This one is a slam dunk pick for a very simple reason.
Lady GaGa, one of the hottest recording artists out there these days, decided to take in the afternoon portion of Thursday's day-night doubleheader between the Mets & the Padres at Citi Field, then made the front pages of today's New York Post & New York Daily News when she expressed her displeasure at the paparazzi taking pictures of her by flashing her middle finger not once, but twice.
According to the account in the Daily News, GaGa wanted to blend in with the fans at Citi, even though she happens to be a Yankee fan. One would assume she wanted to get a good look at the competition, considering that Subway Series '10, round 2, goes down at Yankee Stadium II next weekend. However, her idea of blending in was to wear a leather jacket over nothing more than lingerie. A bra, panties, and, as the papers neglected to note, fishnet stockings. That draws the shutterbugs like moths to flame. Casual attire apparently is a foreign concept to GaGa, who apparently aspires to ascend to the throne of Queen of Pop Schlock & Shock, an unofficial title held by Madonna for the last 25 years. At this time of year, she could've left the fishnets in the lingerie drawer and opted for something, well, normal, like a halter top, blue jean skirt or shorts, and sandals. Sorry, sister, you can't have it both ways.
It may have put a cap to a troubling 48 hours in New York for GaGa, though. She played a special concert at her old school, upstaging her sister's graduation by showing up in another of her already infamously outrageous costumes. While Madonna has mellowed in recent years (being a mother will do that), her stunts seem relatively tame compared to Lady GaGa's antics. At least GaGa hasn't tried to make a movie. Yet.
Friday, June 11, 2010
Saturday, June 5, 2010
Spelling used to be more fun than this.....
I read an article in today's New York Daily News that was really disturbing.
The Scripps National Spelling Bee has become the latest to fall to the whims of television. ABC, which holds the broadcast rights for the finals, mandated that 10 contestants would advance to the finals, broadcast live last night. That meant cutting the semi-final round in mid-stream, with a handful of contestants getting a virtual free pass into the final round.
The semi-finals started with 19 contestants. Once they got to 10, even though six had not yet gone to the mic to take their turns, the competition was stopped for the duration. ABC & Disney got what they wanted, even if the methodology was all wrong. Indeed, it wasn't fair, and it takes the fun right out of the competition.
Had this been on any other network, save maybe for PBS, it'd be the same thing. ABC had a 2 hour window (8-10 pm ET), and couldn't risk losing any more players. It's not exactly the same as the "human drama of athletic competition" that the late Jim McKay referenced in the open to Wide World of Sports for so many years, but at the same time, these kids and their parents have a right to be angry over the shallow handling of the competition.
Here's a simple solution that can be worked one of two ways:
1. If you keep the finals in prime time, then start the competition a day earlier, and keep the meddling network suits out of the picture. Let the competition progress naturally.
2. Put it on a Saturday morning, bouncing those over-played Disney Channel reruns that make up ABC's Saturday daytime lineup for a day. The latter, in this writer's opinion, makes the most sense, as it'd freshen things up in the one part of the schedule that ABC has neglected for the longest time.
Either way you slice it, you can still spell it a s-u-c-c-e-s-s.
The Scripps National Spelling Bee has become the latest to fall to the whims of television. ABC, which holds the broadcast rights for the finals, mandated that 10 contestants would advance to the finals, broadcast live last night. That meant cutting the semi-final round in mid-stream, with a handful of contestants getting a virtual free pass into the final round.
The semi-finals started with 19 contestants. Once they got to 10, even though six had not yet gone to the mic to take their turns, the competition was stopped for the duration. ABC & Disney got what they wanted, even if the methodology was all wrong. Indeed, it wasn't fair, and it takes the fun right out of the competition.
Had this been on any other network, save maybe for PBS, it'd be the same thing. ABC had a 2 hour window (8-10 pm ET), and couldn't risk losing any more players. It's not exactly the same as the "human drama of athletic competition" that the late Jim McKay referenced in the open to Wide World of Sports for so many years, but at the same time, these kids and their parents have a right to be angry over the shallow handling of the competition.
Here's a simple solution that can be worked one of two ways:
1. If you keep the finals in prime time, then start the competition a day earlier, and keep the meddling network suits out of the picture. Let the competition progress naturally.
2. Put it on a Saturday morning, bouncing those over-played Disney Channel reruns that make up ABC's Saturday daytime lineup for a day. The latter, in this writer's opinion, makes the most sense, as it'd freshen things up in the one part of the schedule that ABC has neglected for the longest time.
Either way you slice it, you can still spell it a s-u-c-c-e-s-s.
John Wooden (1910-2010)
There was a time when UCLA ruled the college basketball world back in the 60's & 70's, under the direction of coach John Wooden, whose simple, effective strategies resulted in 12 Final Four appearances and 10 National titles for the Bruins, including 7 straight, and an 88 game winning streak between 1971-74. When Wooden retired, it was truly the end of an era. UCLA has won since, but not with the dominance of the Wooden years.
On Friday, Wooden, the "Wizard of Westwood", passed away at the age of 99. The first man to be enshrined in the James Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame as both a player and a coach (he won a National championship as a player at Purdue), Wooden spent two years at Indiana State before moving west to forge his legend at UCLA. Wooden's chief directive to his players was to focus on the game at hand, and not worry about what the other team is doing. Wooden, in turn, coached future Hall of Famers as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (then known as Lew Alcindor) & Bill Walton, as well a number of other future NBA players.
I will admit that I never watched much college basketball as a child, and thus never really saw the "Wizard" at work. The college game today isn't what it was 30 or 40 years ago, not with television and corporate interests becoming more of a factor, something that I doubt Wooden would have tolerated.
Rest in peace, Coach.
On Friday, Wooden, the "Wizard of Westwood", passed away at the age of 99. The first man to be enshrined in the James Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame as both a player and a coach (he won a National championship as a player at Purdue), Wooden spent two years at Indiana State before moving west to forge his legend at UCLA. Wooden's chief directive to his players was to focus on the game at hand, and not worry about what the other team is doing. Wooden, in turn, coached future Hall of Famers as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (then known as Lew Alcindor) & Bill Walton, as well a number of other future NBA players.
I will admit that I never watched much college basketball as a child, and thus never really saw the "Wizard" at work. The college game today isn't what it was 30 or 40 years ago, not with television and corporate interests becoming more of a factor, something that I doubt Wooden would have tolerated.
Rest in peace, Coach.
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Rue McClanahan (1934-2010)
News came over the wires earlier this afternoon reporting the passing of actress Rue McClanahan at the age of 76 following a stroke. Ms. McClanahan had recently had heart bypass surgery, and the stroke might've been resulting from complications following the surgery.
Ms. McClanahan is best known to audiences from her role as saucy Southern belle Blanche on The Golden Girls, which marked a reunion with co-star Beatrice Arthur, more than a decade after the two had co-starred on Maude. In between, Rue had a recurring role on Mama's Family. Maude, which debuted in 1972, marked Ms. McClanahan's first television series role, after having made her mark on Broadway and in movies.
Rue McClanahan's passing leaves Betty White as the last of the Golden Girls, with Arthur having passed away last year, and Estelle Getty a year prior to that. It won't surprise anyone if Hallmark and/or WE (Women's Entertainment), the two cable networks that share the rights to Golden Girls, clear time either this weekend or within the course of this month, to do another memorial marathon.
Rest in peace, Rue.
Ms. McClanahan is best known to audiences from her role as saucy Southern belle Blanche on The Golden Girls, which marked a reunion with co-star Beatrice Arthur, more than a decade after the two had co-starred on Maude. In between, Rue had a recurring role on Mama's Family. Maude, which debuted in 1972, marked Ms. McClanahan's first television series role, after having made her mark on Broadway and in movies.
Rue McClanahan's passing leaves Betty White as the last of the Golden Girls, with Arthur having passed away last year, and Estelle Getty a year prior to that. It won't surprise anyone if Hallmark and/or WE (Women's Entertainment), the two cable networks that share the rights to Golden Girls, clear time either this weekend or within the course of this month, to do another memorial marathon.
Rest in peace, Rue.
Weasel of the Week: Oliver Perez
As I wrote on Monday, Mets pitcher Oliver Perez has repeatedly refused an assignment to Buffalo, the team's Triple-A affiliate, despite the fact that it's exactly what he needs to save his career----and his sanity.
Even Perez's agent, Scott Boras, realizes his client's plight. Boras reportedly suggested that Perez be placed on the disabled list and given psychiatric counseling. The Mets actually have advocated the latter for some time, but Perez doesn't want that, either. The problem is that Perez is just too inconsistent to be kept in the starting rotation, and recent outings against Milwaukee & San Diego have convinced manager Jerry Manuel that Perez can't be trusted with the game on the line coming out of the bullpen, and would only be used in a blowout.
Unlike umpire Jim Joyce, who admitted he made a mistake on a blown call that prevented Detroit's Armando Galarraga from pitching a perfect game on Wednesday, Perez is unwilling to admit there's anything wrong with him. If an umpire can man up and own up to a mistake, then so should Perez. The Mets don't want to flush $20 million dollars by releasing Perez, but what other choice do they have if Perez continues to be stubborn & defiant?
Boras got weasel ears for his rep of fleecing teams such as the Mets a few months back, but this time, it's Perez who gets the ears, and he certainly deserves them.
Even Perez's agent, Scott Boras, realizes his client's plight. Boras reportedly suggested that Perez be placed on the disabled list and given psychiatric counseling. The Mets actually have advocated the latter for some time, but Perez doesn't want that, either. The problem is that Perez is just too inconsistent to be kept in the starting rotation, and recent outings against Milwaukee & San Diego have convinced manager Jerry Manuel that Perez can't be trusted with the game on the line coming out of the bullpen, and would only be used in a blowout.
Unlike umpire Jim Joyce, who admitted he made a mistake on a blown call that prevented Detroit's Armando Galarraga from pitching a perfect game on Wednesday, Perez is unwilling to admit there's anything wrong with him. If an umpire can man up and own up to a mistake, then so should Perez. The Mets don't want to flush $20 million dollars by releasing Perez, but what other choice do they have if Perez continues to be stubborn & defiant?
Boras got weasel ears for his rep of fleecing teams such as the Mets a few months back, but this time, it's Perez who gets the ears, and he certainly deserves them.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
An African-American Spider-Man? I don't think so!
We know that Columbia is rebooting the "Spider-Man" movie franchise, choosing to start fresh after 3 very successful films with Tobey Maguire as the web-spinner, so already they're falling into the category of fixing things that aren't broken. There wasn't much wrong with "Spider-Man 3" 2 years ago, as opposed to Christopher Nolan being handed the reins of the "Batman" franchise at Warner Bros. to erase the stench of Joel Schumacher's desecration of the Dark Knight in the mid-90's. However, they're really pushing it if they actually "listen", if you will, to a Twitter-fueled petition to cast an African-American actor as the new Spidey.
Columbia, you'll recall, made a major casting blunder in 1999's movie remake of Wild, Wild West by casting actor-rapper Will Smith ("Hancock", "Independence Day") as James West, a role created by Robert Conrad in the 60's. Despite Smith's star power, the cinematic "West" flopped, badly.
Twitter subscribers, blissfully ignorant of the "West" debacle, or so it would seem, are pushing for comedian Donald Glover (Community). Granted, Glover is a relative unknown, as are the five candidates the studio wants to look at, and it's been demonstrated before that an unknown commodity can succeed (Christopher Reeve as Superman, 1978). One online columnist, however, has proven to be even more ignorant by asking why Spider-Man should be a white guy at all, even as the web-head approaches his 50th anniversary next year. The last thing these folks want to do is to actually give Marvel Comics Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada any ideas.
Quesada, you see, has proven to be unafraid when it comes to courting controversy. Just a few short years ago, he green-lighted a Rawhide Kid miniseries that rebooted the long-standing Western hero as a homosexual. Like "West", it tanked, even though a new Rawhide book is due to hit the stands shortly. It was also under Quesada's watch that The Ultimates was launched, creating an alternate world where superspy Nick Fury is in fact African-American, modeled after actor Samuel L. Jackson. Recognizing this, Marvel's movie division cast Jackson as Fury for the "Iron Man" movies and 2008's "Incredible Hulk". For once, taking a risk on reimagining an established character actually worked, since Ultimates was a success on the comics shop shelves.
Converting Nick Fury from white to African-American is one thing. Doing the same thing to Peter Parker, even if it's just for a movie, is asking for trouble. It was one thing when DC experimented with a 1-shot storyline by having Lois Lane change into an African-American woman for a news story she was working on in her self-titled magazine nearly 40 years ago. They also have an African-American in the Green Lantern Corps, starting relatively around the same time (John Stewart). However, they also allowed corporate cousin Warner Bros. to cast Billy Dee Williams ("Empire Strikes Back") as Harvey Dent in 1989's "Batman", then working around that to introduce Dent's alter-ego, Two-Face (billed as Harvey Two-Face) in 1995's "Batman Forever" and played by Tommy Lee Jones. No wonder the Bat-franchise seemingly died under Schumacher's watch.
But if DC were to even suggest that an African-American be in line to be, say, Batman, or if there was a suggestion made by an ignorant marketing suit at WB, then there's trouble.
The bottom line is, you don't take an iconic hero, such as Spider-Man or Batman, and change him from a white to an African-American just because of the whims of the ignorant. Columbia needs to understand this before beginning production on a new Spider-Man movie, because otherwise, they're risking another cinematic embarassment.
Columbia, you'll recall, made a major casting blunder in 1999's movie remake of Wild, Wild West by casting actor-rapper Will Smith ("Hancock", "Independence Day") as James West, a role created by Robert Conrad in the 60's. Despite Smith's star power, the cinematic "West" flopped, badly.
Twitter subscribers, blissfully ignorant of the "West" debacle, or so it would seem, are pushing for comedian Donald Glover (Community). Granted, Glover is a relative unknown, as are the five candidates the studio wants to look at, and it's been demonstrated before that an unknown commodity can succeed (Christopher Reeve as Superman, 1978). One online columnist, however, has proven to be even more ignorant by asking why Spider-Man should be a white guy at all, even as the web-head approaches his 50th anniversary next year. The last thing these folks want to do is to actually give Marvel Comics Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada any ideas.
Quesada, you see, has proven to be unafraid when it comes to courting controversy. Just a few short years ago, he green-lighted a Rawhide Kid miniseries that rebooted the long-standing Western hero as a homosexual. Like "West", it tanked, even though a new Rawhide book is due to hit the stands shortly. It was also under Quesada's watch that The Ultimates was launched, creating an alternate world where superspy Nick Fury is in fact African-American, modeled after actor Samuel L. Jackson. Recognizing this, Marvel's movie division cast Jackson as Fury for the "Iron Man" movies and 2008's "Incredible Hulk". For once, taking a risk on reimagining an established character actually worked, since Ultimates was a success on the comics shop shelves.
Converting Nick Fury from white to African-American is one thing. Doing the same thing to Peter Parker, even if it's just for a movie, is asking for trouble. It was one thing when DC experimented with a 1-shot storyline by having Lois Lane change into an African-American woman for a news story she was working on in her self-titled magazine nearly 40 years ago. They also have an African-American in the Green Lantern Corps, starting relatively around the same time (John Stewart). However, they also allowed corporate cousin Warner Bros. to cast Billy Dee Williams ("Empire Strikes Back") as Harvey Dent in 1989's "Batman", then working around that to introduce Dent's alter-ego, Two-Face (billed as Harvey Two-Face) in 1995's "Batman Forever" and played by Tommy Lee Jones. No wonder the Bat-franchise seemingly died under Schumacher's watch.
But if DC were to even suggest that an African-American be in line to be, say, Batman, or if there was a suggestion made by an ignorant marketing suit at WB, then there's trouble.
The bottom line is, you don't take an iconic hero, such as Spider-Man or Batman, and change him from a white to an African-American just because of the whims of the ignorant. Columbia needs to understand this before beginning production on a new Spider-Man movie, because otherwise, they're risking another cinematic embarassment.
The Sad Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Perez
The New York Mets have tried to convince pitcher Oliver Perez to accept an assignment to their Triple-A farm team in Buffalo, but Perez has refused. Rather than eat the remainder of the contract agent Scott Boras conned them into giving Perez a year ago, the team opted to put Perez in the bullpen after consecutive bad outings. Until Saturday's game against Milwaukee, Perez seemed to adjust pretty well to his new role, but, as is the case when he has been a starter, Perez has been prone to fits of misfortune on the mound, and the New York press was all over him like a cheap suit. The New York Post, in Monday's edition, citing an anonymous teammate as a source, seemed to push for the Mets to go ahead, eat the contract, and send Perez on his way.
The Mets knew what they were getting when they traded for Perez in July 2006. He had a horrid record that season, but showed flashes of brilliance, including a heroic effort in the NLCS against eventual World Series champ St. Louis. In the nearly 3 1/2 seasons since, it's been more of the same. Given a choice between Perez and Pedro Martinez prior to the 2009 season, the Mets ended up getting swindled by the greedy Boras and re-signed Perez. Martinez signed in mid-season with Philadelphia, and could conceivably do so again this summer, pulling a Roger Clemens ploy in waiting until the 2nd half. If the Mets are really serious about being players in the NL East, then they need to correct the one mistake that conceivably could've put a pox on them last year, and that would be to cut Perez and make a major mea culpa to Martinez. Sure, Martinez might not be in the best of health, but he showed in his brief stint with the Phillies last season, and before that in the World Baseball Classic, that he's still a money player. The Mets are simply erring on the side of caution, what with Martinez missing chunks of the 2007 & 2008 seasons because of injuries. Screw caution. If they can stick it to the Phillies by taking Pedro away from them, so be it.
Another option would be to trade Perez across town to the Yankees for their troubled hurler, Javier Vazquez, who proved he can still pitch in a National League park by dominating the Mets at Citi Field on May 21. Vazquez gave the Mets fits last year when he pitched for Atlanta, and you have to believe the Yankees are having similar dilemmas with Vazquez as the Mets have with Perez. In two tours of duty with the Yankees, Vazquez has had the same kind of inexplicable problems that others have had (i.e. Ed Whitson) pitching in the Bronx, and yet the Steinbrenners were willing to put the past aside and give him another chance. Going into a series against Baltimore, Vazquez is 3-5, with one of those wins coming in relief. Putting Vazquez in Mets orange & blue and Perez in Yankee pinstripes could be the cure-all for everyone concerned.
But will it happen? The key here is convincing Perez that it is in the best interests of both the team and himself that he has to accept a trip to Buffalo to straighten himself out. The Mets have done this with other pitchers, most notably Steve Trachsel & Aaron Heilman, with mixed results. If Perez remains defiant, then it's over for him. His ego and wallet are getting in the way of bringing the team back to respectability in the division. Unfortunately, he is the only one who doesn't understand.
The Mets knew what they were getting when they traded for Perez in July 2006. He had a horrid record that season, but showed flashes of brilliance, including a heroic effort in the NLCS against eventual World Series champ St. Louis. In the nearly 3 1/2 seasons since, it's been more of the same. Given a choice between Perez and Pedro Martinez prior to the 2009 season, the Mets ended up getting swindled by the greedy Boras and re-signed Perez. Martinez signed in mid-season with Philadelphia, and could conceivably do so again this summer, pulling a Roger Clemens ploy in waiting until the 2nd half. If the Mets are really serious about being players in the NL East, then they need to correct the one mistake that conceivably could've put a pox on them last year, and that would be to cut Perez and make a major mea culpa to Martinez. Sure, Martinez might not be in the best of health, but he showed in his brief stint with the Phillies last season, and before that in the World Baseball Classic, that he's still a money player. The Mets are simply erring on the side of caution, what with Martinez missing chunks of the 2007 & 2008 seasons because of injuries. Screw caution. If they can stick it to the Phillies by taking Pedro away from them, so be it.
Another option would be to trade Perez across town to the Yankees for their troubled hurler, Javier Vazquez, who proved he can still pitch in a National League park by dominating the Mets at Citi Field on May 21. Vazquez gave the Mets fits last year when he pitched for Atlanta, and you have to believe the Yankees are having similar dilemmas with Vazquez as the Mets have with Perez. In two tours of duty with the Yankees, Vazquez has had the same kind of inexplicable problems that others have had (i.e. Ed Whitson) pitching in the Bronx, and yet the Steinbrenners were willing to put the past aside and give him another chance. Going into a series against Baltimore, Vazquez is 3-5, with one of those wins coming in relief. Putting Vazquez in Mets orange & blue and Perez in Yankee pinstripes could be the cure-all for everyone concerned.
But will it happen? The key here is convincing Perez that it is in the best interests of both the team and himself that he has to accept a trip to Buffalo to straighten himself out. The Mets have done this with other pitchers, most notably Steve Trachsel & Aaron Heilman, with mixed results. If Perez remains defiant, then it's over for him. His ego and wallet are getting in the way of bringing the team back to respectability in the division. Unfortunately, he is the only one who doesn't understand.
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