Free Republic

If Fidel Castro and Sean Penn are in the same room, which one do you think hates America more? Such a question doesn't seem to concern Vanity Fair who according to the website TMZ has hired Penn to write an article about how Barack Obama and his administration have impacted Cuba.

“Love” means never having to get your facts straight. Oscar winner Michael Moore, the far-left documentarian behind Bowling for Columbine, Sicko, and Fahrenheit 9/11, is back with Capitalism: A Love Story. This time he’s telling us our capitalistic system is evil and needs to be put down, and naturally, most film critics are looking past his dubious techniques, wildly partisan potshots, and other gimmicks they wouldn’t swallow from any other documentary director. But cracks are beginning to show in Moore’s media fan club. Some critics are actually holding Moore accountable for his shrewd cutting and splicing. Capitalism scored a 73...

. . . While waiting I have been reading over the growing list of entertainment industry personalities who have risen to the defense of the director. The list is stomach-turning. Many of the names I know. Some were once personal friends. Some of those ex-friends even have children, who I also knew. [Link to Free Polanski Petition with signatories.]

Documentary film director Michael Moore, who has become a millionaire thanks to the profits from his movies, told CNSNews.com that “capitalism did nothing” for him. CNSNews.com spoke with Moore on the red carpet at the Uptown Theatre in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday night before the premiere of his upcoming documentary, “Capitalism: A Love Story." CNSNews.com asked: “Critics may say, when they see this movie, Michael Moore has amassed a fortune of over $50 million, some have said and –” Moore said: “Really? Are you kidding me? Seriously? Wow. Where did it go?”

Last night Esquire threw a party for Michael Moore's new documentary Capitalism: A Love Story, which all about the vulgar displays of income inequality in this country and how Americans are suffering as a result of the recession. Then according to one person who attended the premiere, this happened: Following the Premiere, Esquire shuttles many of the attendees straight down to SoHo to the opening of The Esquire Apartment – a fully decadent penthouse where every square inch is paid for by a luxury sponsor. Hot tub, $120k pool table, $60k home theater, fine food. The only thing lacking was...

In-your-face filmmaker Michael Moore came to Pittsburgh instead of Hollywood last night to show his latest rabble-rousing documentary, "Capitalism: A Love Story" to its first American audience, a spirited group of union workers energized by the AFL-CIO convention Downtown. A last-minute change of plans and an invitation from the convention's organizers brought Mr. Moore to the city, where he emboldened a crowd with stories of union struggles and victories, then led what he called a "march in support of single-payer health care" down Penn Avenue. The crowd of 1,400, by organizers' estimates, then filed into the Byham Theater, where Mr....

U.S. actor George Clooney plays a New Age hippie soldier trained for psychic, peaceful combat in a comedy set during the war in Iraq. "The Men Who Stare at Goats" is based on a book by Jon Ronson about a secret unit created by the U.S. army in 1979 which, the author said, believed troops could become invisible, walk through walls and kill goats just by staring at them. Ewan McGregor plays a reporter who stumbles across a member of the unit as he prepares to enter Iraq, and he and Clooney's character Lyn Cassady go on an ill-fated journey...

Michael Moore solidified his position as one of the biggest phonies of our times while at a recent Venice Film Festival outing. He debuted his latest sham documentary called “Capitalism: A Love Story.” Thanks to the free enterprise system, Moore has become super wealthy himself, which makes the two-hour flick a case study in hypocrisy. “Capitalism is an evil,” Moore proclaims, “and you cannot regulate evil.” According to Moore, regulating capitalism doesn't work, so his prescription is, “You have to eliminate it and replace it with something that is good for all people and that something is democracy.” Guess it...

Capitalism the villain as Moore movie hits Venice Sun Aug 30, 2009 2:59pm EDT By Mike Collett-White LONDON (Reuters) - The Venice film festival has capitalism in its sights this year, with premieres of Michael Moore's documentary on the U.S. economic meltdown and a drama starring Matt Damon as a corrupt corporate whistleblower. "Capitalism: A Love Story," in competition at the annual cinema showcase, sees Moore take on the corporate bosses with his trademark combative style, bringing the hot topic of recession to the picturesque Lido waterfront. And "The Informant!," directed by Steven Soderbergh and featuring Damon as a real-life...

I am writing a paper called "Hollywood Interference" and I would appreciate it if my fellow FReepers could give me quotes and links to their quasi-political activities. I am writing a paper on how actors and actresses have interfered and damaged the US by their interference in affairs of state.

Hartford, Conn. (AP) -- A spokesman for Alec Baldwin says the actor has no plans to challenge Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman in the 2012 election. Matthew Hiltzik said Monday that Baldwin does not plan to move to Connecticut or to run. He says the "30 Rock" star wants Lieberman to stay in office because there are so few moderate Republicans in the Senate. Lieberman was re-elected in 2006 as an independent after he lost the Democratic primary.

Here is a video report and discussion with Mike Chinoy on former President Bill Clinton's trip to North Korea where he has met with reclusive Dictator Kim Jong Il. The video shows photos of Clinton's face-to-face meeting today with Kim Jong Il. Clinton is seeking to win the release of American Journalists imprisoned there. The health of Kim Jong Il has been in question of late, but the photos in the video show him looking better than expected. Chinoy believes the Americans are likely to be released following the trip. He doubts Clinton would have ever made the trip unless...

The stars are not twinkling bright this summer. Hollywood's movie studios, hopeful that marquee-name actors would push their summer box-office receipts to record levels, are finding that the heavyweights aren't winning over audiences like they used to. With all but a couple of big-budget films already opened, the summer of 2009 is shaping up to be one of the worst on record for Hollywood's A-list talent.

In the latest Austrialian FHM when asked who a "monster should eat" in discusing the horror movie "The Unborn", actress Odette Yustman responded, "in real life?" the interviewer then said "yes", the Actress replied "Sarah Palin". If you see a movie being advertised with Odette Yustman, just say no!

Los Angeles, CA (BANG) - George Clooney has hired to psychic to help him contact his dead pig. The "Leatherheads" star is still mourning the loss of his beloved potbellied pet Max, who died in 2006, and asked a medium to get in touch with the swine. George reportedly told a friend: "The psychic told me Max had a great life with me. He is very happy in spirit and still hangs out with me sometimes." "I am not sure she was telling the truth but I do want to believe her." The handsome actor was left devastated after 300lb...

Savage's websiteLOTS of links to listen to the Savage radio show here!!!Savage's KNEW website Call the show at 1-800-449-8255 P.S. I recommend TSN ping list from rock'."Scowl" ... a Michael Savage classic(John Scungili aka Michael Savage) "savagenation" is the FR keyword. Rammstein - Du HastThe S3x Pistols - God Save the Queen

Prometheus caused blind hopes to live in the hearts of men. ~ Aeschylus' "Prometheus" (fifth century B.C.) Prometheus having his liver eaten out by an eagle. Painting by Jacob Jordaens, c. 1640. The ancient Greek myth of Prometheus is the tragic and enduring narrative of a heroic figure who many publicly despised but secretly venerated, because he did feats of strength that others had neither the vision, intellect nor the heart to achieve. Prometheus, renown for his clever intelligence, became a champion of humanity when he stole fire from Zeus and gave it to mortals. For this crime Prometheus was...

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il (2nd R) visits a factory in Danchon, North Korea in this undated picture released by North Korea's KCNA news agency on June 6, 2009. KCNA did not state the date the picture was taken. North Korean leader Kim Jong-il (R) visits an orchard in Gosan, North Korea, in this undated picture released by the North's KCNA news agency on June 8, 2009. KCNA did not state the date the picture was taken. North Korea, facing U.N. sanctions for last month's nuclear test, on Monday raised the stakes in its growing confrontation with Washington by sentencing...

Actor Alec Baldwin's joke about getting a Filipino mail-order bride provoked a sharp response in the Philippines, with one senator saying Monday that the "30 Rock" star faces violence if he ever visits. Baldwin, 51, who is divorced with a teenage daughter, said in a May 12 interview on "The Late Show" with David Letterman that he would love to have more children. The Emmy-winning actor quipped that he was "thinking about getting a Filipino mail-order bride at this point ... or a Russian one."

Even before "State of Play," his new movie celebrating the watchdog role of newspapers, Ben Affleck was partial to print. He grew up a reader of The Boston Globe and can't imagine his hometown paper going out of business. "I was definitely shocked to hear about the Globe," the actor told us, referring to The New York Times Co.'s threat to shutter New England's newspaper of record unless it gets concessions from the paper's unions. "I fundamentally misunderstood what was going on. Boston.com has 5.6 million readers a month, and yet this hugely successful news gathering operation is going out...

Hollywood, needing to cut costs in lean times, is starting to say no to its stars. For years, top movie stars often landed deals paying them a percentage -- sometimes as much as 20% -- of a studio's take of box-office revenues from the first dollar the movie makes, even if it turned out to be a flop that cost the studio millions. As a result, the biggest celebrities broke the $20 million mark. Eddie Murphy got that kind of payday for the flop "Meet Dave," which cost Twentieth Century Fox about $70 million and took in only $11.8 million...

Matt Damon always comes across as such a mild mannered chap and I’m quite surprised to read he’s taken time out to slam the Bond franchise. Speaking with the Miami Herald, he trampled the world of Bond and indicated his all round displeasure for the world in which our top agent has his roots firmly based. "They could never make a James Bond movie like any of the Bourne films. Because Bond is an imperialist, misogynist sociopath who goes around bedding women and swilling martinis and killing people. He's repulsive." Fair enough Matt, I actually don’t mind any of those...

After Matt Damon called Bill Kristol an idiot in his interview with Miami Herald. Andrew Breitbart offered Matt Damon $100,000 to debate Matt Damon, which Bill Kristol accepted. Apparently, Matt Damon is a liberal activist--big surprise--but he approves of torture? I'm confused too!

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Matt Damon is honored that the most recent celebrity of the presidential campaign - "Joe the Plumber" - dropped his name in an interview. "That was a surprise. I hadn't heard that Joe the Plumber dropped my name," Damon said. "I'm honored to be in the little passion play, to be an extra." The plumber, whose real name is Samuel Wurzelbacher, became an overnight media sensation after he was referred to constantly in the final presidential debate. When the press arrived at his Ohio home, Wurzelbacher, a Republican, said he hoped he wouldn't make a fool...

Tavis Smiley doesn't expect presidential candidate Barack Obama to agree to come on his PBS late-night talk show before the election."The odds are slim to none -- and slim is out of town," He reminded me that he has received his share of flak from some African-Americans because they were unhappy with his professional posture toward Obama. Smiley said that to the consternation of a number of Obama supporters, he hasn't given the Democrat a free pass during the campaign. Smiley said he has acted like an objective, probing journalist. It makes no difference to an ethical journalist -- whether...

SAN FRANCISCO – Matt Damon is honored that the most recent celebrity of the presidential campaign — "Joe the Plumber" — dropped his name in an interview. "That was a surprise. I hadn't heard that Joe the Plumber dropped my name," Damon said. "I'm honored to be in the little passion play, to be an extra." The plumber, whose real name is Samuel Wurzelbacher, became an overnight media sensation after he was referred to constantly in the final presidential debate. When the press arrived at his Ohio home, Wurzelbacher, a Republican, said he hoped he wouldn't make a fool of...

The latest celebrity to join in the group slamming of Sarah Palin is none other than Matt Damon as you can see in this Associated Press video which reeks of condescension. Damon, who has yet to attain public office condescendingly mocks Palin's credentials (emphasis mine): I think there is a really good chance that Sarah Palin could president. And I think that's a really scary thing because I don't know anything about her. I don't think in eight weeks I'm going to know anything about her. I know that she was a mayor of a really, really small town. And...

I know Obama's creepy apprenticeship under George Clooney is nothing new, but how is this image for unsettling? (source:http://www.thefirstpost.co.uk/1842,features,obama-the-hollywood-candidate) Ingrid Bergman put the actor's mentality perfectly: "It's not whether you really cry. It's whether the audience thinks you are crying." Substitute "cry" for "know what's going on," and you've got the foundation for Hollywood's involvement in politics. I doubt any FReepers care about celebrity political endorsements, but does anyone personally know an individual who was profoundly affected by a celebrity endorsement? I'm just trying to determine the number of Americans who are completely incapable of thinking independently. There is a...

The film industry's blacklist is dead — unless you happen to be openly conservative...... ------------------------------------------------- In 2004, before anyone had even seen The Passion of the Christ, before Mel Gibson would drunkenly reveal his darker side, leftists poured out of the entertainment, academic, and religious worlds to unleash an unholy hell on the film and its maker. Too late to stop the film (it had secured distribution), the goal was therefore two-fold: to hurt the movie financially (which obviously failed), but also to launch a pre-emptive strike against any filmmaker thinking about following Gibson’s lead and scampering off the liberal...

Two news items that really ought to run together: August 13, Providence Journal: Ex-Sen. Chafee joins Republicans for Obama August 13, Gothamist: Actor Ed Asner, former Dallas Cowboy Mark Stepnoski, and formerly famous hip hop group Arrested Development are leading a petition drive to get a referendum on New York City’s November ballot that would establish a new 9/11 investigation. If the group, called 911 Truth, can collect 30,000 signatures before September 4th, the City Council will be required to consider the measure, which calls for an investigative panel with subpoena authority. Former Senator Mike Gravel (who would join the...

You may recall one of Obama’s foreign policy advisers was fond of quoting the philosophy of Winnie the Pooh. It now appears Obama is consulting someone even more brainless than the fictional cartoon character: Actor George Clooney reportedly is in close contact with Barack Obama and is advising him on both oratorical and policy matters, according to the (London) Daily Mail.The paper reported that Clooney and Obama regularly chat on e-mail and via text message, and speak by phone at least twice a week.“They are extremely close. A number of members of the Hollywood community, including Brad Pitt, Ben Affleck...

"It is absolutely well known that if you support a Republican you are going to find it harder to find work and the reason is simple," Hollywood comedian Evan Sayet explained to me seated at an outside table at one of the many Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf establishments that dot Los Angeles. "Dennis Prager says that Republicans think that Democrats are stupid. Democrats think Republicans are evil. I can work with stupid. If you are good at your job and you are stupid that is one thing. But I can't work with evil. And liberals believe that if you...

George Clooney, already one of Hollywood's leading liberal voices, has embarked on what may be one of his most controversial projects: the story of Osama bin Laden's driver. Clooney's production company, Smokehouse, has bought the rights to a book about Salim Hamdan, an inmate at Guantánamo Bay who last week was sentenced to jail for his role in helping the al-Qaeda leader. The book, The Challenge, is by journalist Jonathan Mahler and tells the story of Hamdan's capture and trial, defended by a US navy lawyer, Lieutenant Commander Charles Swift. It has had a big critical success. Last week Yemen-born...

Hollywood A-lister George Clooney is planning to bring the story of Osama bin Laden's driver to the big screen. The actor's production company, Smokehouse, has bought the rights to a book about Osama bin Laden's driver, Salim Hamdan, according to The Observer newspaper. The Challenge by journalist Jonathan Mahler chronicles Hamdan's capture and imprisonment at Guantanamo Bay and his subsequent trial, defended by a US navy lawyer, Lt.-Cmdr. Charles Swift. Hamdan, from Yemen, was sentenced last week to 5 1/2 years in jail. It was the first sentence handed down to a Guantanamo Bay detainee by a U.S. military tribunal....

Posted: Tuesday, Aug. 05, 2008 MOSCOW Hollywood star Leonardo DiCaprio could take on the role of Soviet revolutionary leader Vladimir Lenin in a new black comedy, a Russian screenwriter has said. "As we compared his (DiCaprio's) photos with those of Lenin ... the similarity was striking. I should even say that Leo could play the role of the revolutionary leader without make-up," said Russian screenwriter Alexander Borodyansky on Sunday. The director of the Moscow International Film Festival, Natalya Semina, said, "It is common knowledge that DiCaprio has Slavic roots. His ancestors on his mother's side emigrated from Russia to Germany."...

I am the entertainer, and I know just where I stand - only I am a celebritard and I don't why I stand there. http://www.thebulletin.us/site/index.cfm?newsid=19893326&BRD=2737&PAG=461&dept_id=576361&rfi=8

Hollywood stars Ben Affleck and Matt Damon and their pregnant wives turned up at a Miami fundraiser for presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Barrack Obama on Saturday. Both the couples attended the orientation at club 'Set' to pledge their support for Obama. According to reports, the actors also delivered speeches from the stage. "Jennifer Garner gave the first speech supporting Obama, and she was very witty, clever and funny," Peoples Magazine quoted a source as saying. "She was followed by her husband Ben, then Matt Damon. The men gave serious political speeches on how the country needs change," the source said....

BREITBART: Blacklist then and now Andrew Breitbart Monday, July 28, 2008 IXTAPA, Mexico — "There is no such thing as a blacklist anymore," George Clooney declared in 2005 while promoting his black-and-white hagiography of Edward R. Murrow, "Good Night, And Good Luck." One eternally optimistic showman who has endured the Red Scare as well as the current Hollywood political disorder (let's not call it the "b-word" and upset Rosemary Clooney's nephew) is actor-raconteur - and my father-in-law - Orson Bean, who last week took our entire family to Mexico for his 80th birthday. Orson was the young, hot comic on...

The first trailer for Oliver Stone's upcoming movie, a controversial take on the life of George W. Bush, has been released. By News Video

LOS ANGELES, July 10 (UPI) -- A group of Hollywood TV and film producers said the Screen Actors Guild declined to accept its final offer for a new contract Thursday. "Today's meeting demonstrated that SAG's Membership First contingent unreasonably expects to obtain more in these negotiations than directors, writers and other actors obtained during their negotiations," the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers said in a statement Thursday.AMPTP said its final offer included more than $250 million in additional compensation, important new media rights and protection for pension and health benefits."The refusal of SAG's Hollywood leadership to accept this...

Los Angeles(Reuters) - Many Hollywood celebrities who had supported Hillary Clinton are rallying behind Barack Obama, pledging money and star power to the Democrat's U.S. presidential bid before a big fundraiser next week. Experts say that since Clinton conceded defeat this month after a grueling Democratic nominating contest, celebrities have quickly united behind Obama. The result, they said, could be a campaign cash windfall for the senator from Illinois, but star support doesn't necessarily translate directly to votes. Sherry Bebitch Jeffe, a senior scholar at the University of Southern California, said that once a politician becomes known, voters look for...

"Get Smart," which I saw Monday night, is a hodgepodge. The good news is, it’s not awful. It has somehow retained a little of the Brooks/Henry spirit. There is just enough of it, spread around thinly, to make you remember what real satire was like, since "Get Smart" was a take-off on everything from "The Man from UNCLE" to James Bond....James Caan also appears as a bumbling president of the U.S. who’s under the thumb of his evil VP.

"Reverend Samuel "Billy" Kyles (L) greets actor Tim Robbins at a screening of "The Witness: From the Balcony of Room 306" at the Directors Guild of America in Los Angeles June 9, 2008."

LOS ANGELES — Leaders of the Screen Actors Guild publicly declared war on a fellow actors’ union at a Monday rally here, increasing the likelihood of new labor strife in an entertainment industry still recovering from a writers’ strike that ended just four months ago. Standing outside the union’s Wilshire Boulevard headquarters, Alan Rosenberg, president of the 120,000-member guild, urged supporters to reject a tentative deal reached last month between the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and Hollywood’s production companies. “We are engaged in the battle of our lives,” Mr. Rosenberg told a group that appeared to number...

Telegraph - Print Version Sean Penn warns Barack Obama at Cannes Film Festival opening By Anita Singh, Showbusiness Editor Last updated: 8:05 PM BST 14/05/2008 The Cannes Film Festival got off to a lively start with Sean Penn, president of this year's jury, sounding off about US Presidential hopeful Barack Obama and the opening movie almost being upstaged by a bunch of performing pandas. Penn joined fellow judge Natalie Portman on the red carpet for the premiere of the first night film, Blindness, a thriller starring Julianne Moore. At a press conference beforehand, the actor, an outspoken critic of the...

Sen. Barack Obama waded deep into Clinton territory Thursday evening at a private LGBT fundraiser in New York City where the price of admission was $2,300 per person. Held at the apartment of GLSEN founder and executive director Kevin Jennings and his partner, Jeff Davis, the event drew about 125 people and raised $170,000. No press were admitted, but based on several accounts, attendees were struck by the Illinois senator's candor as well as his fluency with LGBT issues.

Sean Penn unleashes on FOXNEWS: 'We know their end is near'... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- CABLE NEWS RACE MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2008 VIEWERS FOXNEWS O'REILLY 3,040,000 FNC HANNITY/COLMES 2,337,000 FNC GRETA 1,862,000 FNC SHEP 1,583,000 FNC HUME 1,508,000 CNN DOBBS 1,227,000 CNN KING 983,000 CNN COOPER 976,000 MSNBC OLBERMANN 962,000 CNN BLITZER 839,000 CNNHN GRACE 663,000 MSNBC HARDBALL 604,000

Dressed in a tan cloth coat and crocheted white hat and pulling a wheeled shopping basket behind her, Eve Rojek trudged up and down Castro Street in a sputtering rain the other day. She walked up a stretch of sidewalk between 18th and 19th streets and then down and then back up again. Rojek is an actress, cast as a middle-aged extra in a long-anticipated feature film about the life and death of San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk that began shooting in the city last week. Like everyone and everything in view of the camera, Rojek needed to convey the...