humanity," academy president Bruce Paisner said in a statement.
Al Gore
Denies Rumors
George Clooney
George Clooney personally responded Thursday to rumors circulated by two gossip Web sites. The Oscar winner sent a note to Radaronline.com and Defamer.com. Both sites hinted this week that Clooney was responsible for releasing outtakes from the movie "I (Heart) Huckabees" that show director David O. Russell yelling at actress Lily Tomlin.
The sites noted that Clooney, who had a well-publicized fight with Russell on the set of the film "Three Kings," is currently working with sound mixer Ed Tise, who also worked on "Huckabees."
"Contrary to popular opinion, neither the sound man, Ed Tise, nor yours truly sent in the David O. Russell tape," Clooney wrote in the note released by his publicist, Stan Rosenfield. "I saw it when we were working on `Ocean's 12,' and there have been quite a few copies traveling around town for the last couple of years. Any rumor that either of us put it on the Internet is simply false. And I'd offer a million bucks to anyone who would prove otherwise."
George Clooney
Letters To Dietrich Go On View
Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Hemingway, the self-appointed "Papa" of the literary world, liked calling his women friends "daughter," among them Marlene Dietrich, according to letters that suggest their bond was steadfast, passionate and likely platonic.
The correspondence between the icons, who met aboard an ocean liner in 1934, details a complex, flirtatious relationship that offers no new evidence they were lovers.
Thirty letters Hemingway wrote between 1949 and 1953 to the German-born actress and singer, whom Hemingway also called "My little Kraut," were made available to the public for the first time Thursday at the Ernest Hemingway Collection at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.
The letters, which Hemingway sometimes closed with "I kiss you hard," were donated to the library in 2003 by Dietrich's daughter, Maria Riva, on the condition that they be kept private until now. The public can view the letters by appointment.
Ernest Hemingway
Schism In Angels Camp
Calaveras Jumping Frog
A quarrel between the organizers of the Calaveras County Fair and its annual Jumping Frog Jubilee has led to plans for dueling frog-hopping contests this year.
Citing losses due to low turnout at last year's fair, organizers said they couldn't pay the Angels Camp Boosters Club to oversee this year's frog jumping contest. The club has judged the jubilee since its inception in 1928.
Organizers invited boosters to judge this year's contest without pay, but the club decided to organize its own jumping frog contest that could compete with the fair's, said club member Bill Proctor.
The annual event, held from May 16-20 this year, is inspired by "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County," Mark Twain's tale of a frog-jumping contest that is weighted in one gambler's favor when he secretly fills his opponent's frog with buckshot.
Calaveras Jumping Frog
Taking The 'Break' Out
Commercials
An episode of According to Jim features the characters sitting in the family living room watching TV. The shot narrows to the TV set, on which a commercial begins to run. A few seconds in, the ad grows to fill the entire shot, and presto, before the viewer realizes it, without any musical swells or fading to black, he's watching a commercial.
This scenario, presented to marketers and agency executives last week at a closed ABC meeting in Burbank, Calif., is just one production technique the net could use next season in hopes of keeping people from skipping the commercials. The network showed several examples of the techniques it's considering, including one that smooths the transition the other way, from an ad to a TV show. In the clip, a car commercial ended by focusing on a computer screen on which the next scene of the program began to unfold. It, too, eventually filled the TV screen without musical cues, a fade or even a quick network or local promotion-all traditional tip-offs that the program is about to resume. The not-so-subtle message to the viewer: Pay close attention or miss part of the show.
ABC is just one of several networks that has shared its plans recently with marketing and agency executives to get more viewers to do less ad skipping next season.
Commercials
Prosecutors Want To Revoke Probation
Paris Hilton
City prosecutors said Thursday they will ask a judge to revoke Paris Hilton's probation in a reckless driving case, a move that could lead to a jail term.
The decision followed an investigation into whether the hotel heiress and reality star violated terms of her probation by driving last month with a suspended license.
Hilton could face up to 90 days in jail if a judge finds she violated her probation, Velasquez said. A hearing was scheduled for April 17.
Paris Hilton
There She Goes
Miss America
The Miss America Pageant has been dropped by Country Music Television, leaving the 86-year-old pageant without a TV outlet for the second time in three years.
The Viacom-owned network, which had rights to air the pageant through 2011, notified the Atlantic City, N.J.-based organization that it will not exercise its option to televise the contest "in 2008 and beyond," the cable network said in a statement issued to The Associated Press on Thursday.
The news is another blow for an American institution that has struggled to find a place in modern popular culture. After 50 years on network television, ABC dropped Miss America in 2004 when ratings fell to a record low. CMT picked up the pageant, moved it to Las Vegas from its home in Atlantic City and updated its look with reality-TV elements.
Miss America
NBC Renews Trump Franchise
Miss Universe & Miss USA
Real estate mogul Donald Trump will remain in the TV beauty contest business for three more years under a renewed deal with NBC for broadcasts of the Miss Universe and Miss USA pageants, the network said on Wednesday.
The contract extension will keep Miss Universe and Miss USA on the General Electric Co.-owned network through 2010, but a third pageant co-owned by Trump, Miss Teen USA, will be dropped from NBC after its summer 2007 broadcast.
The next Miss Universe telecast is set for May, under Trump's previous five-year pageant deal with NBC.
Miss Universe & Miss USA
Ex-Wife Sues
Walter Mosley
Walter Mosley, author of "Devil in a Blue Dress," is being sued by his ex-wife for money she says he agreed to pay out of income from several of his books.
Joy Kellman says in court papers that Mosley owes her at least $500,000, plus interest, from earnings on 11 books as provided by their divorce agreement. Some of the books were published after their divorce.
The two were married from Sept. 5, 1987, until June 19, 2001, and had no children.
Walter Mosley
North Pole Watch Drifts
Niels Jakup Mortensen
A wristwatch buried in the ice at the North Pole three years ago was found by a boy more than 1,800 miles away after it floated ashore on the Faeroe Islands.
Niels Jakup Mortensen, 11, spotted a black box near his home on Suduroy, the Faeroes' southernmost island, his mother Anna Jacobsen said. Inside, she said, was a watch that had been buried at the North Pole by Joergen Amundsen, a descendant of Norwegian polar explorer Roald Amundsen.
Jacobsen said the watch discovered by her son earlier this month was still working, and was accompanied by a letter from Joergen Amundsen. "It was so unbelievable," she said. "It had been buried in the North Pole."
Hjalmar Hatun, an oceanographer with the Faeroese Fisheries Laboratory, said the watch likely drifted south with one of the chunks of ice that frequently break away at the North Pole and are carried off by ocean currents.
Niels Jakup Mortensen
Greece Eyes Return
Elgin Marbles
Greece displayed two ancient, looted artifacts on Thursday that had been returned from the J.P Getty Museum and said the recovery of its most famous antiquities -- the Elgin Marbles -- was only a matter of time.
The Los Angeles-based Getty gave back a 4th century BC Macedonian gold wreath and a 6th century BC marble statue of a woman as part of their deal with Greece to return four objects from their collection that were the result of smuggling and illegal sale.
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis said their homecoming would strengthen international calls for the return of the Elgin marbles, which are called the Parthenon marbles in Greece.
Elgin Marbles
Iran Loses Fight Over Relics
'Lost Paradise'
Iran lost a legal fight on Thursday to recover 5,000-year-old treasures it says were looted from one of its most important archaeological sites, known as "The Lost Paradise."
In a ruling that could affect other countries' attempts to secure the return of antiquities, Britain's High Court rejected Iran's claim that it owned the artifacts.
Iran was trying to stop the Barakat Gallery, an antiquities specialist based in London and Beverly Hills, selling vessels made from a grey-green stone called chlorite and decorated with snakes, lions and eagles.
'Lost Paradise'
Serves Jokes
#43
"A year ago my approval rating was in the 30s, my nominee for the Supreme Court had just withdrawn, and my vice president had shot someone," resident Bush said Wednesday night during the broadcasters' annual gathering. "Ah," he said, "those were the good ol' days."
In keeping with the lighthearted traditions of the Radio and Television Correspondents' Association dinner, Bush poked fun at himself and a few others in remarks that drew laughter and applause at the Washington Hilton Hotel.
On the controversy over the Justice Department's firing of eight federal prosecutors, Bush said: "I have to admit we really blew the way we let those attorneys go. You know you've botched it when people sympathize with lawyers."
Acknowledging House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., at the head table, Bush said some had wondered how he'd get along with her. "Some say she's bossy, she's opinionated, she's not to be crossed," he said. "Hey, I get along with my mother."
#43
Claimed He's 5-Deferment Dick
John Spernak
A man was taken to Bridgeport Hospital for a psychiatric evaluation after he led authorities on a high-speed chase and then claimed to be Vice President Dick 'Go Fuck Yourself' Cheney, police said.
John Spernak, 42, later admitted he wasn't Cheney but said he was actually "Charlie's Angels" star Jaclyn Smith, police said. He also claimed to be the husband of Paris Hilton's sister.
Police said Spernak, driving at more than 90 mph Monday night, hit a patrol car and was shocked with a stun gun before they could arrest him. He was charged with attempted first-degree assault, engaging police in a pursuit, reckless driving, criminal mischief, interfering with police and being in a town park after dark.
John Spernak
Sunbathers Bask In Record Heatwave
Moscow
Miniskirts have replaced fur coats and lightweight blazers are worn instead of heavy jackets in Moscow as the city basks in the hottest March weather on record.
Temperatures in Moscow hit around 17 degrees Celsius (63 degrees Fahrenheit) on Thursday, 6 degrees higher than the average for March and continuing a long, hot sunny spell, a spokeswoman for the state weather monitoring unit Rosgidromet said.
Russia has already had one of its shortest and mildest winters with permanent snow not covering Moscow until the end of January and the spring coming weeks early.
Moscow
Basic Cable
Ratings
Rankings for the top 15 programs on cable networks as compiled by Nielsen Media Research for the week of March 19-25. Day and start time (EDT) are in parentheses.
1. "WWE Raw" (Monday, 10 p.m.), USA, 3.75 million homes, 5.45 million viewers.
2. "Planet Earth" (Sunday, 9 p.m.), Discovery, 3.63 million homes, 6.06 million viewers.
3. "Planet Earth" (Sunday, 8 p.m.), Discovery, 3.39 million homes, 5.71 million viewers.
4. Movie: "Bring It On: All or Nothing" (Sunday, 8 p.m.), ABC Family, 3.3 million homes, 4.83 million viewers.
5. "Planet Earth" (Sunday, 10 p.m.), Discovery, 3.17 million homes, 5.38 million viewers.
6. "WWE Raw" (Monday, 9 p.m.), USA, 3.04 million homes, 4.46 million viewers.
7. "I Love New York" (Monday, 9 p.m.), VH1, 3 million homes, 4.2 million viewers.
8. "House" (Sunday, 9 p.m.), USA, 2.73 million homes, 3.76 million viewers.
9. "SpongeBob SquarePants" (Saturday, 9:30 a.m.), Nickelodeon, 2.7 million homes, 3.58 million viewers.
10. "House" (Sunday, 10 p.m.), USA, 2.68 million homes, 3.66 million viewers.
11. "House" (Sunday, 11 p.m.), USA, 2.59 million homes, 3.4 million viewers.
12. "House" (Sunday, 8 p.m.), USA, 2.58 million homes, 3.6 million viewers.
13. "SpongeBob SquarePants" (Saturday, 9 a.m.), Nickelodeon, 2.56 million homes, 3.2 million viewers.
14. Movie: "Big Fat Liar" (Friday, 9:05 p.m.), Disney, 2.53 million homes, 3.35 million viewers.
14. "Fairly Odd Parents" (Saturday, 10 a.m.), Nickelodeon, 2.53 million homes, 3.42 million viewers.
Ratings
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