Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Stephen Collins: Peak Friends (Guardian)
Cartoon.
Oliver Burkeman: Why ambivalence has good and bad points (Guardian)
'The world champions decisiveness and clarity, and dismisses as fence-sitters those of us who see both sides of an argument.'
HENRY ROLLINS: BLOW UP YOUR TASTE IN MUSIC (LA Weekly)
I was raised in a fairly conformist environment. A lot of yes ma'am, yes sir situations.
Andy Hermann: "GREAT, NOW 'BLURRED LINES' HAS RUINED THE ENTIRE MUSIC INDUSTRY" (LA Weekly)
It was bad enough when Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams tried to ruin the summer of 2013 with their smug turd of a pop tune, "Blurred Lines." But that was just one summer, and it was somewhat redeemed by Pharrell's other big 2013 collab, "Get Lucky." Within a few months, we forgot what rhymes with "Hug me" and moved on.
Shea Serrano: I HAD AN AMAZING SCAM GOING AT CHUCK E. CHEESE'S (LA Weekly)
The very first job I legally held was at Chuck E. Cheese's, a pizza place for kids that's less a pizza place for kids and more a torture chamber for parents.
Katie Bain: GUYS, PREDATORY DANCE FLOOR BONERS ARE NOT OK (LA Weekly)
R. Kelly may have said that there's nothing wrong with a little bump and grind, but you have got to stop putting your boners on us.
Eddie Deezen: Why Do the French Love Jerry Lewis
Anyone who knows me or knows anything about me knows I am a major Jerry Lewis fan. I have not only seen almost every one of his films, but watched most every one of his TV appearances, and read every possible book or magazine article or interview on the guy.
Trailer for Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck (YouTube)
"A new documentary on Kurt Cobain by filmmaker Brett Morgen, who had full access to a collection of home movies, art and audio belonging to the late Nirvana frontman, is getting good reviews from many who've screened it, including those at the most recent Sundance Film Festival. The soundtrack of the film also features a 12-minute acoustic track by Cobain that was never released." - Neatorama
David Bruce's Amazon Author Page
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David Bruce has over 80 Kindle books on Amazon.com.
took the day off.
took the day off.
has returned to semi-retired status.
Reader Suggestion
Michelle in AZ
From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
from Marc Perkel
BartCop
Hello Bartcop fans,
As you all know the untimely passing of Terry was unexpected, even by
him. We all knew he had cancer but we all thought he had some years
left. So some of us who have worked closely with him over the years are
scrambling around trying to figure out what to do. My job, among other
things, is to establish communications with the Bartcop community and
provide email lists and groups for those who might put something
together. Those who want to play an active roll in something coming from
this, or if you are one of Bart's pillars, should send an email to
active@bartcop.com.
Bart's final wish was to pay off the house mortgage for Mrs. Bart who is
overwhelmed and so very grateful for the support she has received.
Anyone wanting to make a donation can click on this the yellow donate
button on bartcop.com
But - I need you all to help keep this going. This note
isn't going to directly reach all of Bart's fans. So if you can repost
it on blogs and discussion boards so people can sign up then when we
figure out what's next we can let more people know. This list is just
over 600 but like to get it up to at least 10,000 pretty quick. So
here's the signup link for this email list.
( mailman.bartcop.com/listinfo/bartnews )
Marc Perkel
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
'Only' 92° - previous record was 86°.
DC Dinner
Gridiron Club
President Barack Obama took aim at his Republican opponents and his gaffe-prone vice president on Saturday in a satirical speech that included a roast of his former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton over her recent problems with email.
Obama joined Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker (R-Koch), a potential Republican contender for the 2016 presidential election, and Democratic Governor Terry McAuliffe of Virginia for the annual Gridiron dinner, an evening of song and skits making light of major players in U.S. politics.
Obama joked that his reputation for being a tech-savvy president had now been eclipsed by his one-time foe Clinton, who has come under fire for using a private email account for her work as the nation's top diplomat.
"If you think about how things have changed since 2008, back then I was the young tech-savvy candidate of the future. Now I'm yesterday's news and Hillary's got a server in her house!"
"I am so far behind," he said to laughter.
Gridiron Club
"Synthetic" Babies
Dolce & Gabbana
Sir Elton John is done with Dolce & Gabbana. The 67-year-old music legend said he is boycotting the designers after they told Italian magazine Panorama that they consider children born through in vitro fertilization to be "synthetic." The fashion plates added that they "oppose gay adoption" and that IVF pregnancies are "chemical offsprings and rented uterus."
On Sunday, John - who has two sons with husband David Furnish - posted a photo to Instagram of the designers, writing in the caption: "How dare you refer to my beautiful children as 'synthetic.' And shame on you for wagging your judgmental little fingers at IVF - a miracle that has allowed legions of loving people, both straight and gay, to fulfill their dream of having children.
"Your archaic thinking is out of step with the times, just like your fashions," continued the singer. "I shall never wear Dolce and Gabbana ever again. #BoycottDolceGabbana."
Tennis great Martina Navratilova tweeted her support for John's post. "Right on, Elton and David," she wrote. "My D&G shirts are going in the bin - don't want ANYONE to wear them."
Dolce & Gabbana
Renews 'Jeopardy!' Contract Through 2018
Alex Trebek
Alex Trebek has more questions - and answers - in his future.
Although he's dropped hints in recent years about retiring, the "Jeopardy!" host just reupped his contract through the 2017-18 season.
The 74-year-old Trebek joins fellow Sony Pictures Television game show hosts Pat Sajak and Vanna White, who hold down the fort at "Wheel of Fortune."
The game show veteran reportedly made $10 million a year with his last contract.
Alex Trebek
Increasing Linguistic Divide
2 Koreas
On one side of the line that has divided two societies for so long, the words arrive as fast as globalization can bring them - English-based lingo like "shampoo," ''juice" and "self-service." To South Koreans, they are everyday language. To defectors from the insular North Korea, they mean absolutely nothing.
Turn the tables, and the opposite is true, too: People in Seoul furrow their brows at homegrown North Korean words like "salgyeolmul," which literally means "skin water." (That's "skin lotion" in the South.)
Two countries, mortal enemies, tied together by history, by family - and by language, but only to a point. The Korean Peninsula's seven-decade split has created a widening linguistic divide that produces misunderstandings, hurt feelings and sometimes even laughter. The gap has grown so wide, scholars say, that about a third of everyday words used in the two countries are different.
North and South Koreans are generally able to understand each other given that the majority of words and grammar are still the same. But the differences show how language can change when one half of the country becomes an international economic powerhouse and the other isolates itself, suspicious of outside influences.
2 Koreas
Arrested On Murder Warrant
Robert Durst
Robert Durst, scion of one of New York's largest real estate empires, has been arrested in New Orleans on a murder warrant issued by Los Angeles County, the Orleans Parish Sheriff's Office said.
Durst, born in 1943, is known for life twists that led him to be questioned but not charged in the mysterious deaths of his first wife Kathleen Durst in 1982 and a longtime friend in 2000.
The New York Times reported last week that the district attorney in Los Angeles had recently reopened an investigation into the December 2000 killing of Durst's friend Susan Berman, and was tying it to the case of Kathleen Durst, who went missing from New York and was eventually pronounced legally dead.
The investigation could be bolstered by new evidence shown for the first time in a six-part HBO documentary series about Durst called "The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst," the New York Times said.
Robert Durst
Yard Sale Painting To Auction
Indiana
Jesse Ronnebaum isn't sure what moved him to buy a worn painting of seven men playing pool from a yard sale other than his love of old things. He knew, though, that he didn't want to pay the asking price - $1. Now the item he got after haggling the cost down to 50 cents may be worth thousands.
Ronnebaum, 28, who makes his living cleaning floors at the Honda plant in Greensburg, is hoping when the painting sells at auction in Chicago in May it will bring in enough to get him out of debt and let him set up savings for his children, ages 2 and 1.
Ronnebaum was in Oldenburg, a nearby town with German heritage known as the "Village of Spires" because of its old churches, eight years ago when he discovered the painting in a stack of other artwork. He's not a pool fan, he said, but "I just really fell in love with it."
Ronnebaum was at home last week when the light hit the painting just right and he saw the words "Palette and Chisel Club 1910" in the corner. He did some research and learned the Palette and Chisel Academy of Fine Arts in Chicago, which still exists, has been associated with some well-known artists. He contacted several art dealers in Indianapolis and by the next day he had offers for the painting ranging from $500 to $1,500.
"That's when I realized this might be worth something," he said.
Indiana
Comedy Central
Bieber Roast
Justin Bieber offered himself up for sacrifice to the comedy gods as the target of the annual Comedy Central roast.
With his mother and grandparents by his side and "prepared for the worst," Bieber was greeted by a throng of photographers and reporters as he entered the Sony Studios lot on Saturday evening in Culver City, California.
Roastmaster Kevin Hart headed a dais featuring Snoop Dogg, hip-hop star Ludacris, Martha Stewart, "Saturday Night Live" rookie Pete Davidson, Natasha Leggero, Shaquille O'Neal, Comedy Central vet Jeffrey Ross, Chris D'elia and Hannibal Buress.
While the "Comedy Central Roast of Justin Bieber" - which referenced his ex Selena Gomez, the adorable monkey he adopted then abandoned, and endless references to the 21-year-old exploiting African-American culture - doesn't air until March 30, here are the best jokes from the night:
Bieber Roast
Baffling Politics
Disney's New Cinderella
Let's face it - there aren't a ton of ways to make the fairy tale Cinderella into a modern feminist anthem. This is the story of a woman who lets everybody in her life walk all over her and is rewarded for it with some cool shoes and a handsome prince.
But even with those caveats, Disney's new Cinderella remake, which hit theaters March 13, is somehow more regressive than the studio's 1950 animated version. The new film serves as a bloated, overlong reproduction of the earlier film, but for one fairly major issue: if the 1950s Cinderella had at least a faint spark to her, this one is a soporific mess and even more of a doormat than usual.
This Cinderella is less proactive than ever before! It's difficult to say who to blame here. Is it Lily James, who plays the character as a beatific saint, beaming endlessly at the camera but never doing much of anything? Or is it screenwriter Chris Weitz, who fails to give her personality traits beyond "nice"? Or is it director Kenneth Branagh, who seems far more interested in the gaudy costumes and sets than in the human story at the tale's center?
The overall effect is that Cinderella ends up being someone who suffers beautifully and ... that's about it, actually. Even if you aren't particularly worried about what message that sends about women, it's absolute murder when it comes to storytelling.
At least the original Cinderella fought back a little bit. This one might as well be starring in a silent-movie serial, where the female lead exists solely to have horrible things heaped upon her.
Disney's New Cinderella
Weekend Box Office
'Cinderella'
Disney's recent streak continued over the weekend with the $70.1 million North American debut of its traditional, sumptuously costumed fairy tale adaptation "Cinderella," according to studio estimates Sunday. Interest in the film, directed by Kenneth Branagh and starring Lily James of "Downton Abbey," was boosted by a "Frozen" short, "Frozen Fever," that played before the feature.
While Disney was flexing its might, the powers of another box-office force, Liam Neeson, were checked. Neeson's latest thriller, "Run All Night," a New York crime saga co-starring Ed Harris, opened with $11 million for Warner Bros.
Last week's top film, the sci-fi thriller "Chappie," from "District 9" director Neill Blomkamp, slid to fifth with $5.8 million for Sony Pictures.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Rentrak. Where available, the latest international numbers for Friday through Sunday are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. "Cinderella," $70.1 million ($62.4 million international).
2. "Run All Night," $11 million ($6.6 million international).
3. "Kingsman: The Secret Service," $6.2 million ($13.7 million international).
4. "Focus," $5.8 million ($13.5 million international).
5. "Chappie," $5.8 million ($13.6 million international).
6. "The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel," $5.7 million ($4.1 million international).
7. "The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water," $4.1 million ($4.3 million international).
8. "McFarland, USA," $3.7 million.
9. "American Sniper," $2.9 million ($8 million).
10. "The DUFF," $2.9 million.
'Cinderella'
In Memory
Mike Porcaro
Mike Porcaro, the longtime bassist for Grammy Award-winning U.S. rock band Toto, died on Sunday morning, his brother and fellow band member said in a brief statement. He was 59.
The band said in February 2010 that Porcaro had been diagnosed with ALS, or Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and that it planned to tour to generate funds to support his care and to raise awareness about the disease.
"Our brother Mike passed away peacefully in his sleep at 12:04 a.m. last night at home surrounded by his family. Rest in peace, my brother," Toto keyboardist Steve Porcaro wrote on Facebook. He provided no additional information.
Toto, formed in California in the late 1970s, is best known for such hits as "Hold the Line," "Rosanna" and "Africa."
The band won a Grammy for best album in 1982 for Toto IV, after which Porcaro toured for that album, replacing bassist Mike Hungate. Porcaro left the band in 2007, the band said.
Mike Porcaro
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