Karl IT’S THE MOST DEPRESSING DAY OF THE YEAR, according to Dr. Cliff Arnall, so take a few moments to cheer yourself up with the following:
RILO KILEY is profiled in advance of the UK release of More Adventurous. It's already out in the U.S. At Amazon, Reihan Salam (who writes for The New Republic and blogs at The American Scene) gives it five stars: “Look, Liz Phair has been a disaster post-Whip Smart, but we liked her because of her brashness and the way she (at her best) made tracks that were both conversational and melodious. That's tough. Jenny Lewis does exactly that, but with less posturing.”
ON THE PITCHFORK: William Powers compiles an imaginary box set named Louder Than Moms.
BUT WHEN THEY KISSED: An Italian pensioner committed suicide after his wife fell into a coma, but just hours after he killed himself the woman woke up. Fortunately, no sign of a happy dagger.
SAM COOKE, the son of a preacher man, was born in Clarksdale, Mississippi on January 22, 1931, and raised in Chicago. A star singer of gospel, Rhythm and Blues and pop music, he was shot to death under still-murky cricumstances in 1964. His beautiful voice still sends people.
DESPERATE HOUSEWIFE: Someone's Mom has got it goin' on. Way. Too. Much. A Colorado woman who allegedly supplied sex, drugs and alcohol to high school boys told police she did it because she wanted to be a “cool mom,” according to an arrest affidavit.
FBI HOLDS MEI XIA DONG for an immigration violation after being identified as one of 14 subjects allegedly involved in a Boston terror plot. The investigation thus far does not tie her to any terrorist group. To date, none of the original and anonymous information linking Mei Xia Dong and the 13 others to terrorism has been corroborated.
MIDWESTERN ELECTION WIERDNESS: I've posted a few links before about problems with the Washington state Governor's election. In the interest of balance, I note that there seem to be problems behind the Cheddar Curtain. In Milwaukee, a “review of city computer records indicates that 269,212 people are recorded as voting, while 277,535 votes were counted.” In Illinois, the wierdness is surprisingly not in Chicago, but downstate East St. Louis, where a city official allegedly plotted to kill a witness in a federal vote fraud investigation.
FCC CHAIRMAN MICHAEL POWELL plans to step down in March. Powell will likely be remembered for the FCC's crackdown on broadcast indecency after Janet Jackson's “wardrobe malfunction” during the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show. However, the Hollywood Reporter notes that Powell once said he didn't want “my government to become my nanny” and that pressure to crackdown on indecency came from the left as well as the right, which suggests things may not change under the next chair. The Hollywood Reporter article gives a detailed analysis of Powell's mixed legacy, noting in particular that he understood technology much better than he understood politics (which may surprise folks like Howard Stern, who thought Powell got the job solely because he is Colin Powell's son). WiFi Networking News further notes Powell embraced competition and innovation in the wireless spectrum. The Powell FCC also championed digital TV and helped loosen restrictions on low-power FM radio.
ALZHEIMER'S BRAIN DAMAGE reversed in mice. Prior to the study, it was thought that once the damage had been caused to the brain there was no way of repairing it.
U.N. OIL-FOR-FOOD SCANDAL: The names of former President Jimmy Carter and former Veep Candidate and Congressman Jack Kemp pop up in the investiagtion.
IRAQ ELECTION: 80% of Iraqis intend to vote in the election on January 30th, even as insurgents press attacks aimed at rendering the elections a failure. The Washington Post reported the story on page A13. In Sunday's New York Times (registration or BugMeNot req'd), Tom Friedman argues that Europe may have more of an interest in the election succeeding than the U.S. does. The Nation has pronounced the election “lost” already. Those without time machines may wait until the end of the month to decide.
SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS: An editorial at the ToonZone takes issue with Focus on the Family and the New York Times article linked here on Friday. A pox on both their pineapples! one can only imagine what ToonZone will make of the coverage from the National Enquirer…
DEMOCRATIC DIAGNOSIS: In the L.A. Weekly, John Powers writes that Democrats — and the left generally — need “A Vision Of Our Own.”
INAUGURAL BALLS: What was favored by bands playing at the Texas-Wyoming Ball? “Super Freak.” Jeff Goldstein also reports, as only he can.
THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR rounds up world media reaction to Prez Bush's Inaugural speech.
THE TWO JENNAS: RollerGirl compares Bush and Jameson.
POP MATTERS has “Seven Reasons to Buy the New Minus 5 EP.” You can hear the opening track, “Lyrical Stance,” at YepRoc.
CHICAGO MUSIC: Jim DeRogatis rounds up the DIY discs from his mail bin, with plenty of URLs. I kinda liked the Del Psychos after streaming a few MP3s at CD Baby.
THE ACLU, normally a defender of privacy rights, violated its own privacy policy and did extensive data-mining on its own donors. The ACLU's Board of Directors was scheduled to begin a debate Friday over whether to discipline – or potentially move to oust – two board members for speaking to reporters about the issue.If these Board members had been anyone else, the ACLU would be calling them whistle-blowers and treating them as heroes, wouldn't they?
JOHNNY CARSON: Born in Iowa, raised in Nebraska. The gold standard in talk show hosting. A natural guy; the way he kept it up could make you cry. Terry Teachout views Johnny as once powerful, but ultimately ephemeral; Our Girl in Chicago calls Carson’s Tonight Show “the show I mildly looked forward to being old enough to watch, but whose appeal had dwindled and been displaced by the time I was.” Former TV Guide critic Jeff Jarvis notes that Carson globalized the talk show format. Around the time of the 10th anniversary of his retirement, he told Esquire magazine: “I think I left at the right time. You’ve got to know when to get the hell off the stage, and the timing was right for me. The reason I really don’t go back or do interviews is because I just let the work speak for itself.”
BOB DYLAN is among the finalists for the National Book Critics Circle prize in the category of biography/autobiography, his competition including two acclaimed best sellers: Ron Chernow's biography of Alexander Hamilton and Stephen Greenblatt's biography of Shakespeare, Will in the World. “Who can possibly compete with Bob Dylan?” Chernow said with a laugh. In this forum, Chernow could, but it's nice to be modest.
CHEWBACCA found in a compromising position by Planet Dan.
IN GOOD COMPANY? While promoting his new movie, Dennis Quaid has been hanging at Scores West and the Hustler Club. At least he brings his wife along.
