Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Jim Hightower: NOTHING MERRY ABOUT OLD KING COAL
Even the Brothers Grimm could not have come up with a fairy tale as fanciful - or as grim - as the one concocted by top executives of Massey Energy.
Mark Morford: Congressman X is throbbing for you (SF Gate)
Here's the thing: When it comes to the wanton exploits of the gloriously single-minded penis and its commanding tendency, since the dawn of time, to propel otherwise savvy males toward behaviors generally considered to be the province of unhinged zoo animals, everyone seems to more or less agree.
Froma Harrop: Anthony Weiner, You're No Patrick Kennedy (Creators Syndicate)
Sunday's Tony Awards program reminds us that new media didn't invent the egotist who doesn't know when to exit. Live theater is millennia old, and one awardee hogged so much time offering "thanks" that his co-winner couldn't say a word. Other Broadway stars continued tearful emoting long after the orchestra started playing the time's-up theme.
Stanley Fish: The Triumph of the Humanities (New York Times)
Propositions that once seemed outlandish - all knowledge is mediated, even our certainties are socially constructed - are now routinely asserted in precincts where they were once feared as the harbingers of chaos and corrosive relativism.
Andrew Tobias: Should You Turn Down Harvard? (Money)
Harvard's just sent one of those thick, juicy envelopes -- meaning that you're in -- and now you're asking yourself: Do I accept? (Yes!) Or do I spend the next four years at some fine state school and save $50,000? How much is prestige worth? For better or worse: lots. In a busy, risky world, with little time for independent investigation, people pay up for names they can rely on.
Dr Luisa Dillner's guide to . . . sugar (Guardian)
A review of the link between drinking sweetened drinks and obesity, published in the journal Public Health Nutrition, concluded that sweet drinks have caused a fifth of the weight gained in the US population between 1977 and 2007.
SCOTT CACCIOLA And JARED DIAMOND: The Great LeBron James Pile-On (Wall Street Journal)
The Miami Heat star's failure to win a championship had T-shirt makers, electronic-greeting-card companies and even a governor giddy with Schadenfreude.
Max Linsky: The Longform.org Guide to the Porn Industry (Slate)
From the inspiration for 'Boogie Nights' to the twisted psyche of a professional porn reviewer, five great reads about the business of smut.
Mightier than the Sword
David S. Reynolds shows how 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' changed the world. But what's it like to read Harriet Beecher Stowe today? Michael O'Donnell reviews.
Randall Roberts: Adele's quiet power amid the pop (Los Angeles Times)
With a hit album and single, she shows how a strong voice can top glitz any time.
David Bruce has 42 Kindle books on Amazon.com with 250 anecdotes in each book. Each book is $1, so for $42 you can buy 10,500 anecdotes. Search for "Funniest People," "Coolest People, "Most Interesting People," "Kindest People," "Religious Anecdotes," "Maximum Cool," and "Resist Psychic Death."
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Reader Suggestions
Michelle in AZ
From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
Reader Comment
"A Face In The Crowd"
As I type these words, I plan on staying up late tonight, for "A Face In The Crowd" will be on television. It comes on at 12:15 AM Eastern time, so I had better be ready for whatever comes my way during the night - and during the movie.
I have heard Keith Olbermann call Glenn Beck "Lonesome Rhodes" Beck, and from what I know of this evil man, the nickname is deserved - every bit of it. My only wish is that someone could expose him for what he is - an evil and warped person.
Ah, well, such is the stuff of living in modern America. I just hope we can make change for the better of us all.
Hope to hear from you soon, Marty!
George M
Thanks, George!
A Face In The Crowd (1957) is one of my favorite's, too.
Some claim that the character 'Lonesome' Rhodes was based in part on Arthur Godfrey.
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Attended the kid's graduation. There were 1,122 kids in his class, and that's a lot of names to sit through.
WikiLeaks Auctions Lunch
Julian Assange
WikiLeaks is auctioning off a chance to dine with Julian Assange to raise funds for its whistle-blowing activities -- although it will have to be lunch because he is under a court-imposed curfew.
The website is offering eight lucky bidders the chance to have a meal with its founder and Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Zizek in "one of London's finest restaurants", according to the listing on auction website eBay.
Four of the places were put online on Monday for a week, and by Wednesday afternoon had attracted a top bid of £620 ($1,000, 700 euros), with the website promising that 100 percent of the final sale price will go to WikiLeaks.
The lunch will be from 12:00 pm to 3:00 pm on Saturday, July 2, and will be followed by a public discussion about the impact of WikiLeaks between Assange and Zizek.
Julian Assange
Best Picture Nominations
Oscars
Academy Awards organizers have introduced an element of mystery into next year's Oscar ceremony by deciding that anywhere between five and 10 movies will compete for the coveted best picture prize.
The actual number of nominees will not be revealed until nominations are announced on January 24.
The new rule, announced after a late-night board meeting on Tuesday, follows a decision two years ago to double the number of nominees to 10 in a bid to increase ratings.
That move seemed to work, as crowd-pleasing films such as "Inception," "The Blind Side" and "Up" got a shot at the top prize (although they did not win).
On the other hand, some Oscar observers complained that the expansion devalued the significance of a best picture nomination and allowed undeserving pictures to sneak onto the ballot.
Oscars
Fail To Get Oscar Recognition
Stuntmen
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has declined to create an Oscar category for stunt coordinators, a group that's been trying for 20 years to achieve such recognition.
Stunt coordinator Jack Gill, who has been leading that effort, told The Hollywood Reporter that the Academy informed him that it appreciates the work coordinators put into movies but will not add any new categories, even if the coordinators agreed to be in a non-telecast pre-Oscars ceremony.
One stunt performer (not coordinator) has actually won a statuette from the Academy, Yakima Canutt, but his 1966 award was an honorary one -- "for achievements as a stunt man and for developing safety devices to protect stunt men everywhere -- rather than an award in a specified category.
Stunt coordinators design the complex stunts seen in movies and TV shows -- car chases, fight scenes, fiery explosions, underwater work, high dives and more. The stunts are then executed by stunt performers (stuntmen and -women), or occasionally by principal performers.
Stuntmen
Divorce Granted
Elizabeth Hurley
British actress and model Elizabeth Hurley's four-year marriage to Indian businessman Arun Nayar ended in divorce on Wednesday.
The couple was granted the divorce by a district judge at the High Court's Family Division in London, according to the Press Association.
Hurley, 46, married the textile heir at Sudeley Castle in western England in 2007 and had a traditional Hindu wedding in Jodhpur, India.
Hurley dated British actor Hugh Grant for more than a decade and has a child from a relationship with film producer Steve Bing.
Elizabeth Hurley
Pleads Not Guilty
Sly Stone
Sly Stone, the reclusive funk legend whose career was crippled by rampant drug abuse, pleaded not guilty to possession of cocaine rocks on Wednesday.
The 68-year-old frontman for Sly and the Family Stone was arrested April 1 when Los Angeles police pulled over a live-in van for a minor traffic violation.
Cocaine rocks were found in the clothing of both Stone, who was a passenger, and the driver, according to the singer's defense attorneys. Both men were arrested.
"A lot of musicians hang out with people who have drugs. How are they supposed to know?" said Peter Knecht, one of his attorneys. He insisted the cocaine did not belong to Stone.
Stone, whose real name is Sylvester Stewart, is next scheduled to appear in court in the Los Angeles suburb of Van Nuys for a pretrial conference on July 19. His arraignment was originally scheduled for last Friday, but he was hospitalized for heart problems.
Sly Stone
Judge Sends Lawsuit To Arbitration
Charlie Sheen
Charlie Sheen may not get quite the audience he wanted for his $100 million lawsuit over his firing from "Two and a Half Men" - a judge on Wednesday ruled that an arbitrator should determine whether the case is handled privately or in a public courtroom.
Sheen's contract with Warner Bros. Television has a valid clause requiring the private arbitrator to decide how the case proceeds, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Allan Goodman wrote in a 21-page ruling. The decision will likely dampen publicity about the case in the short-term, although Sheen's attorney said he will still argue the case should be heard publicly.
Sheen sued Warner Bros. and "Men" executive producer Chuck Lorre on March 10, days after Sheen was fired from his starring role on television's top-rated comedy.
Goodman ruled that Lorre also has a valid clause in his contract with Warner Bros. to have disputes handled through arbitration.
Warner Bros. and Lorre both want the case handled privately. Sheen opposed those efforts in court filings and an all-day hearing on the issue in April.
Charlie Sheen
Remake Legal Battle
"Crow"
The heated dispute between a pair of independent studios over distribution rights to the planned remake of "The Crow" will be decided in private.
A Los Angeles Superior Court judge on Wednesday granted Relativity Media's motion to compel arbitration based on a clause in the contract at issue in the case.
The Weinstein Co. sued Relativity in April claiming it had breached a 2009 distribution agreement that allegedly gave Weinstein the right to release the movie globally.
But Relativity fired back, claiming that Weinstein botched the release of the 2009 musical "Nine" so badly that Relativity, which invested in that film, was forced to ask whether Weinstein had the funds available to release "The Crow" properly. When Harvey Weinstein allegedly balked at showing he was able to commit money to a release, Relativity said it looked elsewhere.
"Crow"
NYPD Probing Online Post
Tupac
New York City police have begun an investigation into an online posting supposedly from a convicted felon who claims to have shot and robbed slain rapper Tupac Shakur.
Police spokesman Paul Browne said Wednesday if police determine the post is legitimate they will seek to interview the prisoner.
The claim was posted on the website AllHipHop.com. The person says he was paid $2,500 by another hip hop mogul to rob Shakur outside a studio in Manhattan in 1994. Shakur suffered gunshot wounds but eventually recovered. He was later killed in 1996 in an unsolved slaying.
Much of the post is laced with bitterness directed at the person the writer says hired him to carry out the crime. The writer says that person has wrongly accused him of being a government informant.
Tupac
Religious Relic Stolen
Long Beach
A 780-year-old religious relic of St. Anthony of Padua has been stolen, and parishioners at a Southern California Catholic church are praying to the patron saint of lost items and missing persons for its speedy return.
The relic was stolen from inside a cabinet beside the altar at St. Anthony Catholic Church in Long Beach on Monday, the feast day of the church's namesake.
The Rev. Jose Magana said he decided to bring out the relic this year, on the 780th anniversary of the death of St. Anthony, because many of his parishioners have lost hope in the rough economy.
The church opened at 6 a.m., and when Magana turned to the relic during the 9 a.m. Mass, it had disappeared. Magana could hear his parishioners gasp when they realized it was gone, but he continued with the service and called police immediately afterward.
Long Beach police Lt. Paul Arcala said the relic is housed in a 16-inch tall reliquary case with angel-shaped handles made of gold and silver on either side. He declined to describe it further because that might jeopardize the investigation.
Long Beach
Unloads Mansion
Candy Spelling
The late TV producer Aaron Spelling's mansion and 5-acre estate, ranked as America's most expensive home when it went on the market in 2009, is near the final stages of a sale, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.
The 57,000-square-foot French chateau-style house originally was listed at an asking price of $150 million, though the amount being paid for it has yet to be reported, the Journal said.
The buyer, according to the newspaper, is Petra Ecclestone, a 22-year-old heiress to her billionaire father Bernie Ecclestone's Formula One racing empire.
The property sprawls over 5 acres and features more than 100 rooms, a staircase inspired by the sweeping stairway in the film "Gone with the Wind," and multiple flower-cutting and gift-wrapping rooms.
Candy Spelling
"Runaway Bride" Sticker On Cover
Playboy
Playboy founder Hugh Hefner, dumped by his fiancee days before their wedding, said Wednesday he is affixing "Runaway Bride" stickers over her picture on the cover of the magazine's upcoming issue.
Hefner, 85, announced a day earlier that 25-year-old Crystal Harris had "a change of heart," and that Saturday's wedding ceremony for 300 people at the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles had been canceled.
In an unfortunate coincidence, Harris appears on the cover of the July Playboy issue, hitting newsstands Friday, described as "America's Princess ... Introducing Mrs. Crystal Hefner."
A big red sticker announcing "Runaway Bride In This Issue!" covers most of Harris' bottom half.
Still visible is Hefner's beloved cocker spaniel, which Harris took with her after the split. She is wearing his trademark sailor's cap and smoking jacket, and holding a pipe.
Playboy
'Meat Dress' Goes To Rock Hall Of Fame
Lady Gaga
Lady Gaga made history at last year's MTV Video Music Awards when she turned butcher's cuts into high fashion.
On Thursday, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame will unveil the singer's infamous raw-meat dress to the public. The dress - made of layers of Argentinian beef - was kept in a meat locker, placed in a vat of chemicals and then dried out by taxidermists in California before being transported to the museum.
Hall of Fame spokeswoman Margaret Thresher says the dress took on a "dark, beef-jerky" look while dehydrating, so it was painted to look "fresh" afterwards. The entire process took several months to complete.
The dress is being displayed as part of the "Women Who Rock: Vision, Passion, Power" exhibit, which runs until February 2012.
Lady Gaga
Cable Nielsens
Ratings
Rankings for the top 15 programs on cable networks as compiled by the Nielsen Co. for the week of June 6-12. Day and start time (EDT) are in parentheses:
1. "Pawn Stars" (Monday, 10:30 p.m.), History, 5.21 million homes, 7.25 million viewers.
2. Movie: "iParty With Victorious" (Saturday, 8 p.m.), Nickelodeon, 4.839 million homes, 7.31 million viewers.
2. "Pawn Stars" (Monday, 10 p.m.), History, 4.839 million homes, 6.72 million viewers.
4. "American Pickers" (Monday, 9 p.m.), History, 3.97 million homes, 5.28 million viewers.
5. Auto Racing: Sprint Cup/Poconos (Sunday, 1 p.m.), TNT, 3.74 million homes, 5.17 million viewers.
6. "Covert Affairs" (Tuesday, 10 p.m.), USA, 3.48 million homes, 4.55 million viewers.
7. "iParty With Victorious" (Saturday, 9:30 p.m.), Nickelodeon, 3.44 million homes, 4.92 million viewers.
8. "SpongeBob SquarePants" (Sunday, 11:30 a.m.), Nickelodeon, 3.32 million homes, 4.49 million viewers.
9. "WWE Raw" (Monday, 9:06 p.m.), USA, 3.28 million homes, 5.09 million viewers.
10. "iParty With Victorious" (Saturday, 10 p.m.), Nickelodeon, 3.23 million homes, 4.45 million viewers.
11. "WWE Raw" (Monday, 10:06 p.m.), USA, 3.163 million homes, 4.84 million viewers.
12. "SpongeBob SquarePants" (Saturday, 10 a.m.), Nickelodeon, 3.161 million homes, 4.44 million viewers.
13. "SpongeBob SquarePants" (Saturday, 10:30 a.m.), Nickelodeon, 3.1 million homes, 4.52 million viewers.
14. "In Plain Sight" (Sunday, 10 p.m.), USA, 3.008 million homes, 3.99 million viewers.
15. "Swamp People" (Thursday, 9 p.m.), History, 3.001 million homes, 4.46 million viewers.
Ratings
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