news feeds jan 28

Last night the 19th annual Screen Actors Guild awards were handed out in Los Angeles. Daniel Day-Lewis and Tommy Lee Jones won the Best Actor and Supporting Actor respectively for their roles in "Lincoln." Jennifer Lawrence won Best Actress for her work in "Silver Linings Playbook," and the super boring (no offence) Anne Hathaway taking home Best Supporting Actress for her turn in "Les Miserables." Ben Affleck's "Argo" took home the award for Best Cast, and the latest James Bond film "Skyfall" won Best Stunt Ensemble. On the television side of things awards were given out to screen vets Kevin Costner and Julianne Moore after switching over to the cable miniseries game, Costner in "Hatfields & McCoys" and Moore in "Game Change." Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad) and Claire Danes (Homeland) took home the acting awards in a drama series while 30 Rock stars and the King and Queen of New York Alec Baldwin and Tina Fey swept the comedy series awards. Awards season closes out on February 24th, hosted by Family Guy creator Seth McFarlane. "Lincoln" has 12 Oscar nominations, while "Les Miserable" and "Silver Linings Playbook" got 8 nods each. "Argo" received 7. 

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What the hell happened to Sarah Palin? Not that she ever had all that much going for her once McCain lost out to Obama in 2008. Anyways, that kind of cute, intelligent looking woman without actually being too smart is not going to have her contract renewed by Fox news where she served as a correspondent. In 08, it seemed Sarah could do no wrong; she was lovingly mocked by Tiny Fey on SNL, she had her own reality show, and a best selling book out. Fox News Chairman Roger Ailes decided to scoop her up quick and even built a modern studio for her in her Wasilla, Alaska home. What is she going to do next? I don't think anyone cares.

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While director JJ Abrams has been attached to direct the new Star Wars film, it appears the 2015 release date that was circulating online could be premature. Abrams has a full plate (and then some) in front of him with his second film in the "Star Trek" reboot series hits theatres May 17, followed by the inevitable press commitments leading up to and once the film is released then is slated to produce "Mission: Impossible 5" and a third film Star Trek film. "You know, obviously, it's so early," Abrams said. "I can just say what I want to do: I want to do the fans proud. I want to make sure the story is something that touches people. And we're just getting started. I'm very excited." So start speculation on Episode VII's title (from google: The New Republic, Legacy Of the Shadows, Legacy Of the Sith, and Knights Of the New Republic) and get ready for Star Wars: Disney style.

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Well, this is just brill. A 20 year old prostitute from Portland, Oregon drove 50 miles to meet up with a john who had solicited her via text messages. The address she was given turned out to be the Salem Police Department. She walked up to the building, clearly marked 'Police Department,' entered the station, walked past several uniformed officers before coming to an unmarked door within the station where she tried to get ahold of her client. Once the officers stopped staring at her inappropriate attire they arrested the woman for prostitution and promoting prostitution. As it turns out, the messages were part of a sting operation by the Salem police department who first identified the woman online. Darshhh!

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Reunited and it feels so good… Actually it's a double Black Flag reunion. Punk rock pioneers Black Flag will have two versions of the outfit performing this year. Greg Ginn, the bands founder, guitarist and principle songwriter has put back together their 1978 with Ron Reyes on vocals to play this summers Hevy Fest in the UK. Another incarnation, this one know simply as "Flag" will include Circle Jerks/OFF! vocalist Keith Morris, Chuck Dukowski (who will play in both reunited units) on bass, Descedents/All drummer Bill Stevenson, as well as Stephen Egerton of the Descendents/All playing guitar. Egerton is the only member of the two acts that wasn't an actual member of Black Flag, but if you've ever seen Stephen play, you know he can hold his own with the best of 'em. Looking forward to seeing at least one Flag in 2013.

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Every Time I Die and Jose Canseco? Amazing.. I don't use twitter but gosh darnit, it makes friends of people who probably wouldn't be friends other wise, which is obviously hilarious. Don't know if this is serious, or a lampoon, but it is pretty funny either way. CHECK IT HERE.

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baseball fans mourn the loss of two greats

Two Baseball Greats Pass Away

One of baseball's prolific hitters and one of its most cantankerous managers both passed away on January 19. Stan "The Man" Musial passed away at the age of 92. He played for the St. Louis Cardinals for his entire 22 year career and amassed 3,630 hits and 475 home runs to go alog with 1,951 runs batted in and a .331 career batting average. In his first full season the Cardinals won the World Series, then again in 1944 before missing the 1945 season serving with the US Navy. Upon his return in 1946 he won his second MVP award and third World Series championship. He was a first ballot Hall Of Famer in 1969, a seven time batting champion and even served as the Cards GM for a season, winning the World Series then stepping down from his post. Cheers to The Man!

Baltimore Orioles Hall Of Fame manager Earl Weaver passed away at 82. He managed the Orioles for 17 seasons after an unsuccessful playing career, won the AL pennant for the first of four times in his first season and captured his only World Series title in his second, 1970. He was known for his mantra of what wins baseball games: "pitching, defence and the three-run homer." He despised the idea of stolen bases, hit and runs and bunting, feeling that they were a waste of outs. He was also known for his run ins with umpires. Not counting the post-season, "Earl the Pearl" was ejected at least 90 times and received four multi-game suspensions. Some of baseballs most quotable lines come from Earl after getting ejected. After one ejection, Earl yelled out "I'm going to check the rule book on that." The umpire replies "Here, use mine," to which Weaver shot back "That's no good - I can't read Braille." He loved kicking dirt on umpires' cleats as well as putting his hat on backwards so he can get even more up in the grill of the ump. He was inducted to the Hall of Fame in 1996. Here's two of the best Earl rants, one on a radio show (probably outtakes but still shocking) and one tirade from a game against the Tigers from 1980, where umpire Bill Haller was miked up for the game for a documentary on the daily life of an MLB umpire. Strong language!

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news feeds jan 22

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Celebrate good Obama, Come On! The president and vice were sworn in for their second term yesterday. Obama kicked offed the party with a speech (if your interested in the actual politics part you can check that HERE) where he soaked in the crowd once said speech was delivered saying "I want to take a look one more time. I'm not going to see this again." Musical performances by Alicia Keys, Brad Paisley and Jennifer Hudson followed as the first couple danced up a storm. There was some kind of parade. Vice President Joe Biden was periodically jogging along the route accompanied by his wife Jill with sporatic oxygen tank breaks. 

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People in Spain have become significantly cooler in this guys books. A 'square' (assuming it's town not Rice Krispie) is being named after late Clash frontman Joe Strummer. A petition was proposed to city officials and city hall spokeswoman, Maria Jose Anguita confirmed this and released the following statement: "A square has been identified and now the proposal has to be approved by the committee of honours and distinctions. There was a popular petition for this to happen and the city hall accepted it." The square is located in Grenada, mentioned in the track "Spanish Bombs" from the band's "London Calling" album. 

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Be prepared for another biopic. At least it isn't a reboot of a comic book franchise. The Beach Boys, more specifically Brian Wilson, are about to hit the silver screen. Paul Dano (There Will Be Blood, Ruby Sparks, Looper) is slated to portray the early years of Wilson. The film, titled "Love & Mercy" follows the Beach Boys early years, Wilson's relationship with his wife and his subsequent struggle with mental illness. The film covers several decades of his life and will see Dano play the early years while the role of his older years is still unchaste. BIll Pohland will be directing the film, whose previous credits include producing "The Tree Of Life" and "Into the Wild."

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Despite having past away almost thirty years ago I still thought I'd throw out some props to the King of Class, Cary Grant, who would be 109 on January 18 and definitely wouldn't have had a hair out of place if he was still alive. He was born Archibald Alexander Leach on Bristol, England and started off in show biz as a stilt walker in the "Bob Pender Stage Troupe." The troupe toured the US on the RMS Olympic for two years, and when the troupe headed back the UK, Grant stayed behind. He performed at the Muny Theatre in St. Louis before moving to Hollywood in 1931. A master of comedy and drama, he appeared in over 70 films in his career and astonishingly didn't win an Academy or Golden Globe during his entire career, despite two Oscar and five Globe nominations (He did win a Lifetime Achievement Oscar in 1970). "The Philadelphia Story" is one of his best balancing comedy and drama perfectly in a tale of socialite Katherine Hepburn's upper crust wedding ruined upon the arrival of ex-husband Cary and tabloid reporter James Stewart (who won the Oscar for Best Actor for his work). The film was one of the first films to show a couple divorce, seek out other partners only to reunite. This was a necessary ploy since the Production Code at the time forbade the depiction of extramarital affairs, and actually spawned a slew of films with similar formulas and shorelines. "The Philadelphia Story" was the second collaboration between Hepburn and Grant, who previously teamed up in 1938's "Bringing Up Baby." The catch is the baby in the title is a leopard named Baby, who is cared for by Katherine (a gift some her sibling? Amy - never get me a leopard for future reference)whom Cary gets to hang out with on the eve of his wedding. Watch "Notorious," "An Affair To Remember," "To Catch a Thief" should be watched by everyone who likes lavish, classically made films. I tend to ramble about my favourite Grant film (as well as my favourite Hitchcock film) 1959's "North By Northwest." A case of mistaken identity for Manhattan advertising executive Roger O Thornhill (Grant) who is mistaken for a government agent by a group of spies. George Kaplan, the agent he's mistaken for doesn't exist, but was made up by the government so the spies believed someone was on their tail. The government's fake agent agent has now become a real one, and Thornhill must elude the spies, the government and police officers after an incident in the classic United Nations scene. Legend has it that Hitchcock was denied access to shoot at the building so he had a camera across the street in a cab and took the footage of Grant entering the building. The crop dusting scene is one of the most famous scenes in American film, as is the iconic ending on the faces of Mount Rushmore. It has everything you'd want in a Cary Grant film, and everything you'd could want in a Hitchcock film at once. 

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Download a tribute album compiled by Filter Magazine to celebrate Descendents vocalist Milo Aukerman's 50th birthday. The album feature 13 Descendents songs covered by Mike Watt, The Bronx, Edsel, Good Riddance, Milo Greene and other! Get it HERE.

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The Toronto Maple Leafs and the rest of the NHL kick off their season tomorrow. Will the Leafs fare any better this season? There's no reason to think they will; they still have inexperienced goalies, a group of forwards who are soft in their own end and defence corps with more holes and question marks than Jodie Foster's Golden Globes speech. The Leafs have made a change or two while finalizing their roster, including shipping Matthew Lombardi to Phoenix for a pick and placing underproducing/overpaid forward Tim Connelly on waivers. It's great to see Colton Orr cracking the line up out of the shortened camp and I'm looking forward to seeing him on the ice again after playing in just five games with the Leafs last season. Leafs are in Montreal tomorrow night, 7PM, Hockey Night In Canada on CBC. The Leafs opening night roster HERE.

*** Was having some internet issues so I couldn't post this for the last couple days so the Leafs have played two games. They look rusty, but let's be fair; so has every team I've watched so far this season (what's going on in Philly?).  The Leafs won the ugly season opener in Montreal 2-1 before losing their own home opener last night against the Sabres by the same score. Nazem Kadri has been quite good, never thought I'd say that (sorry.. I kind of gave up), and has scored in each contest. The puck actually looks like its trying to find him sometimes. The Leafs visit Pittsburgh on Wednesday night. 

Other early season story lines: The old guys! Look a Jagr and Kovalev light it up (Kovalev and his new team the Panthers did get shutout by Ottawa last night). Vancouver goalies! Who's the number one guy? Blackhawks! Eleven goals in two games. They still have arguably the most snipers of any team in the league with Marian Hossa (another older guy lighting it up), Jonathan Toews and the two Patricks' (Sharp and Kane). Rangers and Flyers! Are they really this bad defensively?

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nhl lockout & the leafs

The NHL lockout has come to an end. I guess we will see the effects south of the border during the course of the shortened season, but every Canadian city will be fine. We're gonna have to see which American market will be hurt the most, maybe Anaheim? Dallas? Or Phoenix, if they can be hurt anymore? I don't think the American markets will be affected as much as analysts are thinking. Some of the league's loudest fans are in hockey crazed markets in the US. If you don't believe me, check out a game in Chicago or Madison Square Garden, home of the Rangers. I know, obviously original 6 teams (add the crazy Red Wings and Bruins fans to the mix) will be fine, but what about non-traditional hockey markets? Los Angeles, the defending champs should have no problem selling seats, while their Bay Area neighbours to the North in San Jose have notoriously been some of the most passionate fans in the league. Nashville and more recently St. Louis have been icing some great, competitive teams, and in turn fan interest has been extremely high. The Minnesota Wild made a huge splash landing the best defenceman and forward on the free agent market, Ryan Suter and Zach Parise, respectively, immediately vaulting them from the middle of the pack to the elite of the Western Conference. Philly and Pittsburgh have a rabid, menacing (ok, just Flyers fans are menacing) groups of fans, who are as loud and knowledgeable as any in the league. Anyways, point being, a few markets will suffer, but I wouldn't worry about the stability of the league in the United States. Bottom line is, if you like hockey, it is the best league in the World with the best players, and you will be back.

The Toronto Maple Leafs. Alright, so game on. We all know the playoff drought and the franchise mediocrity since 2004's lockout (and the terrible Leaf teams of the 80s). How will this Leaf season be any different you might ask. Well, who knows? If the first 42 games of last season are a sample, they look pretty good. The last half on the other hand, was an epic collapse of a team that was in contention for the better part of a season. Phil Kessel and Joffrey Lupul were incredible during the first half, and still good in the second, with Kessel netting a team leading 37 goals, adding 45 assist for 82 points (6th in the NHL). The Leafs were able to acquire an impact forward, former Flyer James Van Riemsdyk. Coach Randy Carlyle said he was going to try hit new winger at centre, presumably between Kessel and Lupul, who tucked in 25 goals himself in an injury shortened 66 game season. The second line should be interesting. The Clarke MacArthur-Nik Kulemin-Mikhail Grabovski unit was the Leafs best two seasons ago, but last year Kulemin and MacArthur regressed. I would imagine Matt Frattin will put some pressure on Leafs coaches to be promoted to the second line. He is a great young player who probably deserves to start the season on the second line and hopefully will. Matt Frattin has got 16 points in 20 games with the Marlies this season, and last season he had 10 goals in 13 playoff games.

The defence is looking pretty sharp, despite dispatching Luke Schenn to Philly for Van Riemsdyk. Captain Dion Phaneuf had a great season last year, making significantly less bonehead plays. By the end of the season, holes in his game were beginning to show and finished with a -10 plus/minus rating. However, the captain got more points last year than his first season and a half in Toronto, setting up or scoring much bigger goals. The shortened season may actually play pretty well in Phaneuf's favour, since he was one of the first half's best defencemen. THe captain netted 12 goals and 32 assists over a full 82 game campaign. His partner is Jake Gardiner, who Don Cherry recently called him the best player he has ever seen play in the AHL. Not that Don's opinion really matters, but he could be right. He has scored 9 goals in 22 games this season with the Marlies with a mere 6 penalty minutes. He isn't the toughest guy on the team, but he certainly isn't a pushover. Jake also tallied 11 points in 17 playoff games last season in the Marlies run to the Calder Cup Finals. The second pair of Carl Gunnerson and John-Michael Liles will probably play a lot of minutes against their opponents top lines, with Liles, a power play specialist set to anchor the team's attack on the man advantage. Having Mike Komisarek, his contract aside, on your bottom pairing means you have some depth on D, and is paired with Cody Franson - who is still actually unsigned, and with Mark Fraser, Mike Kostka and Korbinian Holzer breathing down his neck, the sixth d-man could be anyone of the above bodies. Franson's first season in Toronto was painful. He wasn't horrible or anything, but with his skill set he should have been a whole lot better. 

Goaltending is still Toronto's biggest area of concern. James Reimer had a stellar rookie campaign going 20-10 with a .921 save percentage and 2.60 goals against average. Last season, his first full season as the starter, Reims save percentage dropped to .900 and his goals against jumped to over 3 a game. Marlies goaltender Ben Scrivens is 14-7 this season with the farm team, but has yet to establish himself at an NHL level. Luongo to Toronto still a possibility? Let's hope not, but it is no guff that the Leafs want/need a goalie, and Luongo/the Canucks want to break up. Hopefully the Leafs will continue to explore the possibility of the Kings excellent backup Jonathan Bernier, who would be a starter on almost any other team, but plays behind Jonathan Quick, one of the best in the biz. Quick just got off minor back surgery, and although he is cleared to play, the Kings are going to hold on to both of them. 

Whatever the length of the season happens to be, at least it promises to be exciting right from the start, with each game being crucial in the shortened season. Let's play some puck!

[didn't proofread.. tired. sorry for typos and autocorrects!]

news feeds jan 3

Welcome back. Haven't updated a whole lot the last while because of work, holidays and such not to mention the news has been fairly depressing lately so, hey, hey, what can you do? Thought I would throw out a few things… that are semi-news worthy at best, but you can be done with it in no time and go back to getting your news from The Guardian and USA Today.

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First off, congrats on being alive! We survived yet another doomsday prediction and as it turns out all those Mayan and Dick Clark memes didn't generate enough sarcastic karma to wipe us out. Compared to the last major prophetic apocalyptic threat in the year 2000 (Y2K anyone) every one seemed pretty calm this time around, seeing it as a win-win situation. If it doesn't end, you're alive and if it does you can probably defer your credit card and car payments. Many scientists have predicted that the world will end due to intolerable levels of carbon dioxide, that the universe will rip apart because of its continual expansion or the Sun grows so hot it  eventually swallows Earth. You don't have to rush out an buy water purification tablets just yet, those events aren't expected to take place for billions of years, but as luck would have it, there's a couple more doomsday predictions that will come (and go) during our lifetime. Jeane Dixon, a well known American psychic who passed away in 1997, predicted that Armageddon would occur with Jesus returning to Earth to defeat the Antichrist, Satan and the False Prophet between 2020 and 2037. Jeane also predicted that the world would end on February 4, 1962 due to that particular day's planetary alignment. Swing and a miss. Mariners Church head pastor is rolling with 2021 because it is one biblical generation (80 years) since the founding of Israel in 1948. Sooo.. that is it for the next hundred or so years. Live easy, friends.

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A Washington woman has grounded her 59 year old son for conveniently 'losing' the girl's bike she gave him when he was 8 years old. Helen Puz, now 99, was gifted the bicycle by a neighbour after her husband died forcing her to raise her young son Don alone. Don put up with the girls bike for a while before ditching about 50 feet off the Vashon Highway near Vashon Island, Washington. Helen saw a story in a local paper about a bike that was swallowed up by a tree and thought it looked familiar. Helen and Don went out to the tree where the bike was encased and confirmed it was in fact the bike that had be ditched some 50 years ago. Also, it has been confirmed that the front wheel still turns. I just like the picture. 

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We all know how much of a pain in the ass air travel can be sometimes. The infinite queues, the overpriced stale food, and passengers that require assistance board first? What the hell is that? Not to mention when you actually get on the plane… their stupid small bags of chips and thimbles of juice. Cramped seats. Large dude beside you taking the whole armrest. What a habitually terrible experience. Well, imagine an airport that played nothing but the first six Black Sabbath albums (and maybe some Heaven & Hell and Born Again at regular intervals), the lights were dim, the security was lax (not LAX… airport humour!), and the Ian Gillen led incarnation of Sabbath was the house band. That may be a ways off, but the airport in Birmingham, UK has considered a proposal that would rename the airport after Ozzy Osboune, the resident Prince of Darkness. "It's an interesting idea and I've got an open mind. We need to be making the most of the talent we have got and did have in this city," said Birmingham city councillor Phillip Parkin. Rock & roll, mate!

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This isn't even news, and I feel kind of like a moron posting it but this is photographic gold. And a rarity! A picture of Madonna's legs open WITH clothes on. But for real… she fell while skiing in Switzerland.

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Remember when Mel Gibson didn't scare people just by mentioning his name? He started off bad ass enough, playing in the first two Mad Max films, then Peter Weir's Aussie WWI epic Gallipoli. My favourite of Mr. Mel is definitely Lethal Weapon. The first one. The sequels provided some fun with Riggs and Murtaugh but they didn't come close to the first one. In the original film, the mismatched cops (Mel's counterpart being Danny Glover) take on a seedy drug and prostitution ring, and their main muscle, resident crazy man Gary Busey. Gary and Mel's hair are the best things in a movie and make the best gritty, dirty cop movie since Magnum Force. Why am I mentioning any of this? It just Mel's birthday, that's all. And since Lethal Weapon and, to a lesser extent "Braveheart," are pretty bad ass flicks and hopefully he has a pleasant evening, but Mel, don't drink and get behind the wheel.. Just saying'

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Let's not talk World Junior hockey. Canada's version of March Madness saw the boys lose to a very well prepared American team in the semis, setting up a USA-Sweden gold medal game with Canada and Russia playing for bronze.

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Check out Hot Water Music's new video for "Drag My Body" and check out their current tour dates HERE.

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