[236.com: Fox News’ Obama Documentary in a Minute] 23/6: Monday night, Fox News Channel aired the first of two presidential candidate documentaries called “Character and Conduct.” First up: Barack Obama, whose documentary pretends really hard that it’s not full of stereotypes and insinuations! Couldn’t stomach it Monday evening? We’ve got it for you in a minute. MORE PREVIOUSLY: Fox News Is Lying To America!
CINEMA: Un-American Activities
TRUMBO (2007, directed by Peter Askin, 96 minutes, U.S.) BY DAN BUSKIRK FILM CRITIC When Elia Kazan won his honorary Oscar back in 1999 there were some who voiced surprise that Sean Penn (among others) refused to applaud for the eighty-nine year old director. If one needs to understand why someone could be holding a grudge over Hollywood’s Communist witch hunts of the 1950’s, the life of its most famous victim, Academy Award winning screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, is a fine place to start. Peter Askin’s new documentary gives an intimate look at a how the blacklist effected one man and […]
BREAKING & EXITING: Why I’m Leaving Fishtown
BY STEWART EBERSOLE I woke up at 3am to the sound of something crashing downstairs. My roommate Rob is a night owl, so I assumed it was him making all that noise and rooting loudly through my toolbox. When my alarm finally woke me up at 7 a.m., it occurred to me for the first time that Rob actually had not been home that night, and that those noises were of a different ilk than the using late night roommate rattle and hum. And then I saw that the hallway window, the window that leads onto the back porch roof, […]
Glen Campbell Will Not Save You From Yourself
BY JOE WARMINSKY The best song on Jenny Lewis’s Rabbit Fur Coat was her Traveling Wilburys cover; she turned “Handle With Care” — with assists from indie worker-bees Oberst, Ward and Gibbard — into a post-millennial service economy lament. (In the hands of Lynne/Petty/Harrison/Orbison/Dylan, I saw it more as a rumination on suburban boomer anomie.) But more importantly, Lewis refreshed a fusty, shopworn hit by simply taking it seriously. Jenny one, FM rock zero. In that same way, Glen Campbell’s new album racks up a score of at least 3-0. With its 10 showy covers of alt-rock familiarities and AOR […]
VIMEO: The Saddest Music In The World
THE ARCHIVE from Sean Dunne on Vimeo. [HIGHLY RECOMMENDED] “Paul Mawhinney was born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA. Over the years he has amassed what has become the world’s largest record collection. Due to health issues and a struggling record industry Paul is being forced to sell his collection. This is the story of a man and his records. I hope you enjoy it.” — Sean Dunne, Director
NPR FOR THE DEAF: We Hear It Even When You Can’t
FRESH AIR After he won the presidency, Abraham Lincoln brought three of his rivals for the Republican nomination into his cabinet. Historian Doris Kearns Goodwin‘s book, Team of Rivals, recounts the life and work of our 16th president — and the principal characters of his administration. Goodwin won a Pulitzer Prize for her book, No Ordinary Time, about Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt. She has also written books about Lyndon Johnson and the Kennedys. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED: When Lyndon B. Johnson took office as president, after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, he began making daily recordings of his private conversations. Historian […]
KILLADELPHIA: 11-Year-Old Busted In Gun Shop Heist
DAILY NEWS: WHEN POLICE phoned early yesterday, the mother of an 11-year-old boy assured them that her son was at home in bed. But surveillance cameras at the Suburban Armory in Delaware County show he was miles from his Philadelphia home. Her little boy, police said, had been arrested as part of a teenage posse that tried to pull off a brazen gun-shop heist in Collingdale Monday night by dismantling the external alarm system and throwing a boulder through the window. They arrived on public transportation and used a pair of schoolbags to carry 14 semiautomatic handguns — plus the […]
JUMPIN’ JACK NEWS FLASH: Councilman Kelly’s Chief Of Staff Steps Aside After Corruption Indictment
PHILLY CLOUT: As predicted in today’s Daily News, City Councilman Jack Kelly’s chief of staff, Chris Wright, is leaving his job — maybe for good, maybe not. Wright was indicted two weeks ago, along with Kelly’s campaign treasurer and two brothers who had made substantial campaign contributions to the councilman. Wright is on unpaid leave, as of today. MORE PREVIOUSLY: City Councilman Jack Kelly’s chief, Chris Wright, [pictured making O-Face behind his boss] and three men involved in local land development were indicted this morning on federal corruption charges. Federal investigators say Wright used his post to help real estate […]
TIERNEY’S LIST: Thirty-Five More To Go?
ANONYMOUS SOURCE: “I just learned 35 more to get canned soon — 15 photographers, 10 copy editors, 10 editorial assistants, from both papers as part of the consolidation. So rumors were true that Marimow found a way to spare all the new writers he hired.” PREVIOUSLY: According to a report released today by Standard & Poor’s, the owner of the Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily News has received a forbearance agreement from its creditors that will run through September 10th. MORE PREVIOUSLY: Philadelphia Media Holdings LLC lenders blocked a June 1 interest payment after the company, owner of the Philadelphia Inquirer, […]
EXCLUSIVE: Obama To Tap Colin Powell For Veep Slot
Just kidding. Sorta. NEW YORK MAGAZINE: Are you holding on to your cell phones? After endless rumination and media speculation, Barack Obama’s decision on a running mate is nigh. Nigh! Just how nigh, nobody is quite sure. Could be tomorrow morning, could be later this week — Team Obama is probably relishing the suspense. They’ve promised to announce the pick to their supporters via text message, and based on the veepstakes short list and recent events, many people think the text might look something like, “Wht up, J Biden is my VP. TTYL.” MORE
INSTA-REVIEW: Meet Glen Campbell
Now playing on Phawker Radio! BY ED KING, ROCK EXPERT Along with Dionne Warwick, the late-60s hits by Glen Campbell represent, in my memory, the best of the failed aspirations of middle-class America. I still see those albums sitting in front of the huge, wooden stereo consoles in our neighborhood, resting on plush, burnt-orange carpeting. Some elongated sculpture of a conquistador on a horse decorates one end of the console. A reproduction of some painting by one of the Dutch Masters is centered over the stereo; it matches the colors of the heavy velour drapes and couch. “Galveston,” “Wichita Lineman,” […]
RESEARCHERS: Fruit Juice F*cks Up Pill-Taking
TIMES ONLINE: Grapefruit, orange and apple juice can all have a significant effect on the uptake of drugs — either lowering or increasing their effectiveness. While the influence of grapefruit juice is already well known, and some drug labels caution against drinking it with medicines, the latest research has extended the need for care. Results presented to the American Chemical Society meeting in Philadelphia yesterday by David Bailey, Professor of Physiology, Pharmacology and Medicine at the University of Western Ontario, show that fruit juices can limit the effects of several drugs, including three beta-blockers used to treat high blood pressure, […]
JUST IN: Neil Young + Wilco At Wachovia Center
PITCHFORK: For nearly all of the dates on his North American fall tour, folk-rock legend and Godfather of many styles Neil Young has invited the likes of Death Cab for Cutie and Wilco to take the warm-up spots. Death Cab goes first, with dates running from mid-October to early November, and Wilco takes the reins for the tour’s second leg in late November and early December. MORE 11-29 Halifax, Nova Scotia – Metro Centre 12-01 Montreal, Quebec – Bell Centre 12-02 Ottawa, Ontario – Scotia Bank Place 12-04 Toronto, Ontario – Air Canada Centre 12-07 Detroit, MI – Palace of […]