Winter's Nap

The other night I watched a DVD of the 1949 Kirk Douglas/Loraine Day comedy My Dear Secretary. Never heard of it? Don't feel bad. This is truly an obscure flick.

This was the first comedy Kirk Douglas ever made and it provides us with a good example of why Douglas was not known for his comic flair.

The DVD says: "A budding young writer goes to work for an erratic, immature playboy." This is supposed to be a screwball comedy but Douglas overplays his role as the playboy (who is also a very successful writer) to such an extent that it becomes painful. Hey, I admit I've never been a Kirk Douglas (or Michael Douglas) fan. Keenan Wynn does take a droll, character turn as Douglas' best friend and Irene Ryan (later of the Beverly Hillbillies and the Broadway musical Pippin) does a great job as Douglas' maid. Written and directed by Charles Martin the movie also features Rudy Vallee as Day's rejected though nonetheless earnest boyfriend.

This is one for a cold, cold winter night when you want to be lulled into hibernation.

Fearless Forecast

Adam Cirucci pedicts: "The whole Katie Holmes/Tom Cruise marriage is gonna backfire on Scientology and in time (as the kid grows up and Tom's star fades) Katie will regain her senses and come out big time against Scientology." Adam also says: "There will be a huge - possibly legally groundbreaking - divorce/custody suit (her dad is a bigtime divorce lawyer BTW) and Katie will write a tell-all book and do talks shows and make this her cause." Adam says that "Scientology in Hollywood and America will be permanently damaged." And Adam promises he will elaborate on all of this later. Well, how about that!

2008 In 2008

In little more than three weeks time this fledgling blog has racked up an additional 1,000 hits. We have now exceeded 2008 visits as we move along in 2008!
Back on January 7 we were all excited about reaching 1,000 hits.
We actually launced this site last November 24 and gave ample credit to our many friends including radio talk show host Dom Giordano who urged us to start a site during an on-air interview. We thank all of you who told us that these opinions and views should be in one place - a place that would also provide a forum for ongoing comment. Your suppost and encouragement has meant so much to us.
We've worked hard to keep this site lively and up-to-date and we've made it easier and easier for you to post your comments. Anyone can now post a comment anonymously. You need not register or identify yourself in any way. The comment board is wide open.
And more and more blogs are linking to ours. Here are just a few of the blogs that now link to us via their blog rolls: BlogNetNews, BlogNetNewsNJ, Dan Gross' Philly Gossip, Phil Goldsmith, Politics Pennsylvania, ShapTalk, The PR Lawyer and Red Jersey. We thank them all and urge you to visit these other wonderful sites.
And do one more thing: Tell everyone else to visit us. Tell your friends and neighbors and co-workers and encourage them to join in the ongoing debate about politics, the media, the current scene, entertainment, the headlines and the popular culture.
With so many big events on the horizon this year we're going to have lots of fun right here. So, don't go away. Come back often!

The Rudy Factor

Rudy Giuliani voters who switched to John McCain proved critical in McCain's latest come-from-behind victory in Florida. In fact, it's safe to say that the Rudy voters who switched to McCain were more important than any Huckabee voters who might have switched to Romney. The reason for this is simple: There were a lot more Rudy voters in Florida to begin with.
Rudy's support today greatly strengthens McCain's bona fides as a mainstream conservative who can reach out to independents and Democrats. Should Huckabee choose to support McCain his endorsement will strengthen McCain in the other direction.
BTW: It's time for Huckabee to find his exit strategy. Huck's "Oh Happy Day!" stance last night in the face of a dismal showing was pitiful. The time has come to say "Huckabye!"

Martinez For Veep?

With Hillary doing so well among Hispanics look for the McCain camp to seriously consider Florida Senator Mel Martinez for Vice President.
Martinez was critical to McCain's big win in Florida. Putting him on the ticket could guarantee Florida in the general election and peel off Hispanic votes in the southwest and major cities.
No question about it: This guy's star is on the rise.

Gracious Going Forward

John McCain's victory remarks Tuesday night were gracious and modest. A good start.
McCain spoke calmly and deliberately and reached out to all of the other candidates. At the same time he was steadfast - striking familiar themes and evoking the history and purpose of the GOP from the Age of Reagan onward.
To be sure, McCain is not a great orator and not likely to deliver a stemwinder anytime soon. But a quieter voice can be no less determined or convincing.
McCain needs to continue to reach out to all segments of the party, listen closely to those who have been disaffected, broaden his cadre of advisers and staff members, put aside old feuds and grudges and move everyone to focus on the job ahead.
Very quickly, he must begin to operate on two tracks at once: close the deal next Tuesday and build the new coalition that will forge a new majority. Lots of hard, hard work - work that will require care, patience, balance and true leadership.
Avanti!

Fate Delivers Opportunity

Rudy Giuliani will bow out on Wednesday and endorse John McCain for President. The endorsement will probably come in California, perhaps in Simi Valley where the Reagan Library is located.
If Rudy is capable of making this tough choice then the rest of us must bring ourselves to make a choice as well.
It is somewhat easier for Rudy because Rudy and McCain are friendly and Rudy is certainly closer to McCain than he is to Romney. But Rudy wouldn't be doing this if he didn't think it was right.
In his remarks tonight Rudy was a class act and I'm sure he will strike the same tone tomoroow.
No one could have predicted this turn of events even a couple of months ago but this is what makes politics so exciting, so thrilling.
And this too: Who would have thought that the GOP would have its candidate before the Democrats? But now that's exactly what seems to be in the cards. Republicans in recent years have proven very effective at closing ranks when the time comes. Once the party seems to have settled on a candidate the GOP moves to coronate rather that nominate.
In the coming weeks and months it falls to McCain to put the pieces together and shoar up the party. He will also have to coax Romney along, sooner rather than later. No small feat. And, as I've already said, it will be hard for the Washington-insider McCain to present himself as a vehicle for change - but that's exactly what he'll have to do as he heads into the main campaign.
Certainly, his choice of a running mate will be critical.
Politics (the art of the possible) rarely gives us perfect choices.
Now, a strange sort of fate has handed the GOP a remarkable opportunity for a relatively early end to battle and a move toward unity by coalescing once again around an elder party statesman and veteran of party wars - someone who is seasoned focused and ready to lead. Sound familiar?

New Or Old?

Let me get this straight.
Bill and Hillary Clinton (who have spent the last 16 years in Washington) are going to bring about change by turning the clock back to 1992 and resurrecting Clintonism: a patchwork quilt of sixties-style liberalism, stale feminism and classic political doubletalk.
And Barack Obama is promising us change and everything that's new and fresh by trotting out a 75-year-old Senator (who's been in Washington forever) to evoke memories of the early sixties and the vaulted though nonetheless fictitious Age of Camelot.
And 71-year-old Vietnam war hero John McCain (who's been in Washington for 27 years) is going to abandon the ways of Washington to deliver us strong, new leadership by sitting down with the same old band of cranky, egotistical and disagreeable insiders that he's cavorted with ever since he arrived in the nation's capital.
Hey, if this is the choice I'm gonna have to face I just want to understand it and get it straight. I'm capable of making the choice.
I just want to be more than a little bit realistic about it.

Smart, Savvy, Sexy!

Do you like Ann Curry as much as I do?

I could listen to and watch The Today Show news anchor deliver the news no matter how bad the news is. She has a gentle, easy, friendly manner that seems remarkably comforting. But it's also clear that this super-successful newswoman is a highly-focused professional who knows exactly where she's going and how to get there. Yet, she doesn't come with the restless, edgy baggage and relentless cynicism of so many journalists.

And askmen is right to place Curry among its top 99 woman noting: "With a Japanese mother and an American father of French, Scotch-Irish and Amerindian descent, Ann Curry has a cosmopolitan beauty that's hard to pinpoint." Askmen likes Curry's "deep brown eyes and raven black hair, which are nicely balanced by the kind of sunny smile that's almost a prerequisite for any morning TV personality." Yes, she can be sunny and intense at the same time.

Still, Ann Curry is hardly a mere news reader. In the first two weeks following the attacks of September 11, Curry reported live from ground zero every day. When the United States bombed Al Qaeda targets in Afghanistan in November 2001, she reported extensively from the USS Theodore Roosevelt in the Arabian Sea, and landed the first exclusive interview with the war's military commander, General Tommy Franks. Curry reported from Baghdad in the weeks leading up to the war in Iraq, and then from the USS Constellation as the war began, interviewing fighter pilots who flew the first wave of bombing runs over Iraq. She also filed reports from inside Iraq, from Qatar, and Kuwait during the first weeks of the war.

Curry has also distinguished herself in global humanitarian reporting. Recently, she traveled three times to Sudan to report on the violence and ethnic cleansing taking place in Darfur and Chad.

Here's a shoutout to Ann: You're living proof that the sexiest beauty is smart 'n savvy, too!

Bravo: Daniel, Julie, Javier!

Looking as beautiful as ever the divine Julie Christie won the Screen Actors Guild Award last night as best actress for her role in Away From Her.

Earlier we identified Julie, Daniel Day-Lewis and Javier Bardem as three of our favorites and all three won in their respective categories. Not only are they each super talents but they all have undeniable star quality. Christie and Day-Lewis can be away from the screen (and out of the spotlight) for years and then come back and blow everyone away with their talent. And Javier fits the same bill.

One of those who was missing from the nomination categories this year was the legendary Andy Griffith. That's sad. Because Andy should have been nominated for his fine performance in Waitress. If you haven't seen Waitress, get the DVD and watch it ASAP.

Of course we are sorry to see James Gandolfini and Alec Baldwin in the lineup of "winners." Neither one deserves such a title. Let us just say that they are grossly unworthy and leave it at that.

BTW: In a classy move, Day-Lewis dedicated his award to the late Heath Ledger.