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Christian Toto:
“The new drama “The Blind Side” tells the story of a homeless black teen who is taken in by a Christian family led by Sandra Bullock.
“It’s a heartwarming story based on the life of NFL lineman Michael Oher.
“So why does the film feel the need to awkwardly squeeze in a slam at former president George W. Bush?” (more…)
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Last night HBO debuted the documentary “By the People: The Election of Barack Obama,” which chronicles the historic election of our 44th president. The film was shot by Alicia Sams and Amy Rice with a key assist from actor Edward Norton. The directors wanted to follow Obama around on his campaign after seeing his speech in the 2004 Democrat Convention. They couldn’t get any calls back until Ed Norton stepped in to help. Norton doesn’t appear in the film. But there are plenty of other starry-eyed voters lined up to praise “the one.”
The film’s first 45 minutes deals with the Iowa Caucus where Obama’s campaign begins. He spends eight months meeting people and working his bland charm, trying to convince everyone he’s just like them. An agreeable, prosaic kind of guy who looks good in a suit and grins a lot. There is no indication of his politics or past associations being radical. He seems a moderate. There are a few people interviewed who question his past, but it’s given little attention. (more…)
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The new CBS program “The Good Wife” received a lot of press attention when it premiered several weeks ago, partly because of its novel subject matter. The show explores the life of a wronged political spouse who returns to the workforce after her cheating husband is sent to prison. The show’s plot invited inevitable comparisons to many contemporary political spouses who have felt the glare of standing by their cheating partners in the media spotlight. Since its premiere, the show has quickly established itself as a smart and entertaining program that is not afraid to explore politics within the legal system and outside of it.
Although many politicians from both political parties can be compared to the husband, played by Chris Noth, an obvious comparison springs up in the premiere episode as the lead character, Alicia Florrick who is played by Julianna Marguiles, returns to work as a lawyer. One of her supervisors, played by Christine Baranski, bluntly says to her, “Not only are you coming back to the workplace fairly late but you have some very prominent baggage.” She then adds, pointing to a picture of current Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, “But hey, if she can do it, so can you.” Furthering the perception that the lead couple can be compared to President Bill Clinton and his wife, a recent article about the program from The Hill quoted one of the creators of the show offering a “suggestion” to a director about the character of the cheating husband. That suggestion was “Imagine Bill Clinton in prison.” (more…)
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![Who is Barack Obama[1]](http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_GzrzcElky8w/SswM-AkAjtI/AAAAAAAADcU/npbXZguRrWI/s1600-h/Who+is+Barack+Obama%5B1%5D.png)
Who is Bosch Fawstin?
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What’s most amazing to me, is that even among liberals there are very few people who can justify an anti-school choice stance. If it seems as though this video contains some “straw man” arguments… Believe me, it’s just THAT hard to find a logical case against school choice. If anyone can think of a more valid reason that hasn’t been included in the video, be sure to comment it below.
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Race is once again the biggest issue in America. Kanye stealing the mic from Taylor, the school bus beating, Joe Wilson’s scream in Congress, ACORN scandals, the Cambridge cop and lastly, CIA-investigating Attorney General Eric Holder calling us all cowards for not talking about race. Race cards are flying all around us on a daily basis. Duck!
Let’s talk about race for a moment.
This morning I saw a video of a school bus filled with primarily African-American kids cheering while a white student is beaten to a pulp. Already the police are saying race had nothing to do with the attack. Oh really? So a white kid being beaten has no racial undertones yet Joe Wilson’s inappropriate scream of “You Lie!” is solely about race? Why, certainly. Just ask Maureen Dowd. (more…)
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[Click image to enlarge]
(….and I approve of this mess. Um….uh….. I mean, I approve of these friends……..that is, until they become political liabilities)
Barack Obama inspires me.
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“Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!” – Michael Corleone, Godfather Part III
True story: As a young man just out of law school, I was consumed with politics. I even went to work on the Hill (Capitol, that is, Washington, DC) and in journalism. But at some point in the ’90s, my interest faded away.
Francis Fukuyama wrote a then-notorious book called The End of History, published in 1992, shortly after the Soviet Union’s collapse. He argued that the age-old ideological struggles over what constitutes the best form of government were over, and the undisputed universal champion was Western liberal (in the classic, free-market sense) democracy.
I grew up during the latter stages of the Cold War, when the existential threat of nuclear war hung over and colored almost everything. It made politics seem vital to one’s very survival. And I found the debate between capitalism and communism hugely compelling. (more…)
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Congress is back in session after its hot and grueling August recess. More than a few of its members were drilled incessantly by citizens upset about the pending passage of HR 3200 and/or its progeny. Today President Obama will address the nation on health care reform. It will be his final pitch to the country in hopes that he can regain his splendor with the American public which has been fairly tarnished over the whole issue.
Yesterday, the Los Angeles Times ran an article entitled, “Obama is Fast Losing White Voters’ Support.” In that article, the Times states that, “strategists in both parties blame Obama’s decline on growing discontent with his policy agenda, particularly after a month of often-rowdy debate over his proposed healthcare overhaul, in which some conservatives accused him of socialism.” What else can this plan be called? I have torn apart HR 3200 in many ways. And, above all else, when the plan is carefully reviewed it is socialist. (more…)
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In Parts One and Two of this interview, Mr Lebaron described the many legal, moral and ethical problems plaguing the California legislative process. In Part Three, Mr. LeBaron describes how We The People can begin to bring the long-hallowed and honorable traditions of enlightened American lawmaking back to the State House in Sacramento.
Q: How could such a law as the Honor In Office Act be enforced?
JERROL: There are some legislators who will perjure themselves day in and day out. There is no hope for them, unless someone reports the violation. However, we are dealing with partisanship. That means that 45-55% are Democrats and 45-55% are Republicans, typically. The Honor In Office Act plays very nicely into that. Newly elected lawmakers might be far more conscious of the new rules. There are other lawmakers in office who have lost their way, because they have had no way to protect themselves from the less scrupulous. (more…)
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I have to go to the post office.
Last week, In New York, we dropped by my Aunt Ethel’s apartment in Long Beach where I saw an old family photo of my paternal grandmother, Miriam, with my father and his brother, my Uncle Chaim.
“Aunt Ethel, I never saw this photo. It’s amazing.”
“Yes, I love it.”
“Can I borrow it?”
“Robert, that’s my only copy.” (more…)
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DWTS is a long way from Washington D.C.’s world of politics, so we’re anxious to see just how well this Texas native can do the two-step!
One of the most influential Republican figures in the early 2000s, Tom DeLay rose through the ranks in the United States House of Representatives to become the Majority Leader of the Republican Party. His aggressive “Grow the Vote” method of party discipline, where he never lost a vote, earned him the nickname of “The Hammer” from the Washington Post.
The site is loaded with overwhelmingly angry comments from the entitled Left show’s fans making it clear the choice of Delay will cost ABC viewers: (more…)
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Red-blooded males aren’t supposed to stock their CD shelves – or iPod Shuffles – with songs by handsome crooner Chris Isaak. But I’ve got plenty of Isaak’s music spread throughout my eclectic collection – being a fan of both Dwight Yoakam and the Monkees qualifies the “eclectic” label.
It isn’t just Isaak’s retro music, a heady crush of rockabilly and no-nonsense pop that endears him to me. It’s his attitude. He’s hopelessly self deprecating, a singer with talented pipes and a movie marquee mug who never gets lost in his own hype.
He’s also smart enough to know his limitations. Just listen to him dodge a baited question from a Washington Post interviewer over the weekend. (more…)
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Dateline: Future, most likely August 2012
Having been quite successful at my previous naming assignment for the Obama administration, I was encouraged to assist with another project for the folks at the White House.
After being bored sitting on my rump for a few months collecting my government writer’s retainer, (GS 1700 making it 28K a week) I was delighted to get the call from the new POTUS Merchandising Czar.
The Czar was none other than “Fish”; the former spokesman from the ShamWow! commercials. I knew in advance this assignment was not as high profile or prestigious as renaming a former naughty prison camp, for it was just a simple product-naming gig. However, in my former life as an ad/jingle writer, I had named many products, from expensive toys to cheap boxes of wine and I kind of enjoyed it. Volume is the key. You have to kick out a lot of names, and sometimes those names will trigger others, spurring further avenues of creativity. Czar Fish called me at home from his boat in Florida to give me some welcomed creative direction. (more…)
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Reverse Discrimination, according to Wikipedia, is defined as, “the practice of favoring members of a historically disadvantaged group at the expense of members of a historically advantaged group.” Since the 1964 Civil Rights Act when the phrase came into usage, it has been practiced in many different ways. Some examples include employment practices and college admissions. A more euphemistic way of saying reverse discrimination would be “affirmative action.” However you say it, it is still discrimination plain and simple.
The United States Supreme Court tackled the issue in the seminal case of Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, 438 US 265 (1978). In that case, the Court found that race could only be one of numerous factors in determining admission to a university. It stated that the University of California policy was unconstitutional, but that the policy used by Harvard was a valid type of affirmative action. The result was that Mr. Bakke was admitted to medical school and became a respected physician. (more…)
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And I don’t mean the movie. “The Stoning of Soraya M.” is a remarkable feature film about harsh Sharia law twisted by a husband against his wife. The film is brutal, honest and unflinching. Based upon Freidoune Sahebjam’s 1994 novel, the film straddles the world between fact and fiction, present and future.
“Soraya” epitomizes a woman’s plight in the Islamic world and reaches across the globe into communities which welcomed Muslim immigrants into their secular societies. But the question left unasked by these societies – face to face – is this: Will you accept the strictures of our society based upon Freedom and mutual respect?
Some Muslim immigrants (not all) refuse to embrace their adopted country’s mores and behaviors. They choose isolated communities. In France, a friend told me that many third-generation Algerians still don’t speak French. News reports about “disaffected youth” riots veil the source of burning cars in Paris – radicalized Islamist youth. Herein lies the question about enforced societal acceptance of multiculturalism and freedom.
Freedom is a tough concept to sell. You know it when you have it. You can see when it’s absent, i.e., Iran, Zimbabwe, socialist left-wing dictatorships like China, etc., But it’s taken for granted in America. Unfortunately in our ADD, media-centric world of flash, celebrity and shock, the world’s impression of freedom is excessive violence, sexuality and degradation. Freedom is confused with approval. The best definition I ever heard for Freedom was “The right to do what you want and the responsibility to take the right course of action.” (more…)
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There have been liberal movies stars for as long as there have been movie stars. The list of left-of-center Golden Age-era giants is a mile long. My admiration for an actor has ZERO to do with personal politics, but as Skip Press pointed out in his terrific piece last week, class is a big factor. Many of the greats didn’t share my beliefs, but few ever went out of their way to hurl insults at me and mine, either. Undoubtedly, someone could Google up a statement that contradicts me, but I would argue in return that human beings slip, even big-screen immortals. What can’t be argued is that once upon a time movie stars walked the earth who defined themselves, not with elitist, flame-throwing political rhetoric, but with dignity and class.
Sinatra and Ava for Democrat Adlai Stevenson
Where classic Hollywood mostly held their activism to advocating for their causes, too many of today’s classless breed defines their activism through the hurling of invective at the other side - at 50% of the customers. They do it up on the screen and they do it while hiding behind a Hollywood media-machine owned and operated by sycophants who mostly agree. There’s nothing wrong with passion, humor, disagreement and debate, that’s what Big Hollywood is all about, but ad hominem that dehumanizes is the tactic of a new generation eager to fit in with the A-list. (more…)
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President Obama has left the United States for a foreign trip that includes Saudi Arabia, Egypt, France and Germany. Unfortunately, a stop in Israel is not included. Why? With increasing rhetoric, Mr. Obama and his administration seem to be leaving Israel in the cold and partnering up with Israel’s Arab enemies at the same time that he is not taking the threats of North Korea seriously.
In the past few weeks, President Obama has told Israel that it must now accept a two state solution to the Palestinian problem, and just yesterday, he told Ehud Barak that Israel must stop all growth in the West Bank settlements. Further, the President has taken the position that Iran may continue its nuclear programs provided that it intends only to pursue nuclear energy and not nuclear weapons, in contravention of Israeli wishes.
What is going on here? Does the President believe that by kissing up to our enemies; i.e. Iran, North Korea, Venezuela and Radical Islam, that he is going to make all of the problems of the world go away? Does he believe that by allowing Israeli/US relations to go by the wayside, he is going to make Al Qaeda disappear? I think not.
In fact, yesterday another tape of Osama bin Laden appeared condemning the United States for backing the Pakistani military in taking on the Taliban. The tape made it clear that President Obama was no different from President Bush in bin Laden’s eyes and that the blood of Muslims and retribution for their deaths would be on Obama’s hands. The War on Terror is not over regardless of what President Obama wants to call it, and based upon the situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan, it is about to escalate. (more…)
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In the 1930’s, when world audiences were asked to name the capital of the U.S.A., one answer was high on the list: “Hollywood.” That was the location listed at the end of every amazing movie: “Made In Hollywood.” How could such magic not come from America’s capital?
Such is the power of a single word.
That power has not diminished but only increased with an ADD, multi-channel, hyperactive media-centric world. The silver screen has long given us immortal dialogue which now blends so deeply into the culture that people may not know their origin, but we know the meaning. A wise man I know said, “Image creates perception, perception creates reality.” It couldn’t be more true in the film business.
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In a media-centric world, from motion pictures to internet to phones, we are pounded with images, forming our perceptions and then creating our reality. How fast did the Internet meme “Cheese Eating Surrender Monkeys” become a daily reference at the coffee klatch, in your email, or on phone calls? Not long. We forget how powerful words can be when written in a clever and pithy way. The masters of dialogue like Charles Brackett, Billy Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond, and the Epstein brothers, knew irreverent and immortal lines. And as producers, writers or just Americans who appreciate a good, nimble turn of a phrase, we should excel at creating phrases that demonstrate the values we hold dear. Don’t understand? “What we have here is a failure to communicate!” (more…)
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On March 26, I was watching the Kids’ Choice Awards with my 8-year-old twins on Viacom’s Nickelodeon, which for 30 years has been the No. 1 entertainment brand for kids. It was dedicated to the Big Green Help environmental campaign and “going green” for Earth Day awareness. Leonardo DiCaprio was honored for his green work. Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson was the host, and my fellow Hollywood stars and musicians came out in full force.
An impressive commitment was shown to keeping the message of Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth” as a battle cry for our youths’ participation in protecting Mother Earth from global warming and pollution. My children were enthusiastic. I was confused. Something bothered me, and I could not put my finger on why – until Memorial Day weekend.
It started on Saturday morning, when I took my 8-year-old son, Nicholas, who is a Cub Scout, to the Los Angeles National Cemetery. About 2,700 Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, from Cub to Eagle, convened to place flags on more than 84,000 gravesites of America’s finest. It was a moving, profound experience.
One would expect a lot of running and playing among these youngsters as they performed their task. But, no. At each site, they stood at attention, recited the name of the service member and then saluted. Within two hours, 84,000 flags proudly waved in the gentle breeze. (more…)
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When you favor someone because of their race over others who are equally or more qualified, that’s racism. Except in America where an old policy that was supposed to help people in an age of real separatism is still on the books and enforced.
The appointment of judge Sonia Sotomayor by President Obama to the Supreme Court is a classic example of how absurd affirmative action has become. And she unwittingly said it all in the following statement:
“I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn’t lived that life.”
First of all, that is a foolish statement. Wise people don’t call themselves wise. And anyone who thinks their ethnicity (Latinos aren’t a race) or race makes them somehow more wise is not very smart. There are clueless people of every race. Life experience only imbues wisdom if you actually learn something from it. A lot of people don’t. (more…)
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Yeah-I think I get it? If you’re a media personality of mediocre talent and dubious intelligence like…uh…gee, there’s so many to choose from? Oh, I know, let’s go with Janeane Garofalo now that she’s decided to be a spokesperson for the party of “love, openness and diversity” again. Anyway, apart from proving you’re not smart enough to keep your mouth shut, what happens if you’re a media personality of mediocre talent and dubious intelligence and you openly preach the most vile form of inflammatory hatred towards an entire group/race of people in today’s politically correct climate?
You get a pass and high-fives from the MSM of course, but why? (more…)
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Escape has been the theme for U.S. moviegoers in recent months, but audiences aren’t avoiding attending good, serious films; Hollywood is avoiding making them.
The newly released, highly derivative thriller Obsessed finished first at the U.S. office this past weekend, bringing in a surprising $28.5 million. That’s twice what industry analysts had expected and a good deal more than the film’s relatively low $20 million production budget.
It’s also emblematic of a central problem facing Hollywood today: the decline of serious drama.
First-weekend audiences for Obsessed were undoubtedly swelled by the presence of singer Beyonce and the prospect of a catfight between her and homewrecker Ali Larter (Heroes). Undoubtedly the film did not disappoint in that regard. (more…)
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U2 is gearing up for a full scale US tour this summer. The Rose Bowl is already sold out for October 25th. YouTube and illicit audience recordings will never replace being there live, but it does give a guy a way to remember how it could and should be.
August 28, 1993. Only a hardcore U2 fan will know what that date means.
That summer night in Dublin, U2 put on what was perhaps the best show in rock history. Mick Jagger, Bono’s Dad Bob Hewson, a gaggle of supermodels and thousands of fans in the audience. Not a note out of time or a phrase out of place. The pinnacle of western music in my opinion. A big claim I know. The show has become legend in U2 circles. (more…)
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I was head of the film and broadcast department for a talent agency in the Detroit Metro area. As a casting agent my job was to get the character breakdowns, hold auditions and cast roles for film, TV and radio. My staff and I cast Zebrahead, Hoffa, Renaissance Man to name a few and many award winning commercials. I left the casting biz to coach voice-over artists and produce their CD’s, along with doing free-lance talent coordination for ad-agencies, where I negotiate celebrity talent.
I recently read Apocalypse Near? Liberal Actresses Line Up to Star in ‘Atlas Shrugged’ by Pam Meister and wanted to offer the perspective of someone who has experience in casting. The post told of Julia Roberts and Angelina Jolie having an interest in the role of Dagny Taggert. It was offered up, and several commenter’s mentioned that they feared Julia Roberts might change the script to reflect her liberal viewpoint. I don’t really think that should be a concern because many times certain actors are mentioned only to create buzz for a project, or to get their name out there, or both. I believe such is the case with Julia Roberts in this story. (more…)
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My wife loves me.
Despite the fact I’m an actor, she loves me. She thinks I’m the most talented guy on the planet, even as work continues to dry up. The eternal optimist to my ever lovin’ pessimist. I’m a Flintstone while she’s a beauty with a heart of gold. I make her laugh. She loves my bits. (A particular favorite is, my DeNiro, as Jake LaMotta, performing Kenny Loggins, “House at Pooh Corner”). FAHGETAHBOUT IT! My wife’s a peach.
Lately, however, there’ve been some clouds brewing on the horizon and it’s possible I may have had a slight hand in creating the situation. I’ve been listening to her as she’s watching the tube, talking about how Hannity is so cute. On other occasions, how the humble founder of Big Hollywood, Andrew Breitbart, has such a quick wit. I mean, I can handle her getting jazzed about Dennis Prager but this is new stuff for me. For the longest time, she was just so liberal. To this day, she’s a registered Democrat. I asked myself, how did this happen? How did she go from being a liberal woman from Buffalo to being charmed by the likes of O’Reilly? As I mentioned, I may be somewhat to blame because truth be told, at one time I was a liberal guy from Beantown. A man who voted for both Carter and Clinton. There, I said it. (more…)
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Today is the first Monday of Spring, the season that inspires fresh hope, renewed energy, and thoughts of new beginnings. And so it is appropriate that today a colleague and I have launched Parcbench, a pop-culture and lifestyle brand whose central feature is an online daily magazine at www.parcbench.com.
Parcbench does not profess to be like most other publications, although we have derived much inspiration from Big Hollywood and its founder, Andrew Breitbart, who has agreed to join our Board of Advisors. And we believe that we share a common mission. Specifically, we strive to bring people pop-culture that reflects mainstream America. (more…)
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Perhaps it went something like this…
Og, Bog, and Grog were out hunting mammoth one day somewhere in the mountains of Prehistoric Europe. Grog’s job was to select the most succulent, Grade A Prime Mammuthus primigenius available in the Mesolithic grocer’s aisle and herd it towards his spear-bearing buddies who were hidden in the brush. Grog made his choice and, using his trusty, flaming torch, chased the big woolly one brush-ward. Unfortunately, in the midst of all the excitement, Grog forgot the cardinal rule of torch-bearing hunters everywhere: always stay at least ten stone lengths away from the back end of a mammoth after it’s eaten a fir tree for lunch.
Over Grog’s ashes, Og ponders the lesson of his friend’s untimely incineration and thinks: “I’m gonna recommend the Chief hold a hunter’s refresher course and change it to twenty stone lengths.” Meanwhile, Bog, though he has access to the same information, processes it differently. He ends up dismissing the whole episode as a fluke and decides that, even if the conditions were similar, the same result could never happen to him. As Og is busy absorbing the cause and effect of Grog’s sudden demise, Bog thinks: “Let’s see, I had half a bison for breakfast, eighteen crow eggs, hand full of pine cones, pig fat smoothie with a scoop of roe deer hoof powder…which means, if I jog back to the cave reallyreally fast I can eat that entire pit of flame-broiled grubs.” (more…)
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Barack Obama has only been portraying the president for about 60 days or so, but his representation really needs to reconsider his branding.
I don’t know if he’s with ICM, CAA or whatever William Morris and Endeavor are going to be after their merger, but an agent’s job is to consider the talents of the individual client and guide him or her into opportunities that best exploit certain core competencies. We’re not seeing that anymore from Obama’s people. As we approach the back end of his first 100 days, his performance has that unsettling aura of David Letterman’s one-time hosting of the Oscars. Letterman didn’t really want to be there, and the audience slowly came around to the same thinking. (more…)
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The casting of Robert Montgomery (1904--1981) in They Were Expendable was uncommonly appropriate. The suave, handsome actor made his name in debonair romantic comedies throughout the 1930s, but like John Ford he didn't wait until America was dragged into war before enlisting. In 1940, fired up by the...
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