This season of Fox’s ‘American Idol’ feels like a Brady Bunch musical special, doesn’t it? You’ve got Australian contestant Michael Johns, he’s great as the oldest Brady, Greg. Plain vanilla Brooke White is the perfect Marcia. Dallas County’s own Jason Castro would be the wide-eyed Peter, and  Kristy Lee Cook is definitely Jan. The Baby-Idols Ramiele Mulaby and David Archuleta are Cindy and Bobby, respectively. 

Irish import Carly Smithson reminds me a bit of Alice the housekeeper and David Cook is Marcia’s too-cool boyfriend. Randy, Paula and Simon would have to be the parents, albeit way more dysfunctional. Hmm…

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China is proof positive that the "Modernization Theory" is finally dead, for good.

The theory in its most basic outline postulated societies passing through certain stages in history, culminating with the "modern" age. The main transition was formulated differently by different theorists.

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I recently signed up for the Angelika Film Center's Newsletter , which means that I get free screening tickets.  The first one which I was actually able to attend was Charlie Bartlett, and I invited fellow Culture Feast blogger, Nicholas Johnson a.k.a. Dr. Danger, to enjoy the wonderful talents of Robert Downey, Jr. with me.  

As usual, I had no idea what to expect from this film.  All I knew was that Robert Downey, Jr. was in it, and as with I Am Legend and Will Smith, Downey, Jr.'s name was enough to make me want to see it.  I know there are some people who aren't too fond of him because of his sordid past, but I think he's pure genius.  Nicholas said it best when he said,

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Here are some of the stuff I'm reading these days:

Conde Nast Portfolio (April 2008 issue) is fast becoming one of my favorite magazines due to the unique behind-the-scenes angle with which it covers the world of business. In this issue the cover story focuses on the continuing sexism in corporate America. Also notable is the story of an Iraqi good-guy judge who is now hiding in Northern Virginia and spending his days wondering among the isles of his neighborhood Target store. "The Art of Steal" tells how a famous art collector stiffed the rich and famous for many millions of dollars. Continue Reading

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"I will not seek, nor will I except the office of President of the United States.  It has come to my attention that the people want more; they want to know how I have done things and when I had done them.  I was not really prepared to answer such difficult, personal, and invasive questions.  It also seems that while there is no company by the name of Bob selling any product, my use of 'What Can Bob do for you?', 'Bob I’m loving it', and 'Bob The Choice of a New Generation' is in violation of some kind of law that I was not aware of.

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It's amazing to me that for some great writers their art is not good enough; that they feel the need to bolster their coordinates by worrying about their position on the largely artificial liberal-conservative divide.

Take David Mamet for example, a playwright whom I admire for his screenplays as well. For some reason most people always mention House of Games (1987) but my favorite Mamet script is Glengarry Glenn Ross (1992).

Mamet this past week has published an amazing piece in the Village Voice the title of which tells it all: "Why I'm No Longer a 'Brain-Dead Liberal.'" Continue Reading

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Spider-man has been the Marvel cash cow for some time now. With three mega-successful movies, various animated TV shows, countless licensed products, oh and multiple comic book titles, it’s hard not to have immediate recognition of the Spider-man brand. Spidey is iconic, transcending, and loved for being the ultimate confliction of responsibility versus reward. Unfortunately, throughout the 90’s, it had also become a little tedious and a little absurd. This is not a knock on any of the writers or artists involved in producing the comics. This is a direct stab at all of the people involved that took Stan “the Man” Lee’s vision and started distorting it back in the early to mid 1980’s.

            While many writers and artists were given the thumbs up to take Peter Parker in all new directions, the editors failed to keep it within reason. Many of the readers, me included, loved it when Todd McFarlane introduced Venom into the Spider-man continuum. And nobody can act like they didn’t love the black suit,

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Part 1 of 4

One of my scariest childhood memories is my grandmother taking me to our neighborhood movie theater to see the Disney animation Little Red Riding Hood.

I even forgot how old I was at the time but I remember the shock of watching the big bad wolf eating up both the grandma and the little girl with the red hood! It was the most violent thing I had encountered up until that age.

I remember most of the other kids somehow cheering and having a good time at precisely those scenes where I was trying to hide under my seat. That's why I suppose I always had a rather different take on the issue of "violence in movies" and thought about it for some time.

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A Multitude of Sins (2002), by Richard Ford 

Some writers have been an acquired taste for me. When I first read them it took me a while to slash my way through their impenetrable styles and enter the fragrant garden on the other side. Faulkner is one. Raymond Carver is another.  
 
Yet while reading some others I felt at home from the get go. Pulitzer Prize winner Richard Ford is one such writer. The critically acclaimed master of the unforgettable "The Sportswriter" and "Independence Day" comes up in spades in "Multitude of Sins" (2002), a collection of sensitive short stories each equipped with a powerful search light that probes far down into the uncomfortable recesses of our souls.

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When working to create the ultimate finished product for your self-released title it is imperative that you put out the most polished (book ready) manuscript you can—because in the end—your book is competing against thousands of other potential sales for the would-be buyer.

I have heard that more than 100,000 new fiction titles are released each year and if you weigh out the fact that most of (us) the self-released authors don’t have a substantial financial bankroll to cover the cost of general marketing and advertising, we may only have one real opportunity in the end to prove our worth to a potential audience, no matter how much we believe in the product or many friends (we) you have.

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I started this week with the peculiar taste that a visit to the Trinity United Church of Christ web site left in my mouth.

Anybody can worship the way they like. This is America. But if someone is going to represent me, I need to understand the way my Potential Chief Representative worships every Sunday since that will inevitably influence the way he's going to represent me as a voter.

Some of the things that I saw among the "10 Points of Vision" that the Church has listed (http://www.tucc.org/about.htm) gave me reason to ponder:

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