Hail to The Chief

Happy 54th birthday to NBA great Robert Parish. Inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2003 and named one of the NBA’s 50 Greatest Players of all-time, “The Chief” played fourteen years with the Boston Celtics, and twenty-one years overall (four with the Golden State Warriors out of college, two with the Charlotte Hornets, and one with the Chicago Bulls). He owns the record for most games played (1,611) and is the third-oldest player to play in an NBA game at age 43 (Nat Hickey of the Providence Steamrollers and Kevin Willis of the Dallas Mavericks are the two ahead of him). Incidentally, his Celtics teammate Cedric Maxwell gave him the nickname after the character in the novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest because of Parish’s stoic nature.

Also, it would have been baseball great Ted Williams’ 89th birthday today. Others celebrating birthdays: tennis player Andy Roddick (25), actress Cameron Diaz (35), bazillionaire Warren Buffet (77), and Mary Wollstonecraft Shelly (would’ve been just 210).

Boldy Going?

I write a lot about movies, television, and pop culture in general, mostly because I’m a product of growing up in the 80’s and 90’s. Now, people my age are in charge of the pop-culture machine so there are a lot of things in development that I’m interested in. I also blame it on a lack of proper education (as my wife points out, what the heck are you actually supposed to do with a degree in Asian-American Studies?) and proper media coverage of actually important events. Regardless, I continue on, for my own enjoyment and possibly yours.

You may have heard that J.J. Abrams (see above), creator of Felicity, Alias, and Lost, is working on a new Star Trek movie for release Christmas 2008. So far, all anybody really knows about it is that it will feature a young James T. Kirk, Spock, and Bones McCoy, and that the principal actors are Leonard Nimoy (reprising his role as Spock), Zachary Quinto (Sylar from Heroes, as a young Spock), and Anton Yelchin (from mostly small TV roles, as a young Pavel Chekov). Other actors rumored to be wanted by Abrams are Tom Cruise (as Captain Christopher Pike, the original captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise) and Russell Crowe (as the unspecified bad guy). Matt Damon was the fans’ choice for a young Kirk, and Ray Liotta the choice for a young Bones McCoy, but those look doubtful. And although people are clamoring for William Shatner to reprise his role as Kirk, even in a cameo, that does not seem to be happening either.

The big mystery is what the story is going to be. In a recently posted article on Ain’t It Cool News, the new rumor is that there will be some sort of time-travel twist to the movie, in which Romulans from the future find themselves transported into the past. This leaves them with the ability to alter history, by eliminating a key historical figure. What historical figure? James T. Kirk, of course. But if an older Spock were to know about this possibility, he would then be put in place as protector of the timeline… Very Back to the Future: Part II, as the article states.

Regardless, I think that whatever Abrams does, it’ll be pretty good. I’m not sure of the whole divided-timeline idea, but it might actually better serve the “reimagining” of the Star Trek universe. The fans are excited to see Quinto as a young Spock, and he certainly looks the part, but it’s definitely going to be difficult to fill the shoes of a man who was Spock, much more so to me than William Shatner is Kirk.

Hmm… it seems to be difficult to convey the sense of interest I have in the story without writing a lot about the Star Trek mythos and history. Just thought I’d keep those of you on the outside informed.

Geek... out.

* * *

Quick update: the role of Uhura has supposedly been offered to actress Zoe Saldana, who has appeared in Abrams' short-lived ABC creation Six Degrees and Pirates of the Carribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. She also has a role in James Cameron's upcoming sci-fi epic, Avatar.

Across the Universe

Okay, in light of the fact that I’ve been feeling very cynical the last few days, here’s a trailer for a new movie called Across the Universe, which is a story about a young man from Britain who moves to the U.S., the girl he meets, and the turbulent Sixties era they live through. I have to admit, the reason I first saw this trailer is because I read that the music in the movie was that of The Beatles, probably the greatest band to ever record an album (and I don’t care what kind of music you prefer, you probably agree with me). Anyway, it seems like an okay movie, but the soundtrack really helps:

* * *

And because I can’t help but write something a little negative, it was reported on AICN (Ain’t It Cool News for the uninitiated – http://www.aintitcool.com/) that Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson will be taking Eddie Albert’s role in a remake of Escape from Witch Mountain. Now, I haven’t seen the movie since I was a kid, but I did love it when I was younger, so I’m not really sure how I feel about this. Especially in light of the fact that The Rock will be a taxi cab driver, instead of a grandfatherly figure driving a Winnebago. Hmm.

I actually like The Rock. He seems like a decent dude and would be good if he stuck to Schwarzenegger-type roles (action and action-comedy). He seems kinda likeable in the upcoming, sure-to-be-a-flop The Game Plan, in which he stars as a star quarterback who suddenly finds out he has a ten-year-old daughter. He’s also starring the upcoming Get Smart, based on the old TV show, with Steve Carell, Anne Hathaway, Alan Arkin, and Terrance Stamp that’s due out June 20, 2008. Here’s the trailer:

Well… that wasn’t as negative as I thought it was going to be. =)

Miss Teen USA… NOT. Or, Feeling a Little Masochistic?

WHAT?!?!

Dude, she finished as the THIRD RUNNER-UP. What the hell?

Here’s the transcript, just in case you didn’t catch all of that:

Question:

"Recent polls have show a fifth of Americans can’t locate the U.S. on a world map. Why do you think this is? "

Answer:

"I personally believe… that… U.S. Americans are unable to do so because… that some… people out there in our nation don’t have maps and… uh, I believe that our education like such as in South Africa and the Iraq everywhere like such as and I believe that they should… our education over here in the U.S. should help the U.S…. err, should help South Africa and should help the Iraq and the Asian countries so we will be able to build up our future. "

I know you just read that about ten times... People CLAPPED for that. Okay, there’s polite, and then there’s recognizing that a girl needs to be in really special ed. Maybe it was her Make-A-Wish. She didn’t even have the decency to just pack it up and go home. I woulda just dropped a light fixture on her and ended her misery. You gotta know when to hold ‘em, and you gotta know when to fold ‘em.

Her explanation was that she “completely misunderstood” the question. “I wasn’t expecting (the question). I lost my train of thought.” Sweetie, your train took off a loooooooooong time ago.

AND, she ended up on The Today Show! I LOVE Matt Lauer’s second question to her. Here’s the clip, in which she has a second chance to answer the question (skip the first part – it’s the clip from the Miss Teen USA show, because to watch it again would be completely insane):

It’s killing me, too, because she wants to be a special FX artist? Oy. Look out Appalachian State. And we should not let her move to SoCal – we have enough trouble with the blonde airhead image already.

FYI, I had to watch the clip seven times to make sure I got all of it. I think my brain is deteriorating as I write this…

Ghetto Move

Ah-HA! Proof that Oprah is Harpo:

Oprah is planning a benefit dinner on September 8 for Barack Obama near her Santa Barbara estate. The problem is that she wants her guests to stay at the nearby San Ysidro Ranch, which is totally booked by a wedding party. According to MSNBC.com, Oprah’s people have been contacting the bride to either move or cancel some of the rooms to accommodate Oprah’s guests. The bride, who is an attorney, is refusing. Oprah’s people deny that any calls have been made, but the ranch has confirmed that the wedding party has cancelled some of the rooms without a cancellation fee because “there was such a demand for the rooms that weekend.”

What? You can’t keep a few house guests at your estate, Oprah? It cost $64 million, fer cryin’ out loud! And there aren’t a few guest rooms? Sheesh. That’s pretty low of her to ask a BRIDE to move her wedding party for a fundraiser. Two things: 1) I’ll bet the bride is white, and 2) I’ll also bet that Oprah never would’ve asked if the bride was black.

Remember When You Used to Do Things Like This Just for Kicks?

Seventeen-year-old George Holz of Glen Rock, NJ has done what the entire geek community has been waiting for: hacked the iPhone. Holz and three collaborators managed to unlock the AT&T-exclusive iPhone so that it will work on other cellular networks. According to Holz, it took five hundred hours of work (equivalent to eight hours a day, everyday, from the June 29 launch of the iPhone) to hack the device.

Holz then made a deal to trade it to Terry Daidone, co-founder of CertiCell, a Louisville, KY-based cell-phone repair company. The deal reportedly was for a Nissan 350Z (!, see below) and three standard 8GB iPhones, which Holz said he will be giving to his collaborators.

Daidone said that he had no plans to commercialize Holz’ work.

Read the original article here. Here’s a pic of the car the kid is now rollin’ in:

Finally! Doing Something Worthwhile with the Space Shuttle

When the crew of the Space Shuttle Discovery lift-off in October, the one thing they can be sure of is that they’ll be well-armed. In honor of the 30th Anniversary of Star Wars, the crew will carry Luke Skywalker’s original lightsaber into space with them.

The lightsaber will begin its journey today in a ceremony at Oakland International Airport, where Chewbacca will hand over the lightsaber to NASA officials. From there, it will fly aboard a special Southwest Airlines flight that will be pushed back from the gate by Chewie, Boba and Jango Fett, and other characters from the movies. It will arrive in Houston, Texas at 4:20 PM CDT to be greeted by a squadron of stormtroopers, R2-D2, and others at William P. Hobby Airport. From there, it will travel via a fleet of Hummers under police escort to Space Center Houston where it will be on exhibit through Labor Day.

Universal Tie-In

Just in case you’re bored or an insomniac, there will be a total lunar eclipse tomorrow morning, beginning at 4:51 AM EDT, reaching totality about 5:32 AM EDT, and ending at 7:22 AM EDT. The only views of the total eclipse will be in the Western Hemisphere, since the moon will have set in Europe, Asia and Africa by the time the eclipse begins. The best views are where I am, on the West Coast, but I’m not counting on being awake. It would be neat, though.

FYI, the next total lunar eclipse will be on February 21, 2008 and will viewable from the Americas, Europe and Asia. Mark your calendars now.

* * *

Interesting how this eclipse coincides with the release of NBC’s Heroes DVD, since a total solar eclipse played a prominent role early in the series and in the marketing (see picture, above). The significance of the eclipse in the show hasn’t been revealed yet, but I believe they are supposed to touch on it this season. I wouldn’t put it past the marketing guys to have chosen the release date based on eclipse. Regardless, I’m running out to purchase it tomorrow. I know – you’re hardly surprised.

The choice I have to make is whether or not to buy the first season of Friday Night Lights, as well (a steal at $19.95). It’s a great show that got mediocre ratings last year, but I’m sure the low price on the Season 1 DVD set is a way to generate some interest. Go rent or buy it if you’ve never seen it. Even Kindra likes it, and she was wary of watching it because it was supposedly “just about football.” It’s actually a very well-done show. I wrote a little about it last year here. The show deals with all the ups and downs that are associated with high-school life (and life in general) not just for students, but for their parents and their community as well. It just happens to be set around a football-obsessed town.

* * *

* -- Universal is the studio that produces Heroes, just in case you were wondering what the title had to do with anything.

A Rocket Classic

I just saw this AT&T commercial with Roger Clemens:

Classic!

When It's Late and You're Trashed...

Harold & Kumar 2


Totally gonna see it...

Drunk.

Chocolate Reign! Long Live Vader's Son!

For those of you who don’t spend all your time on the internet…


That’s Tay Zonday, a twenty-five (25!) year-old grad student, who’s the internet’s newest sensation. He calls himself a singer-songwriter-musician and has a few videos up on YouTube, but this one has garnered nearly five million hits.

If you think he’s faking his voice, he’s not. Check out this clip from Jimmy Kimmel for proof (jump past the song to the short interview clip). It’s craaaaaaaaazy.



His popularity is proven by the number of remixes and mods of the song available on YouTube. It’s been remixed as an 8-bit song, into a Darth Vader remix, and covered by Green Day’s Tre Cool. And for good measure, the John Mayer remix featuring Sherrod Small:

Creative Rehabilitation

I found out about this while looking through Yahoo!’s photos of the week. These are the prisoners at Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center in the Philippines. These were put together and filmed by the head of the detention center, Byron F. Garcia. For those of you who don’t really know Filipino culture, dancing is basically imbedded in their genes.

Murphy's Law

Saw the above picture on eBay Wednesday afternoon.

I also caught an interview with the owner of the 756 ball, Matt Murphy, on The Today Show yesterday morning. He definitely seemed like a 22-year-old. He stated that he is leaning towards keeping the ball, but that he would first continue on his vacation to Australia and sort it out when he gets back. It also happens that the reason he was traveling to Australia for vacation was because his friend’s sister is there shooting a movie.

Who’s his friend’s sister, you ask? None other than Abigail Breslin, the fifth-youngest actress ever to be nominated for an Oscar. Still wondering who she is? She’s the little girl in Little Miss Sunshine (her Oscar-nominated role), has had roles in M. Night Shyamalan’s Signs, Raising Helen with Kate Hudson and her brother Spencer Breslin, Grey’s Anatomy, and is currently starring in No Reservations with Catherine Zeta-Jones and Aaron Eckhart (well, it’s probably out of theaters by now).

* * *

While looking for some more info on Matt Murphy, I also found this article on how NBC nabbed their interview with him. It’s interesting how many people and things are involved in getting a hold of a person in a situation like this. Check it out.

* * *

I just read a quick bit in the Washington Post saying that if Murphy does decide to keep the ball, he could owe taxes on a reasonable estimate of the ball’s value. It also stated that capital gains taxes could be levied as the ball appreciates in value over time, but that if the ball’s value were to somehow drop (i.e., Bonds is found guilty of steroid use), Murphy could claim a loss.

Somehow, this sorta makes sense to me, but it still blows. He caught a frickin’ baseball, fer cryin’ out loud. It’s worth whatever the special baseballs that MLB was using during Bonds’ at bats is worth. Sheesh. Definitely a case of Murphy’s Law.

The Dream Team

I can’t believe I missed it! Yesterday was the fifteenth anniversary of the original (and really, only) Dream Team winning the gold medal in Barcelona, Spain. That was, in all probability, the best team ever in the history of basketball. But, looking at the picture, the one thing that comes to mind is: which one is not like the others? Heh.

There’s a nice article written by Dream Team Coach Chuck Daly at NBA.com if you want to read more.

756

Well, I suppose I should mention something about Barry Bonds breaking one of the most hallowed records in baseball, Hank Aaron’s career-homerun record. Bonds hit career homerun 756 off of Washington Nationals pitcher Mike Bacsik Tuseday night on a one-out, fifth-inning, full-count fastball.

I’ll say this: I don’t like Barry Bonds the person. I think he’s an ass, even if only ten percent of the crazy stories about him are true. Now, I think everybody’s an ass sometimes, but he doesn’t seem to respect anybody but himself. I know he’s changed his tune recently and has been more congenial, but he still seems like an ass. For that, I am disappointed that Bonds the person broke one of the greatest sports records of all-time.

As for Barry Bonds, baseball player, I think he’s a tremendous athlete whose career longevity is questioned by unconfirmed steroid use. Let’s face it: steroids do not help you hit the ball, and Bonds can hit. He’s got a good eye, an incredible swing, and phenomenal bat speed. Steroids may have helped him hit the ball harder, but their main effect would be to allow Bonds to hit with slightly more power more consistently over a season and to allow him to recover from the wear-and-tear of playing and travel.

Consistency is the mark of a great athlete – the ability to perform great feats over and over and over again. After all, anybody can do something great once. It’s how many times an athlete can do something that puts them on another level. As for recovery, look at Bonds over the past two years. I know he’s getting older, but after the Balco case broke a couple years ago, he spent all of 2006 out with a knee injury and has been rested more times this year than I can remember. I believe that medical science is improving and that athletes take better care of their bodies now than they did when Hank Aaron was playing. But for Bonds career to hit an upswing after age thirty-five is insane. Stay consistent? Yes, that’s possible. But to be so much better now? Questionable.

I also have to say that MLB Commissioner Bud Selig is an idiot for how he’s handled the Bonds situation this year. He was present when Bonds hit number 755 last Saturday night, but was not present at Tuesday night’s game. Selig said earlier this season that he didn’t know if he would celebrate 756, and stood stoically with his hands in his pockets when Bonds tied Aaron’s mark. Bud Selig is a fool. If you believe so strongly that Bonds has cheated, do something about it. But because Bonds has neither been proven guilty or indicted by Major League Baseball or any other legal entity, he still innocent. An ass, but innocent. If you are the commissioner of the sport, do not act like a spoiled child who is not getting his way. Be a man and a leader and either find a way to prove Bonds guilty of substance abuse, or applaud one of the greatest feats of the last twenty years.

Do I think Bonds took steroids? Yup. Do I think they helped him hit? Nope. Do I think they helped him extend his career to hit 756 and counting homeruns? You betcha. Should he be celebrated? Yes – unless he’s proven guilty of steroid use. This is the U.S.A., after all. We’re about being innocent until proven guilty. We’re also about mom, apple pie, and baseball.

* * *

Bonds 756 memorabilia is headlined by the ball, caught by 22-year-old Matt Murphy, of Queens, NY. He and his friend were on their way to Australia and had a one-day layover in San Francisco. They bought tickets right before the game, and now he owns a piece of baseball history worth an estimated $400,000 to $500,000. Just so you know, Mark McGwire’s 70th HR ball from 1998 went for $3.3 million; Barry’s 73rd HR ball from 2001 went for $450,000; the Bonds’ 715th HR ball went for $220,000 last August; and just recently, his 70th HR ball from 2001 went for only $14,000 (after being initially bought for $60,000). Bonds’ batting helmet, the strike-ball counter from the game, as well as a ball signed by the umpires of the game (?) were sent to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

* * *

Oh, FYI, the Giants lost Tuesday night’s game 8-6, to the Nationals. They also lost when Bonds hit number 755 off of San Diego Padres pitcher Clay Hensley last Saturday.

So Now I Know...

One of the things I love about where we live is that we have a nice balcony that lets us sit and enjoy the greenery of our complex. Unfortunately, we don’t take advantage of it like we should, since it’s kind of a pain in the butt to clean. I feel a little bad sweeping it because of our neighbors downstairs, and I really can’t take a hose to it because of the same issue.

Compounding the problem are the palm trees that are level with our balcony and hang over it. These palms produce spores that end up all over our balcony, table, chairs, and grill. Up until today, I though the debris and spores were from the wind blowing them over the deck. Possibly… but now I have a feeling that there might be another cause.

I was sitting at our dining table this morning when I heard a leaf blower start up outside. We’d just put Danica down to take a nap, so I was a little perturbed, but what can you do? Then, I hear it getting louder and some clunking above my head. I look out the sliding glass doors, and what do I see? Leaves, branches, and pine needles coming down off our roof to land on our deck, while the wind from the leaf blower is tossing the palm leaves (covered in spores) around like they were in a hurricane.

So now I know. Great. To the gardener’s credit (and to his detriment), he ended up holding onto the side of our balcony blowing what he could off of it, but it mostly ended up stuck on one side. Oy. Oh well, at least I live in Southern California. And I’m not going to feel guilty about sweeping all the crap off my deck, even if some of it does land below us. Is that bad?

Congratulations, Yao!

Congratulations to Houston Rockets center Yao Ming, who married his long-time sweetheart on Monday in Shanghai at the Pudong Shangri-La Hotel. His new bride, Ye Li, is a former Chinese National Basketball Team player who stands 6-2. The two met in 1999 when Yao was a member of the Shanghai Sharks. Though Yao has talked little of Ye publicly, the red wristbands he's worn during his stint in the NBA were made by Ye.

Because of the desire for privacy, the security guards (~100) outnumbered the guests (~70). In fact, at an impromptu news conference outside the hotel ballroom where the couple was married, reporters were given teddy bears with candy and CD's with wedding portraits taken last week. The AP reported the wedding cost $130,000 (they did it on the cheap, I guess... unlike Tony Parker and Eva Longoria). If you want to read more, go to the Houston Chronicle.

Can't wait 'til their kid is a 5-10 spaz who can't make a layup.

Decisions, Decisions

I just picked up my copies of the 300 DVD and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on Friday and (gasp!) haven’t cracked open either of them. I know, I know… And now I find myself in a new bind, because a bunch my favorite movies have new DVD releases that are out.

The Monster Squad – 20th Anniversary Edition

I already covered this way back when. It was released on July 24, but I was in Iowa at the time and didn’t have time to pick it up. I’m sure it’ll be just like a lot of movies I’ve watched again since I was a kid – a little less cool – but it’ll still be fun to watch.

Hard Boiled – Ultimate Edition (August 7)

I covered Hard Boiled on John Woo’s birthday, but it IS Chow Yun-Fat and John Woo’s greatest (and last) collaboration together. Of course, I have a copy of the original DVD release, but who can resist owning another one, especially in the non-anamorphic 1.85:1 aspect ratio? Actually, I guess that the earlier Criterion Collection set has a great commentary, but it’s been discontinued, and from what I understand, there are a number of international releases of the film that have better extras (but obviously aren’t encoded for region 1). Out of these three releases, it’s probably in third place on my wish list. Still…

Flash Gordon – Saviour of the Universe Edition (August 7)

This release really flew under my DVD radar to say the least. I didn’t find out about it until this morning when reading a story on the Hard Boiled DVD set. With the new Sci-Fi channel Flash Gordon series premiering on Friday, August 10, this is obviously a ploy to drive the fanboy interest up. And it’s working.

This was my first “cult” movie. It was cheesy and had crappy special effects, but I remember watching it as a kid in TAIWAN of all places. I think I was with my mom and one of my cousins (though I can’t remember who, of course), and I remember (and this is a child’s memory) the theater being HUGE –sort of like an IMAX theater. I’m fairly sure it wasn’t, but who knows? I loved it, and it did help that the movie was in English with Chinese subtitles. I have a vague memory of that being the second time I saw the movie, but I’m not sure.

There was an original DVD release of this when DVD first started to get really popular around ten years ago, but I never got my hands on it. I found a VHS copy at a swap meet a few years back, which I gladly shelled out $5 for. But now there’s this, with the original 2.35:1 aspect ratio, but apparently lacking in extras. I guess I’ll have to live with this one. Oh well, at least it’s got an Alex Ross cover. For those of you not in the know (or not a giant, geeky fanboy like myself), Alex Ross is a very popular comic illustrator who loves the movie and supplies a featurette on the DVD.

Fortunately, since the movie came out in 1980 and they missed the 25th Anniversary, he next target time to release an edition is 2010 for the 30th Anniversary. I can’t wait to hear Queen belt out the theme song: “Flash! Ah-ahhhhhhhh!!!!! He’ll save every one of us!”

Also, though I’m not as big a fan of these movies, both The Dark Crystal (25th Anniversary) and Labyrinth have new-release DVD sets as well (both August 14). As a side note, the Labyrinth release is the “Anniversary Edition,” though it’s the 21st anniversary this year. The movie came out in 1986. Hmm…

* * *

Oh, and I just saw Remember the Titans again on TNT over the weekend and finally realized that three of the bit players in the movie have gone on to have terrific film and television careers: Kate Bosworth, Ryan Gosling, and (a very young) Hayden Panettiere.

News of the Day

Usually in the morning, I check my e-mail and see what Yahoo! has on its front page, since it’s my default homepage. It usually has some fun stories, so I thought I’d share a few since I haven’t written that much recently. Think of it as SNL’s news segment, without the famous faces and laughs.

Boy Rescued After 6-Hour Dead Sea Ordeal

An eight-year-old Israeli boy was found alive floating in the Dead Sea after he was carried away by the current, unbeknownst to his father and two brothers. They were swimming at a remote part of the beach for ultra-Orthodox Jewish men, who do not bathe in the presence of women. His family exited the water and didn’t notice him missing until late in the day. Fortunately, the Dead Sea has such a high concentration of minerals that the boy was able to simply float along with the current until police found him two miles offshore.

Boy Feels "Ripped Off" By Cougar Attack

A twelve-year-old boy in Canada who was camping with a friends’ family had his vacation cut short when he was attacked by a mountain lion as he was headed to a restroom. The boy was on a five-day trip when the mountain lion attacked him. A man was able to pull the lion off the boy, but not before the boy suffered lacerations to his head and upper body. Fortunately, the boy is okay, but feels that he was cheated out of his vacation. I suppose the only thing that would’ve made it okay is if they let him shoot the damn thing when they found it.

Teen Falls Six Stories, Walks Away

Seventeen-year-old Matthew Savage fell six stories from his hotel balcony after trying to retrieve a bathing suit that a fallen from the eleventh story to the balcony above. Apparently, he hit a couple of other balconies on the way down, landed on a slanted rooftop, slid into bushes at the bottom of the hotel, thought nothing of it, and started walking back to his hotel room. Paramedics at the scene instead slapped him to a body board and took him to the hospital where it turned out he actually was fine.

Okay… I’m guessing that 1) the “bathing suit” was a bikini and 2) he got a great reward when he got back to the hotel. I am wondering, however, after this fall, skater Jake Brown’s fall at the X-Games, and biker Matt Hoffman’s subsequent miscue, what kind of shoes they’re all wearing. Cuz you know it’s got to be the shoes.

Bad Thai Cops to Endure Kitty Shame

Police officers in Thailand caught committing misdemeanors such as littering or arriving late will now be forced to remain at their division office for the duration of their shift and wear a “Hello Kitty” armband featuring Hello Kitty sitting atop two hearts. The officers will not be forced to wear the armband in public.

Indian Police Get to the Bottom of Necklace Case

A thief who was found to have swallowed a necklace he stole from a businessman’s wife was ordered by Indian police to remain on a diet of bananas until he produced the necklace. On advice from doctors to use the bananas as a laxative, police fed the accused thief fifty (50!) bananas to no avail. Finally, they fed him a meal of rice, chicken and bread which led him to pass the necklace on his fifth attempt. A sweeper was paid fifty rupees (ONE dollar) to fish the necklace out, and the thief was forced to clean the necklace for its appearance in court. I can’t believe they’d have him wash it but not pull it out of the toilet or whatever. Ew. And if some dude is willing to fish a necklace out of crap for a dollar in India, I'm not surprised that companies are outsourcing jobs there. That's seriously cheap labor.

I love the internet. Who needs tabloids? All I’m wondering now is how I can get paid finding crazy stories over the AP wire and posting them…

Though... This is Pretty Cool, Too*

* -- (Edited Sunday, August 5, 2007) This was the Iron Man teaser footage that was shown at San Diego Comicon 2007. Unfortunately, Paramount pulled rank and had the footage taken down from You Tube. There is, however, a possiblity that I have the footage for viewing... It was pretty kick-ass, though, as usual, there were some parts that I didn't care for.

Iron Man is based on the Marvel Comics property created by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, Don Heck and Jack Kirby. Directed by Jon Favreau, it stars Robert Downey, Jr. (Tony Stark), Gwyneth Paltrow (Virginia "Pepper" Potts), Terrance Howard (Jim Rhodes), and Jeff Bridges (Obidiah Stane), with cameos by Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury), Hillary Swank, Leslie Bibb and of course, Stan Lee. Get more information at the MySpace.com Iron Man Movie Group, which was set up and is maintained by Jon Favreau himself.

The film is set to be released May 2, 2008, so you can imagine what we'll be doing for Danica's 2nd birthday.

Absolutely THE COOLEST

Totally something I would've done back in the day, if I'd thought of it and had the discipline to do it. Oh, I'm sooooooooooo jealous that these guys pulled it off.