The Silver Spoon responded to the misinformation spread by this article and others like it with detailed retraction requests.  Below are statements from E! Online’s article juxtaposed with text from the press release from The Silver Spoon:

E! Online:

We’re told Palin was quite the prima donna and that she insisted the suite be opened two hours early so she could come when no looky-loos would be around.

Silver Spoon:

The governor arrived with a small group about 15 minutes prior to our store’s official opening; and upon arrival, she and her entire group gave generous donations to the cause. We offered to open early to accommodate her schedule; she did not ask us to open early.

E! Online:

“They told us last minute to get here superearly [sic] for [Palin],” says our rightfully annoyed source. “Then, she wouldn’t let anyone take her picture or do any interviews.”

“Rightfully annoyed”?  Maybe not. Silver Spoon:

We asked and the governor happily agreed to take a photo with the American Red Cross staff and the staff of The Silver Spoon.

E! Online:

Palin grabbed some oversize sweatshirts and tie-dyed “jeggings” for Bristol, got a blowout by colorist Erick Orellana from the Chris McMillan Salon, along with snatching up jewelry from Pascal Mouawad, Skagen Watches, Lash Food and 40 pairs of Aiaiai headphones.

Silver Spoon:

Just one example of the many falsehoods is the ridiculous idea that Governor Palin walked away with 40 AIAIAI headphones. In reality, she was given two pairs of AIAIAI headphones – one for herself and one for her daughter Bristol who could not attend the event. The idea that she took 40 pairs is an outrageous falsehood.

E! Online:

Too fab she gave money, but we can assure you she did not give up any of her swag.

No, you can’t.  And what does “too fab” mean?  Anyway, from Silver Spoon:

The whole point of giving away products is to “give them away.” That’s why we call this type of event style a “gifting suite.”

So E! Online’s big bust is… Palin took gifts from the “gifting suite”?

E! Online:

Jeez, with this kind of bitchy and Hollywood-esque behavior, Sarah, you’re heading into Blind Vice territory! Or have you been there already?

Silver Spoon:

I escorted her around and introduced her to every vendor, and they talked to her about their products and gifted her with samples. She never asked for anything but politely accepted the products. The governor and her family and guests were very gracious and respectful to everyone.

Sounds “bitchy” indeed.  Since all of the evidence used in this piece that led Casablanca and English to the extremely sophisticated conclusion that Palin was “bitchy” is bogus, they ought to retract this offensive, misogynistic slur as well.

We think The Silver Spoon staff put it best in their press release:

We would like an immediate retraction and an apology to The Silver Spoon, its vendors, and especially to Governor Sarah Palin.

Please issue retractions to this “bitchy and Hollywood-esque” article.

Exit question:  If Palin is so green, so dumb, and so ripe for satire as E! Online and the rest of the mainstream media says she is, why does the left need to fabricate or wildly exaggerate stories to impugn her character?  If she’s so bad, prove it with the truth.

~~~~

These other publications also ran stories containing misinformation similar to what was cited above.  We request they issue corrections as well:

AOL’s PopEater: “Sarah Palin Reveals Her Love of Hollywood Swag”

New York Daily News: “Sarah Palin and entourage descend like ‘locusts’ on Oscar swag suite”

FishbowlLA: “Palin Posse Loots Oscar Gift Suite for ‘Charity’”

“Loots”?  Really? If there are others, and there surely are, please be sure to tweet them @retracto.

We kindly request all of these sources correct or retract their articles.

I bet that headline got your attention!  But, as you’ll see a little later in this post, the scene in question is not really a “rape” at all.  But that didn’t keep the NY Daily News from running this headline yesterday:

‘Bye Bye Birdie’ revival on Broadway drops scene for ‘gang rape’ concern

“Just a copy editor trying to get attention by over-exaggerating a story,” you think?  That’s what I thought, too.  But here is the story with Gina Gershon’s quote:

According to Gina Gershon, who stars as Rose in the upcoming revival, the production has said bye bye to a frisky dance sequence that has been in the show since its debut in 1960.  In the scene, Rose, originated on stage by Chita Rivera and on film by Janet Leigh, crashes a Shriners banquet, flirts and cavorts on, around and underneath a table with the fez-heads.  As written, it’s a funny dance showcase. So why is it too hot to handle in 2009? Gershon told The News’ theater critic Joe Dziemianowicz, “It seemed a little too gang rape-y.”

The Daily News takes the words right out of my mouth when it says:

That should come as interesting news to countless high schools, parochial academies and theater camps where this number has been performed for nearly 50 years.

Before I give you my guess as to what is really going on here, I will let you judge for yourself.  Here is Chita Rivera performing Gower Champion’s original Broadway choreography:

It’s not my favorite scene from a 60’s musical, but I don’t think it could be objectively described as a “Gang Rape”… unless you mean that the character of Rose is raping the gang of Shriners!!!

So, what is this REALLY all about?  Here is my hunch:

Whenever a Hollywood star is cast to do a Broadway musical, the first question everyone asks is:  ”Can he/she sing?”  In the cases of Glenn Close and Hugh Jackman, the answer was “YES!”  In the case of Faye Dunaway, the answer was “Oh God, NO!”

But, in the case of Rose in “Bye, Bye Birdie,” the relevant question is not whether Gershon can sing, because Rose’s songs are not very challenging… no, what defines the role of Rose is following in the footsteps of Chita Rivera and living up to the distant memory of her dancing.  Rivera is a Broadway legend who enjoys a reputation of holding an audience captivated with her body and how she moved it.  So, the big question in relation to Gershon being announced as Rose in this revival was not “Can she sing?”; it was “Can she dance?”

Now, I try my best not to be too snarky or catty in my posts.  And I’ve already noted this revival as something I am personally looking forward to…  but, based on this little kerfuffle over cutting this dance sequence and the really lame excuse (“gang rape-y”?  come on!), I think it is fair to say that the answer is, “No, she can’t dance.. at least not well enough to hold the stage for a dance sequence like this.”

As we’ve all seen on “Dancing With the Stars,” if you are paired with a great dancer, you can learn enough and practice enough to be a good enough partner to look like you can dance.  But when you are alone on stage dancing without a partner as Rose is in this number… well, that is something you can’t fake.  And to me, this sounds like a good director and a good choreographer protecting their star and coming up with a press agent’s excuse for cutting a number.

Further evidence of this?  The show is set to begin previews on September 15.  This means the show has been in rehearsal for a couple of weeks.  If the producers and director of this show wanted to cut this number for the reason they are stating now, the decision would have been made a while ago.  You have to believe that they tried it out, and it wasn’t working.  (Unless you believe that they only now have realized that the scene is “Gang Rape-y” after spending the time creating the scene, rehearsing the scene, costuming the scene… etc…)

By the way, revivals have recently been subject to political correct revisions.  The most common is the song “I’m an Indian Too” being excised from Irving Berlin’s “Annie Get Your Gun.”  The Native American community (how PC am I???) have found these lyrics from the 1946 play offensive:

Like the Chippewa,
Iroquois,
Omaha…
Like those Indians
I’m an Indian too
A Sioux
A Sioux

Just like Rising Moon
Falling Pants
Running Nose
Like those Indians
I’m an Indian too
A Sioux
A Sioux

Some Indian drummers they’re without a care
I may run away
With Big Chief Sun-of-A-Bear

And I’ll have totem poles
Tomahawk
Small papoose
Which will go to prove
I’m an Indian too
A sioux
A sioux
A sioux
Oh, I’m an indian
I’m an Indian
I’m an honest Injun Indian

I’m an Indian, too.

What has always bugged me about this song being removed is the CONTEXT of the song in the show (context still means SOMETHING, doesn’t it?).  Annie sings it right after Chief Sitting Bull adopts her into the Sioux tribe.  She is honored, proud and happy to be adopted.

Here is rare footage of Mary Martin in the original 1946 production:

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Now, obviously this scene is not meant as a historically accurate depiction of a traditional Sioux ceremony, but is it mean-spirited, insulting, derisive?  Not in my politically incorrect opinion.

So, I guess I’m saying…  Gina, if you can dance it, BRING ON THE GANG RAPE SCENE!

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