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The Air Force tracked online messaging service Twitter, video-sharing site YouTube and various blogs to assess the huge public backlash to the Air Force One flyover of the Statue of Liberty this spring, according to the documents. And while the attempts at damage control failed - "No positive spin is possible," one PowerPoint chart reads - the episode opens a window into the tactics for operating in a boundless digital news cycle. (snip) According to the Air Force One documents released through the Freedom of Information Act, a unit called the Combat Information Cell at Tyndall Air Force Base in...

The plucky kid with the pod racer from "Star Wars: Episode I" is not a kid anymore. And Jake Lloyd wants you to know that having a major role in a George Lucas film really put a damper on things when he was growing up. OK, fine: The guy doesn't really deserve our pity, but think of it from his point of view. Ten years old, getting blamed for ruining the Star Wars series. (Well, that was mainly the fault of George Lucas, but the kid was there, wasn't he?) And people just won't let it go. The Sci-Fi Australia...

This is a great video. It shows the three aircraft orbiting over the Statue of Liberty during the Air Farce One incident. (The money shot is near the end) The "Red Tail F-16" is clearly a prop. If the George Lucas' film "Red Tails" has, as is likely, a 3D IMAX version, and this sequence were to be used as an epilogue, the camera plane would likely have an external camera mount to attach an IMAX camera. Publicity stills would have been photographed by an air combat photographer during the flight. According to this Wall Street Journal article, the camera...

Russian Military Officers are reporting to Prime Minister Putin this morning that President Obama [pictured top left with UN Secretary General Ban] was stopped by US Air Force fighter jets while Air Force One was attempting to land in New York City where Obama was scheduled to meet UN, Russian and Chinese diplomats for what the White House had communicated was ‘critical and vital’ information relating the influenza pandemic currently overrunning the World. Though the US propaganda media is portraying this shocking incident involving the most secure aircraft in the World as a ‘photo op’ staged by the Pentagon, statements...

U.S. Air Force Academy Public Affairs 5/8/2009 - U.S Air Force Academy, Colo. (AFNS) -- The Tuskegee Airmen secured their place in history more than 60 years ago by doing what few people thought they could. They overcame naysayers in the U.S. Army Air Corps before they overcame the Luftwaffe in the skies over Italy and Germany. Their legendary story has inspired numerous books, a movie and thousands of U.S. Air Force Academy cadets. Born in 1925, Dr. Coggs first became interested in flying after he saw a plane fly low over his hometown of Little Rock, Ark. "As soon...

Commenter Mustang 0302 offers the most interesting theory of the day over at Just One Minute: Connecting some dots, here. At least one of the escorting F-16s was from the Alabama ANG, Red Tail and all. Could this photo op mission have any particular connection to A NEW MOVIE due out this year? Could that connection explain the WHMO's eagerness to get some current glamour shots of BHO's A/C, escorted by the descendants of the Tuskegee Airmen, while flathatting over "the target formerly known as Ground Zero"? Just imagine the powerful, beautiful imagery of these aircraft during this mission, accompanied...

The director of the White House Military Office submitted his resignation on Friday, less than two weeks after he authorized a flyover by an Air Force One backup of the Statue of Liberty that terrified thousands of people in New York City. Louis Caldera, who served as the secretary of the Army in the Clinton administration, apologized for the “distraction” that approving the flyover caused. He said in a brief letter to President Obama on Friday that it “has made it impossible for me to effectively lead the White House Military Office.”

The White House says it will indeed release a photograph from the $329,000 "photo shoot'' of one of the Air Force jumbo jets that serve as Air Force One when the president is aboard but mainly served to scare a lot of New Yorkers in that recent flyover. President Barack Obama voiced outrage over the incident, as did the mayor of New York, the senior senator from New York and many street-level New Yorkers who didn't know what to make of the presidential aircraft trailed by an F-16 fighter making low arcs over the Hudson River. It was a "photo-op,''...

Just announced on FOX news: "The White House has declined to release the photos taken of the backup of the AF1 plane that flew over NYC and past the Statue of Liberty for a photo op last month..." No more details available on FOX's website. Remember this: Photo Flop

A photo-op over the Manhattan skyline that sent thousands of New Yorkers running for their lives has officials in Washington, D.C., running for cover. Many New Yorkers on Tuesday were asking what the Obama administration could have been thinking when it authorized an Air Force One backup plane to fly over the city for photos capturing the presidential plane with the Statue of Liberty in the background. The 747 plane, with an F-16 escort following close behind, circled the Statue of Liberty and the skyline near the World Trade Center site for about a half-hour. Offices were evacuated. Emergency call...

President Obama's White House was forced to issue an apology Monday after a photo opportunity gone badly wrong - an Air Force One backup did a low flyover over Lower Manhattan, prompting terrified citizens to flee their offices and high-profile accusations of government insensitivity in the post-Sept. 11 era. White House Military Office Director Louis Caldera issued a brief statement saying he was to blame, and an administration official said the president was "furious" about the photo op, which had been in the works for one month. "Last week, I approved a mission over New York. I take responsibility for...

An airliner and supersonic fighter jet zoomed past the lower Manhattan skyline in a flash just as the work day was beginning Monday. Within minutes, startled financial workers streamed out of their offices, fearing a nightmarish replay of Sept. 11. For a half-hour, the Boeing 747 and F-16 jet circled the Statue of Liberty and the lower Manhattan skyline near the World Trade Center site. Offices evacuated. Dispatchers were inundated with calls. Witnesses thought the planes were flying dangerously low. But the flyover was nothing but a photo op, apparently one of a series of flights to get pictures of...

Watch Video: http://www.butasforme.com/2009/04/27/white-house-sorry-for-terror-scare-in-nyc-why-obama-wanted-to-do-a-photo-op-right-around-the-site-of-the-world-trade-center-defies-the-imagination/Why Obama wanted to do an airplane photo op right around the site of the World Trade Center defies the imagination…

Of course no one is taking responsibility for this. Who would want their name on this public relations fiasco? Following an astonishing decision to let a Boeing 747 buzz the Manhattan skyline this morning without informing the public, you get what you typically expect from government when a mistake is made: not my fault. 9/11 Bringing back memories of September 11 to New York City residents, entire buildings were evacuated after — what turned out to be one of President Obama’s planes — swooped low over the Statue of Liberty into lower Manhattan on Monday morning. The 747 was escorted...

A photo shoot involving a 747 used as Air Force One and two fighter jets flying at low altitude led to hundreds of frightened calls from residents and workers in Lower Manhattan this morning, triggering memories of 9-11 as many evacuated their offices... According to officials, the flight -- authorized by the FAA -- came in as low as 1000 feet to 150 feet above the city as it made a large circle over Manhattan, Staten Island, and New Jersey... Other officials noted that they were led to believe the flight would be limited to the area near the...

A jumbo jet being chased by a F-16 fighter jets buzzed Lower Manhattan this morning, panicking New Yorkers, many of whom were forced to evacuate their office buildings. It was not a terrorist attack, however, but a photo opportunity for Air Force One, sources told the Post.

Obama's FAA and Air Force scare the s%!t out of New York office workers by flying Air Force One, escorted by an F-16, low over Manhattan in what was described by the the FAA as a "photo-op".

A perfect storm of idiocy led to a frightening 9/11 flashback for thousands of New Yorkers Monday when a jumbo jet and an F-16 fighter jet buzzed lower Manhattan without warning. (video -- flyby) (video -- panic) (video -- Ground Zero) A "furious" Mayor Bloomberg denounced the dunces who dreamed up the stunt. Bloomberg said, "Why the Defense Department wanted to do a photo-op right around the site of the World Trade Center catastrophe defies imagination. Poor judgment would be a nice ways to phrase it, but they did. I also think that once they had told us, we should...

A White House military aide who authorized an Air Force flyover of New York that caused panic among some people in the city resigned on Friday. Louis Caldera said in a resignation letter to Obama that the controversy over the mission -- a photo shoot of a jumbo jet used as Air Force One with the Statue of Liberty in the background -- made it impossible for him to lead the White House Military Office (WHMO). White House officials said the flight was designed to update the official photo of the plane, known as Air Force One when the president...

WASHINGTON, May 8, 2009 – The director of the White House Military Office has submitted his resignation in the wake of an April 27 aerial photo shoot with a presidential aircraft over New York City. Louis Caldera, who served as secretary of the Army during the Clinton administration, resigned his office effective May 22. “I have concluded that the controversy surrounding the Presidential Airlift Group’s aerial photo shoot over New York City has made it impossible to effectively lead the White House Military Office,” Caldera wrote in his letter of resignation. President Barack Obama has accepted the resignation, White House...

The White House has apparently had a change of heart, and will release "a photo" from the pricey, fright-inducing Manhattan flyover photo-op involving an Air Force fighter jet and a Boeing 747 which is sometimes used as the president's plane. he White House has said it is conducting an internal review of the fiasco, which cost over $328,000 in taxpayer dollars and frightened a broad swath of lower Manhattan, site of the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center towers. "The report I believe will be concluded at some point this week. We'll release its findings and release a photo,"...

Because of damages caused by post traumatic stress, I guess. On Tuesday, Obama told reporters, ?It was a mistake. It was something we found out about along with all of you. And it will not happen again.? Caldera quickly apologized for the operation. ?Last week, I approved a mission over New York. I take responsibility for that decision,? Caldera said to CNN. ?While federal authorities took the proper steps to notify state and local authorities in New York and New Jersey, it?s clear that the mission created confusion and disruption.? But the apology was not enough for some people in...

Just when it appeared that George Lucas had finally laid to rest his epic saga of Jedis, Wookies and Ewoks, he has announced that Star Wars will return as a stadium experience. The Times has learnt that Lucasfilm has authorised Star Wars: A Musical Journey, a retelling of the story that will combine excerpts of the film with live orchestral accompaniment. Diehard fans may dream of Jedi Knights serenading Jabba the Hutt and C-3PO singing “Don’t cry for me, R2-D2” but they are likely to be disappointed. Producers for the show, which will have its world premiere in Britain, emphasised...

George Lucas has created legendary film heroes like Luke Skywalker and Indiana Jones, but the US director says that in real life, his hero is Barack Obama. Lucas was in Japan on Wednesday to promote his latest film, "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," as Obama clinched the Democratic Party's nomination for president. "We have a hero in the making back in the United States today because we have a new candidate for president of the United States, Barack Obama," Lucas said when asked who his childhood heroes were. Obama, "for all of us that have dreams...

Attention, TV executives: The Force may soon be with you. Filmmaker George Lucas said Tuesday that he has "just begun work" on a live-action television series rooted in the "Star Wars" universe, which is huge news not just for fans of the science-fiction epic but also for networks looking for a piece of the Lucas magic that has grossed $4.3 billion in theaters worldwide. There is a caveat, though: The proposed series doesn't have anyone named Luke or Anakin in it, a story path that Lucas concedes is "taking chances" as far as connecting with an audience expecting the familiar...

'Star Wars' Memories: A long time ago, in a Fourplex far far away ... http://www.parade.com/features/touchstones/070514-star-wars-memories.html http://tinyurl.com/yo8ocn TOUCHSTONES By Jim Gorant Published: May 14, 2007 It was a blazing day in June 1977 when my aunt and cousin came to visit. I was 10, my brother 8, our cousin 6, an awkward playgroup to start with, and to make it worse, our house in northern New Jersey was not air-conditioned. The adults encouraged us to play outside. We made a humid and soggy attempt at wiffleball, but it was no use. We were hot. They didn’t care. We were bored. They...

LOS ANGELES --Cate Blanchett is in negotiations to star opposite Harrison Ford in the long-awaited fourth installment of the �Indiana Jones� series, her publicist confirmed Saturday. �She is in negotiations, yes,� publicist Lisa Kasteler told The Associated Press. She did not elaborate. Filming is scheduled to begin later this year, with Steven Spielberg on board to direct. The movie is being produced by �Star Wars� creator George Lucas’ Lucasfilm Ltd. Ford played Indiana Jones in 1981’s �Raiders of the Lost Ark,� 1984’s �Temple of Doom� and 1989’s �The Last Crusade.� Blanchett, who won a best supporting actress Oscar in 2004...

Posted: Wed., Oct. 4, 2006, 4:52pm PT Lucas: Let's get small Helmer sees shrinking pic biz By DAVID S. COHEN George Lucas has a message for studios that are cutting their slates and shifting toward big-budget tentpoles and franchises: You've got it all wrong. The creator of "Star Wars," which stamped the template for the franchise-tentpole film, says many small films and Web distribution are the future. And in case anyone doubts he means it, Lucasfilm is getting out of the movie business. "We don't want to make movies. We're about to get into television. As far as Lucasfilm is...

How Star Wars Surprised the World http://www.americanheritage.com/entertainment/articles/web/20060525-star-wars-george-lucas-movies-hollywood-luke-skywalker-darth-vader-american-graffiti-science-fiction-special-effects.shtml http://tinyurl.com/fvs66 In the late 1970s most movie theater owners simply weren’t interested in a movie set in space. The last truly successful science-fiction film had been 1968’s 2001: A Space Odyssey; more recent fare, such as the ecological fable Silent Running (1972), had bombed. So on May 25, 1977—29 years ago today—Star Wars opened on just 32 screens nationwide. It didn’t look like a logical career move for its creator, the director George Lucas, either. After the unexpected smash success of his American Graffiti (1973), which earned him two Oscar nominations and millions...

May 25, 1977: Star Wars released http://www.historychannel.com/tdih/tdih.jsp?category=entertainment&month=10272957&day=10272990 http://tinyurl.com/mf3ex Space fantasy Star Wars opens on this day in 1977. The film became one of the most popular movies of all time, breaking box office records. Filmmaker George Lucas was nominated for Best Director and Best Screenwriter Oscars, and the film won seven Oscars for technical achievements and its musical score, written by John Williams. The movie was re-released with great fanfare in 1997.

Legendary "Star Wars" film creator George Lucas told a packed house the United States is a provincial country with a culture that has invaded the world via Hollywood. Lucas made the comments as he was honored with a "Global Vision Award" by the World Affairs Council in a downtown San Francisco hotel ballroom. "As long as there has been a talking Hollywood, Hollywood has had a huge impact on the rest of the world," Lucas said as he discussed his films and enhancing education with computer technology. "It shows all the morality we espouse in this country, good and bad....

George Lucas’ Empire Gets Its Revenge N.R. Archive. Boston -- May 2005. The final act in the Star Wars cycle, titled Star Wars – Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, has laid bare creator George Lucas’ underlying left-wing critique of American Empire. For many Americans, the original Star Wars (1977), was an exhilarating portrayal of courage and heroic struggle against tyranny and an evil galactic empire (in that age, generally perceived as against Soviet imperialism). Indeed, for most of the 1980s the political discourse in our country over how America would meet the challenge of confronting a dying and desperate...

In some circles, particularly young male ones, calling someone “Yoda” has come to mean something of a cross between Solomon and Batman: not merely wise beyond all reason, but powerful and cool as well. This was, of course, based on the original Star Wars trilogy, which depicted the diminutive green Muppet discipling Luke Skywalker in the ways of the Force, and ultimately bringing down the evil Galactic Empire. Ah, things were so simple then. But now George Lucas has told the rest of the story (and judging by the box office take, you have almost certainly seen at least Revenge...

Here's Mort Kondracke's review of Star Wars III as transcribed by me. The show will air one more time this weekend at 1:00 AM central time so set your VCR. This was in the Ups and Downs segment of the show: Down Star Wars Episode III: the Revenge of the Sith. Now on the strength of Steven Hunter's review in the Washington post. Steven Hunter, I have child-like faith in his reviews, he compared this movie, George Lucas'' movie to John Milton, to Shakespeare, to Herman Melville as a description of a good man descending into He-...into evil. I'm sorry...

Exclusive: Kabbalist Blesses Jones to Uncover Holy Lost Ark 23:39 May 18, '05 / 9 Iyar 5765 An unnamed Kabbalist has granted blessing to famed archeologist Dr. Vendyl Jones, to uncover the Holy Ark of the Covenant. Jones plans to excavate the Lost Ark by the Tisha B’Av Fast this summer.

It was the summer of 1972 and John Kerry's group, the Vietnam Veterans Against the War, was in the midst of an anti-war march through the streets of downtown Gainesville. ... I was disgusted to see that they were not only carrying the American flag upside down, they were carrying the flag of the communist Viet Cong as well. ...The freedom to protest is an important one. ...However, we did not go into harm's way to allow our fellow citizens to help our enemy. ...Now, we have some new Hollywood military experts. The latest is comedian Bill Maher, who made...

HOLLYWOOD, California --- After enduring days of Bush-bashing by George Lucas, Yoda has stepped forward to support President Bush. Unable to bear his creator's comments any longer, the wise and noble Yoda said he is embarrassed and ashamed of the director's ignorance of history and politics. "Step forward to right a wrong I must," said Yoda. "Good is the president, not evil. Evil is Saddam, and terrorism, and France I say. Embarrassed and ashamed I am of George's misunderstanding of history and politics. Fear I do that he has become an empty-headed limousine liberal. Shame it is. American soldiers...

Tue, May 24, 2005 Utter nonsense Note to Hollywood lefties: Don't quit your day jobs By Paul Jackson -- Calgary Sun The Lib-Left multimillionaire set that is the Hollywood cabal just doesn't realize the average American isn't the least interested in the non-stop slurring of the values for which President George W. Bush and the Republicans stand. The irrelevancy of the spoiled brats of the entertainment world was shown in the 2004 presidential elections when they did all they could to tarnish Bush's name and elect wonky Democratic candidate John Kerry to the White House. No one -- except card-carrying...

It is arguable that the most famous line in “Revenge of the Sith” comes from Padme Amidala. When Palpatine announces to a rapturous Senate that the Republic is to be re-organised as the first Galactic Empire, she says: "So this is how liberty dies. With thunderous applause”. We are supposed to infer from this statement that freedom has been traded for security, and democracy traded for a dictatorship. As such, it is supposed to be a dark day, a tragedy, one which will take 20 years and the original three films to remedy. However the question that no one asks...

First, there are three good references on the Didache or Teaching of the Two Ways http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/info/didache-wace.htmlhttp://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp%3Fartid%3D341%26letter%3DD&e=9707http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04779a.htm There is a fourth reference that has the complete Didache contents (translation):http://www.didache.com The Didache starts out with: There are two Ways, one of Life and one of Death, and there is a great difference between the two Ways. In Star Wars, there are two ways -- the way of the Jedi and the way of Darkness. In Star Wars Episode III, key to the success of the Jedi is being unselfish and avoiding the sins of passion. The Sith, on the other hand, are...

Picking apart film releases for political overtones has become an American cottage industry, with media types tripping over their grandmothers, to be first to attack the latest release on cable talk shows. Two more important elements have emerged, however, that overshadow film content analysis: --- How "Star Wars" reveals, in its critical reactions, the new media's pecking order. --- Secondly, the need to look at whether conservatives should really be picking films apart frame-by-frame, looking for bias.

LONDON (Reuters) - The final chapter of the Star Wars saga has gone over to the Internet's dark side. "Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith" has been leaked onto a major file-sharing network just hours after opening in theaters, at a time when Hollywood is increasingly concerned about online piracy. At least two copies of the film, which was first shown in theaters in the early hours of Thursday, have been posted to the BitTorrent file-sharing network -- a new and increasingly popular technology that allows users to download large video files much more quickly than in...

George Lucas supposedly takes a slam at George Bush in his new movie, Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. Will you see the film? Take the poll at Michael Medved's site.

Alvy, founder of PABAAH.com, is slated to appear on "ABC World News Tonite with Peter Jennings" tonite(Wednesday 5/18/05 6:30PM EST). Topic: Reaction to George Lucas and his anti-Americanism at the Cannes Film Festival and subsequent boycott of all things Lucas. Perhaps Mr. Lucas can cite one freedom he's lost?

CANNES -- Star Wars is a wakeup call to Americans about the erosion of democratic freedoms under George W. Bush, filmmaker George Lucas says. Lucas, responding to a question from The Sun at a Cannes Film Festival press conference on Sunday, said he first wrote the framework of Star Wars in 1971 when reacting to then-U.S. president Richard Nixon and the on-going events of the Vietnam War. But the story still has relevance today, he said, and is part of a pattern he has noticed in his readings of history. "I didn't think it was going to get quite this...

AP) All those "Star Wars" geeks, who've been waiting for weeks outside movie theaters with their Yoda sleeping bags and their homemade lightsabers, finally have a film that's worthy of their perseverance. The Force is strong with "Episode III — Revenge of the Sith," the sixth and final piece in George Lucas' galactic saga, which represents a welcome return to the ideas and the spirit that made his original "Star Wars" a pop-culture juggernaut 28 years ago. The circle is now complete, as Lucas' characters are fond of saying, and much of the film's joy comes from watching these familiar...

Revenge of the Republicans Star Wars' Lucas draws parallels between U.S. politics and rise of the Empire CANNES -- Star Wars is a wake-up call to Americans about the erosion of democratic freedoms under George W. Bush, George Lucas said yesterday. Lucas, responding to a question at a Cannes Film Festival press conference, said he first wrote the framework of Star Wars in 1971 when reacting to then U.S. president Richard Nixon and the on-going events of the Vietnam War. But the story still has relevance today, he said, and is part of a pattern he has noticed in his...

Dear Mr Lucas This might be a good opportunity to thank you for many hours of entertainment that your two "Star Wars" trilogies have provided for me with. I'm not one of the "Star Wars" fanatics, but I've watched the five films so far several times over the years. I most fondly remember watching the first trilogy in the late 1970s and the early 80s at the movies, when I was a boy living in the then communist Poland. Your space saga of Luke Skywalker and his fight against Darth Vader, the Empire and the Dark Side has proved as...