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Michelle Bart: Michael Jackson: Always a Hero Among Us!

2009-07-10T15:38:59Z

What a beautiful and moving memorial service; fit for a King! Kudos to Councilwoman Perry, Ken Sunshine, the Los Angeles Police, the Jackson family, and Tim [Leiweke, AEG] for a powerful, heartfelt, and well organized memorial service for Michael Jackson!

Logistics were difficult as with any of Michael's productions, but as Michael always succeeded in a number one show, so did all of those that remembered him and produced a show he would have been so proud to see!

For one afternoon a world came together to remember Michael; celebrities and the public alike, for two hours "We Were the World" and everyone checked their egos at the door ("Quincy Jones") and now the show must go on...

Thanks for all the music, memories, and efforts to embrace humanity, Michael. You were and will always be without any doubt a hero among us!

God bless!
Michelle Bart, Helping Heroes

photo by Vh1

Phil Ramone and Danielle Evin: Dog Ears Music: Volume Eighty

2009-07-10T15:38:30Z

The Louvin Brothers
2001's Country Music Hall of Famers Ira (mandolin) and Charlie (guitar) Loudermilk, a.k.a. the Louvin Brothers, were born in Alabama in the mid '20s. This harmonic super-duo paved a highway for the future of country music. By 1955, the brothers made it to the Grand Ole Opry, and Elvis, then Johnny Cash, opened for them over the next year. The brothers made records for Decca, MGM, Capital, and Apollo until their breakup in 1963. In 1965, brother Ira was killed in a car crash. Brother Charlie went on to have a successful solo career. To date, he's recorded nearly 20 albums and toured with Cake, Cheap Trick, and the Old '97s. The Louvin Brothers have been covered by Emmylou Harris, the Byrds, and Dolly Parton, among many others. "Satan's Jeweled Crown," from the 1960 release Satan Is Real, burns brightly.

Buy: iTunes
Genre: Country
Artist: The Louvin Brothers
Song: Satan's Jeweled Crown
Album: Satan Is Real

The Fratellis
Glasgow's rock trio of Jon Fratelli (guitar, vocals), Barry Fratelli (bass, shouting), and Mince Fratelli (drums, vocals) was founded this mid-decade. Like the Ramones, the boys took on the Fratelli name professionally. Pianist-guitarist Will Foster is also a member of their touring unit. After reaching No. 2 on the British charts with their successful debut Costello Music in 2005, the Fratellis went on to receive the 2007 BRIT Award for Best British Breakthrough Act. With two albums in their pocket, the band has also opened for the Police and Kasabian. Credits include the Hot Fuzz soundtrack and the Rock Band 2 game. "Milk and Money," from their 2008 release Here We Stand, pays deep respect to the rock classic.

Buy: iTunes
Genre: Rock
Artist: The Fratellis
Song: Milk and Money
Album: Here We Stand

Audible
Audible is the Philly-based indie-rock unit of frontman Mike Kennedy, Mary Garito, Kristine Muller, Jim Kehoe, Steve Cawley, and Ed Hogarty. Founded in 2000 as a duo, Audible grew to five members in 2005, then recently became a sextette. Credits include the Catch and Release soundtrack and touring dates with alt-rockers Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. "We Were Wrong," from Audible's spring 2005 release Sky Signal, is so right.

Buy: iTunes
Genre: Indie Rock
Artist: Audible
Song: We Were Wrong
Album: Sky Signal

Skull Snaps
Skull Snaps is the Bronx-based funk outfit comprised of Erv Waters, George Bragg, and Samm Culley, who emerged from '60s soul group The Diplomats. This enigmatic unit has enjoyed a collector's-item/cult-status pedigree since its early run in the '70s, in addition to being a major influence on hip-hop. The band reunited in 2005, collaborating with remixer Audible Doctor. "Backsnap," featured on the 2006 release It's a New Day Redux--EP, sublimely spins in its own gravity.

Buy: iTunes
Genre: Funk/Hip-Hop
Artist: Skull Snaps
Song: Backsnap
Album: It's a New Day Redux--EP

Drive-By Truckers
Drive-By Truckers is the Southern alt-country rock ensemble hailing from Athens, Georgia. Founded in the mid-'90s, the unit includes Mike Cooley, Patterson Hood, Brad Morgan, John Neff, Shonna Tucker, and (on occasion) Spencer Oldham or Jay Gonzalez. With over a dozen releases, the band keeps a consistent and refreshing integrity. "Opening Act," from Drive-By Truckers' 2008 release Brighter Than Creation's Dark, will lull you to think. Currently touring.

Buy: iTunes
Genre: Alt-Country Rock
Artist: Drive-By Truckers
Song: Opening Act
Album: Brighter Than Creation's Dark
Tour: Visit

Memphis Minnie
Gospel/blues/country diva and picker Lizzie Douglas, known as Memphis Minnie, was born a musical prodigy in New Orleans Parish in 1897. Nearing the age of 7, her family relocated to Mississippi, where she picked up guitar. Soon after, Lizzie started performing as "Kid" Douglas before running away to Memphis. By the '20s, as Memphis Minnie, she joined the Ringling Brothers Circus, then formed a musical and romantic partnership with Kansas Joe McCoy. Approaching the Great Depression, Minnie had over 50 recordings to her credit. In the late '30s, Minnie moved to Chicago and became part of the Chicago blues explosion. By the late '50s, health problems forced her into retirement back in Tennessee. In 1973, Minnie passed away in Memphis. Remember this great lady of song with "Keep on Eatin'," from the Hoodoo Lady (1933-1937) collection.

Buy: iTunes
Genre: Blues
Artist: Memphis Minnie
Song: Keep on Eatin'
Album: Hoodoo Lady (1933-1937) collection

Emma Watson Lovely In Leather (PHOTOS)

2009-07-10T14:25:46Z

Emma "Hermione" Watson attended the premiere of 'Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince' at New York's Ziegfeld Theatre Thursday night looking lovely in a leather halter dress.

Watson, 19, is starting college in the US this fall at an unnamed institution.

PHOTOS:

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Bruno Does Letterman Top Ten List: Reasons To See 'Bruno' (Today! WATCH)

2009-07-10T14:15:39Z

Sacha Baron Cohen made a rare break from character to promote 'Bruno' on Letterman as himself Tuesday night, but he was back on the show Thursday as Bruno to deliver the Top Ten List in a Viennese accent and gold jumpsuit. Maybe his dual identity allowed him to double up on appearances?

The top ten reasons to see 'Bruno' (which opens today) include: "It's like 'Transformers' but not as gay," "Features lots of suggestive worlds like 'Bratwurst' and 'Schnitzel'" and "Bruno is a flamboyantly gay entertainer who makes people uncomfortable, like David Letterman."

WATCH:

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Elle Macpherson Glitters In Gold (PHOTOS)

2009-07-10T14:10:49Z

Elle Macpherson glittered in a gold dress at the launch of the new Jaguar XJ in London Thursday night.

Macpherson, 46 and a mother to two sons, first got her nickname "The Body" over twenty years ago.

Holly Cara Price: Michael Jackson: The Love We Save

2009-07-10T13:36:06Z

Here's an equation for you. Take one aging celebrity, mix in a hefty scoop of childhood abuse, add a few dozen helpings of bad publicity for pedophilia charges and just plain bizarre behavior, mix in a lethal cocktail of dangerous prescription drugs, plus the loss of billions of dollars due to years of mismanagement and an over the top lifestyle most of us could never even dream of. There's really only one way out of that mess, and it happened two weeks ago to 50 year old Michael Joseph Jackson: Death.

For most of his short, anguished time on earth he was larger than life, but in death MJ has eclipsed all other dead celebs (okay, except for, um, Jesus of Nazareth) for sheer marketability and money-making prowess. And talk about a TV ratings bonanza; holy mamasay-mamasah, the whole world stopped to make room for the breaking news of Jackson's death on June 25th. Iran? Forgotten. Mark Sanford? Luckiest guy in the world, apparently. Recession? Snore. New Iphone? Whatever. And the memorial service? Viewership numbers through the roof, all over the world. We'll get to that.

Perhaps you remember that for a few minutes, right before MJ was rushed to the hospital that Thursday, the world had been stunned and transfixed by the cellphone video of 26 year old Neda Soltani, killed in living color during a protest in Tehran. The video of her death made the situation in Iran immediate and present to us; it made it real. Such is the power of the internet, which transcends all media, making it immediate in every sense.

MJ needed no such boost to make his death relevant to the world. Love him, hate him, you can't help but acknowledge that he changed the world of music forever. But watching the carrion circling him now is plainly horrific. I worry about those three children, who have just inherited the biggest therapy bills known to humankind (although possibly, some day, also the biggest book deals of all time). Their lives up to now must have set new standards for weirdness; what's incredibly sad is that that was nothing compared to the future. Jermaine told NBC News, in tears, that he wishes it had been him who died instead of Michael (hmm...new reality show? I'm A Jackson, Get Me Out of Here!). And Debbie Rowe has done an about face and declared she suddenly wants the two kids she gave birth to, after saying just the opposite right after Jackson's death. Way to go, Deb. Break up a family that's just lost their father. She's obviously ripe for reality TV, maybe she can get signed on to the Octomom's TV deal or something equally tasteless.

It's now abundantly clear that Jackson's money-making abilities are even more pronounced after his death (it's the Kurt Cobain / Anna Nicole Smith / Elvis Presley / Heath Ledger syndrome - times ten). This is clearly a cash cow of such magnitude that it makes my head hurt. Downloads of Jackson's music since his passing set a new standard for internet music sales. His album sales for the last week of June were more than the entire year of sales for the same records. News of his death nearly brought down the largest and most robust internet media sites. Over 31 million U.S. viewers watched the public memorial service on Tuesday on broadcast television. It's estimated that a number close to that watched it live on the web. And ... may I say ... his final sleep chamber, the gold coffin covered in flowers positioned center stage at the Staples Center - was that really necessary at a ceremony planned to celebrate his life?

This is only the first two weeks, people. Now that it's clear that MJ was, if anything, worth more dead than alive, we're so in for it. This news story will go on forever. There will always be someone else crawling out of the woodwork saying they sat next to him in fourth grade or waited on him in a supermarket at 2 a.m. or similar crazy stuff. Any unreleased audio and video material is going to be doled out to the public with big price tags, now that it's clear there is an insatiable thirst for anything related to MJ.

That AEG footage of his tour rehearsals? Certainly a ploy to whet our appetite for the rest of that material, of which there is said to be quite a bit. In fact, Time Magazine said today that plans are underway for a show in London on Aug. 29 - Jackson's 51st birthday - featuring footage from the rehearsals plus performances by Jackson family members. The only thing missing would be MJ himself. This makes me very queasy; I can now picture years of Jackson tours ahead - the brothers Jackson suddenly being marketable again after decades of living in MJ's shadow. Each show will be a tribute to Michael and a massive sales success. You see it too, don't you? It's inevitable. He may have died in debt, but in no time at all that debt will be erased - if it hasn't been already by the album sales. Eleven days later.

Unused tickets to the shows at O2 Arena will no doubt be worth their weight in gold in years to come. Who needs a refund when you have that sitting in your dresser drawer - the value will only go up. AEG has opened a web shop for the concert merch they were planning on selling at the shows. You can buy "Who's Bad" belt buckles, King of Pop wallets, wine glasses, tote bags, socks and other apparel (check out the Michael Jackson Decadent Berry Women's Shirt).

Oh yeah, and in case you haven't noticed, everyone suddenly has had to put in their two cents about Jackson, what he meant to the pop culture zeitgeist, and why he died. My favorite comment yet comes from Rush Limbaugh, who said on his radio show: "Michael Jackson's biggest successes took place in the 80's . . . he flourished under Reagan, he languished under Clinton/Bush, and died under Obama . . . I mean, facts are facts, a timeline's a timeline . . ."

Death. It's a whole new media strategy for success. The only problem is, you're not around to enjoy the spoils.

This column originally ran in a slightly different form on the blog The Critical Condition.

Michael Jackson's Open Casket Viewing: He Looked "Peaceful"

2009-07-10T13:28:06Z

The night before the world paid tribute to Michael Jackson, close family members viewed the entertainer's body in an open casket at Forest Lawn in the Hollywood Hills.

"He looked like himself. He looked like he just was laying there sleeping," says David Fossett, 50, a cousin of Jackson's who grew up with him and still lives in Jackson's hometown of Gary, Ind. "He looked peaceful."

Michael Jackson's Casket Stored In Crypt As Family Fights

2009-07-10T12:50:11Z

Michael Jackson's family is bitterly divided over how best to profit off the King of Pop's remains -- so his body has been stashed in Motown maestro Berry Gordy's crypt until the clan stops bickering, The Post has learned.

David Arquette To Live In Plexiglass Box For Hunger

2009-07-10T12:40:03Z

NEW YORK — David Arquette is going to live in a box in New York City to raise money for the hungry.

The 37-year-old actor plans to stay in a Plexiglas box above the Madison Square Garden marquee on Tuesday and Wednesday to raise $250,000 for Feeding America, the nation's largest domestic hunger relief charity. He'll stay in the box each day for about eight hours.

Donations can come on site or through text messages or a Facebook page set up by Mars Inc., the company that makes Snickers candy bars.

A Mars spokesman says Arquette will eat during his two-day stay in the plastic enclosure.

Arquette starred in the "Scream" movie franchise.

____

On the Net:

http://www.facebook.com/snickers

Marshall Fine: HuffPost Review: I Love You, Beth Cooper

2009-07-10T12:33:12Z

I hate I Love You, Beth Cooper, a movie which, as a friend noted afterward, goes from grad to worse.

This Chris Columbus film is as painfully unfunny as any movie this summer - or in recent memory. A chimp could have written this script, if he had screenplay software and a "laugh-free teen comedy" program. The simian in question here is named Larry Doyle, who has several Simpsons scripts to his credit (as well as the novel on which this script is based). Perhaps he suffered a head injury since he wrote them.

Newcomer Paul Rust plays Denis Cooverman, high school valedictorian. As Denis speaks at his graduation ceremony, he uses the opportunity to say things he's always wanted to voice but never had the nerve: outing his gay best friend Rich (Jack T. Carpenter); calling out a couple of bullies; and declaring his long unspoken love for cheerleader/golden girl Beth Cooper (Hayden Panettiere), to whom he's never spoken despite sitting behind her, apparently, since grade school.

The rest of the film is about Denis and Beth's long day's journey into night accompanied by Rich and Beth's posse. It's an unlikely odyssey in which Beth and Denis are meant to bond, while Rich cavorts with her two friends, who are supposed to be funny - ditzy, slutty, stuck-up - but are just plain flavorless.

They engage in a running battle with Beth's pumped-up, 'roid-raging boyfriend, go to a big party, take showers together at the high school - and generally fill 100 minutes of screen time with dud jokes and sadistic slapstick.

Columbus made his name in the '80s as the writer of The Goonies and Gremlins and in the '90s as the director of Home Alone and Mrs. Doubtfire. He has no excuse for a film this dismal.

Panettiere obviously has talent - and a career to go back to on Heroes. As a launchpad for the careers of Rust and Carpenter, however, this film resembles nothing so much as the space shuttle Challenger.

For more of my reviews, interviews and commentary, click here to go to my website: www.hollywoodandfine.com.

Still Married! Patricia Arquette Dismisses Divorce Case

2009-07-10T12:22:58Z

LOS ANGELES — Patricia Arquette and Thomas Jane will remain married.

Court records show the "Medium" star requested and was granted a dismissal of the couple's divorce case, which she filed in January.

The one-page dismissal didn't indicate a reason for the 41-year-old actress seeking a dismissal. Records show her request was filed on Tuesday and approved on Thursday.

The couple was married in May 2006 and have a daughter, Harlow Olivia Calliope Jane.

Arquette won an Emmy Award in 2005 for her portrayal of a paranormal expert on "Medium." The 40-year-old Jane appeared in the 2007 film "The Mist" and 2004's "The Punisher," and he stars in the new HBO series "Hung."

LAPD: Michael Jackson's drug history to be probed

2009-07-10T12:15:00Z

LOS ANGELES — Detectives investigating the death of Michael Jackson are looking at his prescription drug history and trying to talk with his numerous former doctors, the Los Angeles police chief said.

Jackson's father, Joe Jackson, told ABC News in an interview that he believed "foul play" was involved in his son's death. But in the interview aired Friday on "Good Morning America," Jackson did not elaborate.

Los Angeles Police Chief William Bratton told CNN that police are waiting for the coroner's report before ruling out any possibilities in their "comprehensive" investigation into the sudden death of the 50-year-old pop star two weeks ago.

The coroner's report will determine the cause of death and hinges on time-consuming toxicology tests.

"Based on those we'll have an idea of what we're dealing with," Bratton said Thursday. "Are we dealing with homicide? Are we dealing with an accidental overdose? What are we dealing with?"

Bratton said detectives are gathering evidence, including items seized from Jackson's rented home and arranging interviews with his many physicians, but the police chief deferred to the coroner to determine the cause of death.

"The next move really is his," Bratton said. "We're not marking time waiting for his report."

The Drug Enforcement Administration and the state attorney general's office, which keeps a database of prescription drugs, are assisting investigators.

An attorney for Dr. Arnold Klein, one of Jackson's many physicians, told the Los Angeles Times that the dermatologist was subpoenaed for medical records, which he turned over to the county coroner's office.

Bratton refused to discuss details of the case.

Jackson, who died June 25, had a well-known history of using prescription medications, especially painkillers. Following his death, Cherilyn Lee, a registered nurse who had worked for Jackson, told The Associated Press she repeatedly rejected his demands for the potent anesthetic Diprivan, also known as Propofol.

Jackson had multiple doctors, friends and staff who came in and out of his life. Which people were being interviewed by police was unclear because the LAPD has said virtually nothing about the probe.

Joe Jackson said he didn't know anything about drugs his son was involved in.

"I don't even know the name of them," he said. "I do know that whatever he was taking was to make him rest because he had been working so hard."

Police towed a doctor's car from Jackson's home hours after he died and said later it could contain medication or other evidence. Coroner's officials also said Jackson was taking prescription medication but declined to elaborate.

Meanwhile, Joe Jackson told ABC that he and his wife, Katherine, should have custody of Michael's three children. "They'll grow up to be strong Jacksons," he said.

He said Michael's daughter, Paris, who spoke at the Tuesday memorial service, was taking the death hard and was crying whenever Michael's name is mentioned. He said that she might have a future in the entertainment business along with the youngest son, nicknamed Blanket, who "can really dance."

Michael Jackson's Drug Abuse: Portrait Of His Pill Consumption Emerges

2009-07-10T11:30:26Z

Singer Michael Jackson took more than 10 Xanax pills a night, asking his employees to get the prescription sleep medicine under their names and also personally traveling to doctor's offices in other states to obtain them, said a confidential document from 2004 that CNN obtained Thursday.
Los Angeles detectives are waiting on the coroner's report on the death of Michael Jackson.

The document from the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department contains confidential interviews conducted with two of Jackson's former security guards as officials prepared for Jackson's child molestation trial in 2005.

Jay Marose: Why I Posed for the NOH8 Campaign

2009-07-10T04:26:01Z

This is why I posed for the NOH8 Campaign, a silent photographic protest.

As a publicist, it is second nature to opt out of photos. I have a wonderful collection of pictures of famous clients or amazing events with only my black clad arm or leg in frame.

However, when I first saw the NOH8 Campaign photos, they really spoke to me. These two young men, Adam Bouska and Jeff Parshley had started something powerful following the passage and subsequent affirmation by the California Supreme Court. The gay political establishment had focus-grouped a campaign without a message, except, its OK to not like the gays.

Their efforts obviously fell far short, but then, so did the gay community who was apathetic at best. Prop 22 was a distant memory and perhaps the hope of the Obama campaign had a blinding halo effect. There was no ground game. There was no outreach to constituent communities. There was, simply, no face to discriminate against.

The NOH8 Campaign puts faces to the discrimination. It puts stories behind the slogans. Gay, straight, bi, trans-gendered, black, white, brown (and every other shade) friends and families have joined celebrities like Ashlee Simpsons and Pete Wentz, Fran Drescher, Meghan McCain, director Bryan Singer, Steve-O and many others in this silent protest.

Every picture truly tells a story.

I posed for Dilson and Jason. Dilson, legally married in California to his amazing husband Walter, who among the 1100 + right and privileges denied to him by DOMA is not entitled to the same protections and privileges of any other immigrant. His 10-day old son, Jason, could lose his father any day, with no warning and no recourse.

I posed for Alfred, just out of college, who made me appreciate The Wizard of Oz, having found his strength, his heart and his voice in coming out in the last year. He not only did it himself, he is quick to speak up to anyone who would ever seek to treat him as anything less than a full citizen.

I posed for Rob, who came out in the past years, though later in his 30's, doesn't want anything to limit his options or potential. Rather than make up for lost time, Rob lives just as he always has, proving that being identified as gay does not change who he is.

I posed because Americans are the heirs to a philosophical fortune and I don't wish to squander it like the idiot off spring of the great robber barons. I posed because around the world people are dying just for the right to be in love.

I posed because my rights, our rights, are important. I never thought I would have the option of fighting for those rights. I posed for Lt Dan Choi and the 13,000 members of the Armed Forces dismissed under the shameful "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. I posed for the hundreds of young people who call the Trevor Project each year when they have nowhere else to turn.

Mostly, I posed for David. I have to prove to him that when I get misty-eyed describing the founding principles of this nation, the truths that we hold self-evident; when I have faith in the rule of law, at the staggering progress made and inspired here and abroad by these imperfect men who knew the pyramid remained un-finished; when I see Plessy v Ferguson become Brown v Board of Education or see the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments become the Civil Rights and Voting Rights Acts, I know that those principles are earned and remain my work long after Election Day.

What these young men have created is the kind of grassroots action that can change a mind, that can change a vote, that can change the world.

To view the campaign, celebrity photos and to find our how you can participate, log on to www.noh8campaign.com.

Neal Rodriguez: The History of the Electric Guitar as Seen by 3 Rock Legends

2009-07-10T00:43:23Z

"The earliest documented performance with an electrically amplified guitar was in 1932," according to Wikipedia. The electric guitar was used by Hawaiian Style musicians. George Barnes reportedly recorded the first 2 songs with the electric guitar in 1938.

Now, Rock 'N' Roll without the electric guitar, is a folk song; slap a banjo on your knee and rock with a toothless hockey player on the harmonica. Howstuffworks calls it the best thing since the incandescent light bulb.

In It Might Get Loud -- a documentary on the electric guitar from the point of view of three rock legends, Jack White, the lead vocalist for The White Stripes; The Edge, guitarist for the Irish rock band U2; Jimmy Page, co-founder of the English rock band Led Zeppelin; give accounts of their lives mastering the electric guitar.

Jack White makes a one-string electric guitar from a board, a pick-up and Coke bottle in the film. Jimmy Page wrote a new song for the documentary. And the Edge is featured arranging his song "Get on Your Boots."