KIDNEY NOW: Elvis Costello, Mary J. Blige, Rhett Miller,  Sheryl Crow, Beastie Boys Mike D and Ad-Rock, Moby, Cyndi Lauper, Michael McDonald, Norah Jones and more were part of an all-star charity benefit for Milton Greene on the season finale of 30 Rock, but you can download the video for "He Needs A Kidney" at iTunes, with proceeds benefitting the National Kidney Foundation. Or you can stream it, if you get there before the lawyers do.

NEW RELEASES: White Rabbits, Van Hunt, Passion Pit, Jason Lytle, Apostle of Hustle, Flipper, the Beach Boys, Nick Cave, and more are streaming in full this weeke via Spinner.

WHITE RABBITS also played the World Cafe last Friday; you can stream the gig now via NPR.

DRIVE-BY TRUCKERS played the Mountain Stage; you can stream the gig now via NPR.

DAN DEACON played DC's 9:30 Club over the weekend, so you can stream the gig on demand via NPR.

THE BEACH BOYS' first UK TV appearance, on Ready, Steady, GO!, November 6, 1964.  "I Get Around" and "When I Grow Up," for Twofer Tuesday.

TORI AMOS is advance streaming her album.

BAT FOR LASHES stopped by the World Cafe for a chat and mini-set streaming on demand via NPR.

PETER BUCK talks about demos for the next REM album, and his otherwise busy schedule, with Pitchfork.

ECHO & THE BUNNYMEN: Ian McCulloch comments on Colonel Timothy L. Korpa bringing Ocean Rain to the International Space Station.

MAD MEL UPDATE: Gibson's girlfriend, Oksana Grigorieva, is reportedly pregnant with his child.

CYNTHIA NIXON announced her engagement to girlfriend Christine Marinoni.  From the picture, I'm guessing Nixon is the femme in the relationship.

BRITNEY SPEARS may make an unscheduled stop on "American Idol" this week?

ALEC BALDWIN may want to stay away from the Philippines for a while. And talk shows.

JAMIE FOXX named as a potential contender for the role of Frank Sinatra in Martin Scorcese's biopic? They already did this for Bob Dylan, so I'm guessing not.

MEGA-SHARK vs GIANT OCTOPUS:  People embeds the trailer along with comments from star (and former teen pop star) Deborah Gibson.

WOODY ALLEN setlled his lawsuit against American Apparel for five million.

DON PARDO retires as the voice of SNL.

PAKISTAN is rapidly adding to its nuclear arsenal even while racked by insurgency, raising questions on Capitol Hill about whether billions of dollars in proposed military aid might be diverted to Pakistan's nuclear program.   Top US senators on Friday underscored the need for India and Pakistan to reduce troops on the Kashmir border to allow Islamabad to fight the Taliban on its Afghan border more effectively.

IRAQ has released 132838 prisoners under an amnesty law.  Kurdistan will pump natural gas to Europe.  Locals and US troops worry as the US prepares to withdraw from Sadr City in Baghdad.

ADVANCED CAT YODELING: Let's go to the video.

SPARKY the CAT was adopted by a British couple who flew to Michigan to adopt him.

THE DOG-O-MATIC is a mini car-wash that transforms pets from filthy to fluffy in half an hour.  Or until the dogs rise up in rebellion against humankind.  Pics at the link.

COWS stare unamazed as a British ice cream maker Frank Frederick flies in an Italian opera tenor to sing them in the hope they will produce creamier milk.

I'LL BE BACK, as the Governator whould say. Tomorrow.  Angels & Demons was your No.1 movie this weekend, but its 48 million was far less than the DaVinci Code's 77.1 million, or Star Trek's opening last weekend.  Trek made 43 million, a fairly impressive hold.  This week it will become the most successful Trek since the 1980s.  Trek is now almost certain to clear 200 million in the US, a big relief for Paramount.  Wolverine is in third and plummeting. Rounding out the Top Five this week are the counter-programming, Ghosts of Girlfriends Past and Obsessed.

THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

...with ARTHUR LEE & LOVE!  Pate used to cover their garage-y take on Bacharach's "My Little Red Book," but Arthur Lee's big triumph was the Forever Changes album, from which Lee played "Alone Again Or," "Maybe The People Would Be The Times Or Between Clark And Hilldale" "'You Set The Scene" on Later with Jools Holland, with strings and horns.

DANGER MOUSE + SPARKLEHORSE + DAVID LYNCH = Dark Night of the Soul, advance streaming via NPR. other artists appearing on Dark Night of the Soul include James Mercer of The Shins, The Flaming Lips, Gruff Rhys of Super Furry Animals, Jason Lytle of Grandaddy, Julian Casablancas of The Strokes, Frank Black of the Pixies, Iggy Pop, Nina Persson of The Cardigans, Suzanne Vega, Vic Chesnutt, David Lynch, and Scott Spillane of Neutral Milk Hotel and The Gerbils.

JULIANA HATFIELD does the four free songs thing for Daytrotter, two unreleased, including a cover of "It's Only Rock 'n Roll."

SONIC YOUTH, live at the Hollywood Palladium, August 1990.

THE VASELINES: Eugene Kelly talks to NOW about reuniting, while NPR's Carrie Brownstein asks whether it's better to reappear or disappear.

THE KILLERS played "A Dustland Fairytale" at the Ed Sullivan Theater. Again with the orchestral rock today.

JARVIS COCKER and his kids review current singles for The Guardian.

THE THERMALS singer/guitarist Hutch Harris talks to the Washington Post about the band's Yogi Bear philosophy.

MAXIMO PARK: Paul Smith talks to The Independent about how he joined the band, the upcoming album, etc.  Enrique Iglesias has a cameo.

THE SISTERS OF MERCY continue to polarize opinion like few other bands.

CUTOUT BIN: From Shiny Toy Guns to The Heavy, from Simon & Garfunkel to Led Zeppelin, from the Supremes to the New York Dolls, plus Pavement, Cheap Trick, the English Beat, Elton John and more  -- this Friday's fortuitous finds are streaming from the Pate page at the ol' HM.

NEW RELEASES: This weekend's sole wide debut is Angels & Demons, which is currently scoring 40 percent on the ol' Tomatometer.

LINDSAY LOHAN gets a paying gig.

ROB LOWE settled sex harrassment suits brought by ex-nannies Jessica Gibson and Laura Boyce.

MADONNA reportedly wants to marry boytoy Jesus Luz, kabbalah style -- which may not be legally binding.

BARBRA STREISAND's long-hidden secrets will be bared in a new tell-all by her ex-boyfriend Hollywood producer Jon Peters -- who claims the beloved diva was sexually abused by a slimy movie mogul and had affairs with three of her leading men

FARRAH FAWCETT needs a miracle.

STAR TREK vs STAR WARS: They are your favorite movie (spoiler warning for Trek, natch).

THE BIG LEBOWSKI is added to The A.V. Club Cult Canon. Dude!

TERRY GILLIAM talks to the Times of London about the death of Heath Ledger and his latest film, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.

IRAN: The Obama administration and its European allies are setting a target of early October to determine whether engagement with Iran is making progress or should lead to sanctions, said senior officials briefed on the policy.  The US wants a commitment on sanctions from Russia and China if negotiations founder. Good luck with that.

AFGHANISTAN:  The US has called on Afghanistan to carry out a thorough investigation into a spate of mysterious poisonings harming Afghan school girls.

IRAQ: A senior al Qaeda leader based in Syria who recruits and facilitates the entry of foreign fighters into Iraq has been sanctioned by the US Treasury Department.

SLEEPING PIGLETS still keep an ear out.

ORANGUTAN & DOG, living together, riding an elephant, appearing on Oprah... mass hysteria.

DOG vs MAIL CARRIER: The classic confrontation.

A DROWNING KANGAROO was rescued by a surfer on Kirra Beach in Australia.

EXCUSE ME, WAITER, there appears to be a baby rat in my stir-fry.

BOB DYLAN has an alternate vdeo for "Beyond Here Lies Nothin'". The original was arty; this one has someone getting clocked with a frying pan.

WILCO is advance streaming Wilco (The Album).

IRON & WINE is advance streaming the Around The Well rarities collection.

VETIVER stopped by the World Cafe for a chat and mini-set streaming now via NPR.

AMANDA PALMER: With The Needle That Sings In Her Heart -- her high school musical based on Neutral Milk Hotel's "In the Aeroplane Over the Sea" -- is now streaming in its entirety.

THE BREEDERS: Kelley Deal talks to the Riverfront Times about about the band's new, roller-derby themed video for "Fate to Fatal," the new EP, etc.

THE THERMALS: Kathy Fortser talks to Drowned In Sound about having Johnny Marr and his kids as fans, plus more...

RICHARD BUCKNER talks to the Arkansas Times about singing with himself, his philosophy on making albums and what makes a good performance.  Video at the link, too.

ARCTIC MONKEYS drummer Matt Helders talks to Drowned In Sound about the band's next album.

WOODEN BIRDS: Andrew Kenny tells Black Book about super powers, his affinity for the channel TBS, and having his dreams realized at a bar in Brooklyn.

LINDSAY LOHAN: A burglar alarm led police to Li-Lo's house on Tuesday.  Police found evidence of a potential break-in and ransacking -- but the mess was caused by Lohan, not the burglars.

PAULINA PORIZKOVA has been fired from her America's Next Top Model judging role after three seasons, due to her "huge ego."

BRAD PITT drunk-dialing Jennifer Aniston? Too good to check.

NICOLE KIDMAN has fled Woody Allen's latest, untitled project.

CAMERON CROWE lists his "Top 10 (Or So) Music Moments in Film," by which he means 36: "The first thing to remember about any top ten list is that it is not to be trusted".

ANGELS & DEMONS opens tomorrow, and I've generally neglected to mention it, so here's a clip, with more in the sidebar.

UP: /Film rounds up the exceedingly good early buzz and notes Easter eggs in the forthcoming Pixar flick.

THE MAXIM HOT 100 is in text form at the Cinema Post, while ONTD rounds 'em up in pictures.  Call it Gratuitous Thursday.

THE STANS: Michael Yon and Popular Mechanics both take a look at the shake-up in US command.  The BBC has a good map of Taliban-held areas of Pakistan.  As Taliban militants push deeper into Pakistan's settled areas, foreign operatives of Al Qaeda who had focused on plotting attacks against the West are seizing on the turmoil to sow chaos in Pakistan and strengthen the hand of the militant Islamist groups there.  The US military has begun flying armed Predator drones inside Pakistan and has given Pakistani officers significant control over targets, flight routes and decisions to launch attacks under a new joint operation.  Moderate clerics speak out against the Taliban.

IRAQ: Gen. Ray Odierno offered a cautiously optimistic picture of conditions in Iraq during an hour-long session hosted by The Institute of World Politics. He also defended the withdrawal timeline, while admitting wryly that he had fielded many, many questions on that topic.

PENGUIN OLYMPICS: New Zealand, home to nine of the 16 species of living penguins, hosts the world's first ‘Penguathlon'.  The Sun has video.

THE SECRET LIFE OF PENGUINS: Zoologists have long wondered where the flightless seabirds go during their long spells away from land -- and now French scientists believe they can supply the answer.

ZOMBIE FIRE ANTS: It sounds like something out of science fiction. But it's all too real.

500-LB MOOSE "fell out of the sky" on I-95 in Maine. Nothing up my sleeve... Presto!

A GREEN TREE FROG underwent life-saving emergency surgery after it was run over by a lawnmower in a backyard Down Under.

THE SHINS breakout a new song, "Double Bubble" at the Hollywood Palladium.

CONOR OBERST has an hour-long documentary available to stream or download via Causecast.

ALL SONGS CONSIDERED: Tracks from Fairport Convention, Dinosaur, Jr., Passion Pit and more are featured in the latest edition of the long-running NPR series.

THE YOUNG FRESH FELLOWS and THE MINUS 5 are advance streaming new albums for your e-mail address. Oterwise it's :30 samples. (Thx, Ken!)

GRIZZLY BEAR is advance streaming "Two Weeks" from their upcoming LP, after months of seeing live versions.

RICK ASTLEY turns up for karaoke night in Athens, GA.

briTUNES: NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams launches a web-only music interview series, starting with a feature on Deer Tick.

THAO NGUYEN yuks it up with Metromix.

ANVIL is the real-tife Spinal Tap -- and their drummer is named Robb Reiner. Yes, really.

CHAN POLING, formerly of The Suburbs, is writing musicals.

LINDSAY LOHAN laughs off pregnancy rumors.

BRITNEY SPEARS: Fmr "magnager" Sam Lufti may have to pay the legal costs of getting a restraining order against him.

MISS CALIFORNIA was given a reprieve by Donald Trump, who generally likes giving reprieves to pageant winners, iirc.

TWILIGHT SEQUEL script found in the trash. The punchline writes itself, but the woman who found it returned it to the studio.

GINNIFER GOODWIN talks to W magazine about her good-girl rep and being asked inane dating questions while promoting He's Just Not That Into You: "I don't know why anyone would want to ask an actor for dating advice. We are not the poster children for healthy relationships."

TERMINATOR: SALVATION has given an exclusive action clip and behind-the-scenes clip to... Pizza Hut. And many things blow up.

STAR TREK: io9 learns about the Shatner scene cut from the reboot, but it has a spoiler for what is in the movie, so caveat clicker.  Also, there's a theory now explaining an unusual musical choice in the reboot.  BTW, the movie made three million more than the Sunday estimates, taking the opening weekend to 79.2 million.

TERROR in the USA: It took three trials, three juries and nearly three years, but federal prosecutors finally succeeded Tuesday in convicting five Miami men of plotting to start an anti-government insurrection by destroying Chicago's Sears Tower and bombing FBI offices. One man was acquitted.

IRAN's Revolutionary Guards have begun deploying mobile launchers for surface-to-air and surface-to-sea missiles in the Strait of Hurmuz and other areas in the Gulf, according to an Iranian official, quoted anonymously in the Saudi daily Al-Watan. Shaker of salt.

PAKISTAN: US officials are skeptical of the high Taliban casualty reports as the Interior Minister claimed 700 Taliban fighters have been killed in four days of fighting in Swat.

IRAQ: Michael J. Totten starts a series asking Iraqis and Americans if the worst in Iraq is over or if the dramatic reduction in violence is just a long lull. Anthony Cordesman warns that it is Iraq that now risks becoming the "forgotten war."

KITTEH in a BATHTUB: Let's go to the video. (Thx, Lance!)

GIANT JELLYFISH washes up on the North Devon coast.  Or the UK is being invaded by giant blancmanges.

A FOX CUB survived being trapped in a snare for two weeks after his mother brought him food every day.

A PARROT is about to cost 1000 workers their jobs in New South Wales because the Federal Government has ordered a timber industry to be shut down to protect the bird.

DOG & KITTENS, living together... mass hysteria.