Free Republic

"The Ides of March," the slick new movie with George Clooney as an unethical presidential candidate, is a morality tale for our time. It lacks tragic dimensions, it's melodramatic without complexity of character, and it has a neatly constructed plot that has no emotional depth, sliding over the surfaces of the political world as we have come to know it, up close and personal. But it entertains as an engaging tale about the dirty tricks of politics. Entertainment, after all, is what politics has become. The title, if it means anything, is simplistically ironic, since there is no Caesar to...

Local country fan Reginald Spears was arrested over the weekend for merchandise tampering at the new Super Walmart out on the bypass. The details of his infractions are unique, to say the least. Third-shift electronics cashier Lena Johnston first noticed Spears rifling through the country CD section and filling a grocery cart with at least 100 discs before leaving the department. She thought he was just a rabid music fan until he returned 15 minutes later with the same cart and began slipping CDs back onto the shelves while looking around suspiciously. Johnston walked over to Spears and asked if...

There’s a lot I don’t know about Michele Bachmann, the Minnesota Representative who just announced that she wants to be the next President of the United States of America, but I do know she is great eye candy and, given the present occupier of the office, I would much rather look at her in the Oval Office than him. She is—and I say this with all due respect—a babe. Mitt Romney, with whom she is currently a “front runner” in the nomination sweepstakes, looks classically presidential. He is a handsome fellow with a winning smile. My guess, though, is that...

Joy Tiz ©2011 At the same time William Ayers was hijacking our schoolchildren, the popular culture was decomposing. With the advent of the Great Society and the disintegration of the nuclear family, the decline of our pop culture parallels the disintegration of our educational system. Radicals grabbed control over both. MTV’s biggest contribution to the collapse of decent society has to be the introduction of reality TV. Exploiting as many mentally disturbed wretches they could find, MTV lowered the bar in entertainment, effectively turning the vulgar into the mainstream. Reality TV has contributed mightily to the ruination of pop culture...

As I've said before, kids don't surf the Heritage Foundation website, they don't listen to Beck or Hannity, and they don't watch Fox News. They listen to rap and "death metal", watch movies and reality TV, play video games and daydream they're LeBron James. If they get any "news" at all (and I seriously doubt the kid who calls Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker 'that dude' is a news consumer), it comes from Jon Stewart and Steven Colbert. Pop culture is the way we're going to have to reach them. We've got to deliver our message in an envelope they'll actually...

Prolific TV producer David E. Kelley is known for creating female characters who tend to polarize audiences — most notoriously "post-feminist" poster girl Ally McBeal. Fortunately, for the "Wonder Woman" pilot he's helming for NBC, he's already made one move that has been met with near-unanimous approval: Adrianne Palicki has been cast to play the titular superheroine.

"Politics" is the latest dirty word for rapper Luther Campbell to work into his vocabulary. Campbell, the raunchy rapper from 2 Live Crew, is running for Miami-Dade County mayor in Florida and thinks he could boost the economy with a tax on exotic dancers. "I'm mad frustrated," Campbell said about crime in his hometown in an interview in the Miami New Times. "Why aren't we getting it right in Miami-Dade? Why is our government only serving one set of people? That's what is pushing me to run." Retna / Corbis; Michael Ochs Archives / Getty Images Pictured is Luther Campbell...

Admittedly, the Egyptian uprising, the nullification of Obamacare and the ongoing ramifications of "Snowpocolypse 2011" could render the controversy about an MTV original program insignificant by comparison. After all, MTV is only out to destroy an entire generation. No big deal. Every adult - not just parents - should take the time to learn about the MTV show "Skins," a new "teen drama" that the Parents Television Council (PTC) has deemed "the most dangerous show on TV." Be careful when you go hunting for information about "Skins" lest your spouse conclude you've developed an interest in child pornography. The publicity...

1 Lego 2 Monopoly3 Dungeons and Dragons 4 Wii 5 Nintendo consoles 6 Playstation consoles 7 Scrabble 8 Scalextrix 9 Trivial pursuit 10 Gameboy and other 11 Star wars toys 12 Transformers 13 Microsoft X-Box 14 He-Man & Masters of the 15 Cluedo 16 Meccano 17 Hornby train set 18 Connect 4 19 Airfix 20 Action man 21 Matchbox cars 22 Etch a sketch 23 Teddy bear 24 Rubik cube 25 Atari consoles 26 Play-doh 27 Plasticene 28 Subbuteo 29 Spirograph 30 Risk 31 Roller skates 32 Top trumps 33 Yo-yo 34 Teenage mutant ninja 35 Chemistry Set 36 Twister...

What albums might Leon Trotsky have done some head-banging to if Josef Stalin hadn't sent an assassin to shove an icepick through his skull? Answer: the 10 Neo-Communist (and some flat-out communist) titles on our list. We count them down from the more benign Democrat-supporters to outright totalitarian radicals. Included in this collection are alternative, rock, rap, folk, and hip-hop titles. We've also done our best not to be too obvious with our choices -- you won't find Greenday's "American Idiot" on this list, for example. We also made the choice to select albums that despite being nauseating in their...

This Is What America Is Exporting To The World After watching progressively nasty videos by Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera back in the 90's I should have guessed that girls would forever prove to be Not That Innocent in the pop cultural American zeitgeist. Howard Stern and Bill Clinton also helped to dirtify the pop culture of women, but not without the help of feminists, themselves. Naomi Wolf, leading womananity spokesperson for decades, originated her career by criticizing women for wearing makeup and the poor example they set by encouraging young girls to look good - thus attracting men...

Companies are preying on desperate musicians by selling them Twitter followers, Facebook fans and even download sales. But only a fool would think this is real success One of the most staggering statistics I took from this year's The Great Escape was that analytics company MusicMetric is currently tracking 450,000 artists. As it's not following every artist out there, we can safely say there are more than half a million competing for your attention. So how are they supposed to get heard? Unsurprisingly, new companies have emerged that are intent on profiting from the increasing desperation of artists and start-up...

It was billed as a triumphant comeback, but Whitney Houston's tour is not exactly panning out that way. The 46-year-old singer, who looked bloated and sweaty on stage, delivered another disastrous performance in Denmark over the weekend.

            We see them on the streets and in the mirror: middle-aged men wearing jeans and baseball caps. Grown men, dressing and -- all too often -- acting like boys.             So where did we, an immature generation, come from?            On a recommendation from George Will, I picked up the book “Men to Boys, The Making of Modern Immaturity” by Gary Cross. Sadly, the book didn’t provide the answer.            Cross provides an in-depth review of American pop culture, which he sees as shaping people’s actions. He observes there were 27 westerns on television in 1959 (and he provides a recap...

In a recent conversation, I confessed to ignorance of popular culture. With a little introspection, I realized that I was proud of this ignorance. I suspect that most of us are proud of ignorance of some form or another. It seems that many liberals are proud of their ignorance of firearms, for example. A person only has so much time to learn and experience, so choices need to be made. I chose to learn woodcraft and primitive survival skills instead of pop music. I am curious what other Freepers are proud to be ignorant of.

Considering her influence in our culture and international iconic status, I believe the messages behind her art warrants this level of analysis. The power of images should never be underestimated and I am quite impressed with what the video's author uncovered. Any discerning believer with a heart for the greater culture would benefit from watching this. As the saying goes, "the devil's in the details." Be sure to click the link.

Celebrating its 20-year anniversary and 450th episode, The Simpsons stands alone. Of course, it's a splendid isolation as, officially, the longest-running prime-time show in television history and, unofficially, as the most successful and influential creation in pop culture history. Simply put, The Simpsons has changed the world we live in.

(Nearly 76,000 online voters chose their favorites from a list of pop culture dogs drawn from television, film, literature, sports and art.) NEW YORK — The Peanuts comic strip character Snoopy was named the top dog in pop culture by the American Kennel Club on Tuesday as part of its 125th anniversary celebration, beating out a college sports mascot. Nearly 76,000 online voters chose their favorites from a list of pop culture dogs drawn from television, film, literature, sports and art, the kennel club said. Snoopy was the pensive dog whose best friend was a bird and who seemed to...

"So many big name stars, singers and sports legends have visited Washington over the years, the city is often referred to as “Hollywood on the Potomac.” So, that’s the title of my new book (available now at Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Borders) featuring over 200 photographs and stories that detail the fascination between Hollywood stars and Washington power-players — from Presidents Truman through Obama." "Somehow late night talk shows became a logical first step for politicians to reach voters. Somehow rock stars became a political voice of the disenfranchised. Somewhere along the way, American politics and pop culture personalities...

The announcement that Oprah’s ending her show after 25 years came as no surprise. In fact, I have been expecting this sort of announcement since Oprah took the stage with Barack Obama to announce her support for his presidential run. During her first of many stump speeches in Manchester, I heard the crowd chant Oprah! Oprah, and listened to her give a well-crafted speech. I also noticed a transformation in her voice and delivery. She sounded more like a pastor giving a fiery sermon, closer to Reverend Wright, than a professional talk show host. She seemed to revel in the...

Barack Obama left his 2.6 million fans on Twitter, the social networking website, bemused, disappointed and mildly irritated by admitting on Monday that he had never used the service himself. "Let me say that I have never used Twitter," he told students in Shanghai. "I noticed that young people are very busy with these electronics. My thumbs are too clumsy to type in things on the phone." During his election campaign, Mr Obama portrayed himself as "connected" to the people through Twitter and his ever-present blackberry phone. Some of his more understanding fans asked if it was any real surprise...

Here is video of Steven Crowder on with Sean Hannity last night where he talked about his "Man on the Street" video asking people who the "Vice-President" is. He also asked people who Nancy Pelosi is. Almost no one knew the answer to either question! But when he asked who "Angelina Jolie's boyfriend is," virtually everyone knew the answer - Brad Pitt. It is scary to know that these are people voting, and Barack Obama owes his Presidency in large part to these voters. It explains a great deal. . . . (VIDEO)

LOS ANGELES – The songwriter who wrote the catchy theme songs to "The Addams Family" and "Green Acres" television shows has died. Vic Mizzy was 93. .......................................... Mizzy has said that he didn't mind if people only remember him for the finger snaps at the start of the "The Addams Family" theme song. After all, he said "two snaps got me a mansion in Bel Air."

This month, like every October, a sea of pink ribbons washes over products from sneakers to snacks. While the effort raises research dollars, it leaves some breast cancer survivors feeling that companies are profiting from their pain.When KimZielinski was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007 at the age of 33, well-meaning friends inundated her with products bearing a little pink ribbon. Each product’s maker promised a cut of the sales price to a breast cancer charity, and these friends felt they were supporting the cause and, by association, Zielinski. A petite brunette who’s now 35, she was enormously grateful for...

When you’re Barack Obama and you’ve lost Jon Stewart, you’ve got a problem. “Mr. President,” the “Daily Show” host said Monday night, “I can’t tell if you’re a Jedi — 10 steps ahead of everything — or if this whole health-care thing is kickin’ your [rear.]” White House officials, by acknowledging that a public option (or government plan) is not essential to achieving health care reform, may have improved their chances of ultimately getting a bill. In the meantime, though, they have touched off the most ferocious backlash among liberal talking heads since President Obama took office. The president and...

July 15th, 2009 - a day that shall live in comedic infamy. The Obama administration’s first direct hit from reliably friendly allies. Former Saturday Night Live star, now stand up comic Dana Carvey was the guest on the new Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien. When O’Brien asked Carvey his opinion of Obama, Carvey trotted out some fresh material. “I’m worried. The economy just had a heart attack, but Barack just wants to work on the knee,” Carvey riffed. ”Should we do CPR? No, we’re gonna fix this knee. We can do CPR when it’s efficient and cost effective, but right...

A day before New York Rep. Peter King called Michael Jackson a “pervert” unworthy of nonstop media coverage, the aunt of a U.S. soldier killed in Afghanistan on the same day Jackson died asked why her nephew's death went virtually unnoticed while the King of Pop got memorial shrines across the country. "Mr. Jackson received days of wall-to-wall coverage in the media," Martha Gillis wrote to the Washington Post. "Where was the coverage of my nephew or the other soldiers who died that week?" Gillis' nephew, Lt. Brian Bradshaw, 24, died in Kheyl, Afganistan, of wounds suffered when an improvised...

Last week, in the midst of President Obama's efforts to push unprecedented expansions of federal regulatory authority through Congress, North Korea's bellicose threats of nuclear annihilation, and the Iranian regime's brutal campaign to suppress political dissent, the American public's attention was focused elsewhere. On June 25th, 2009, the nation plunged into mourning upon learning of the tragic deaths of Michael Jackson—inimitable King of Pop—and Hollywood's original "angel" Farah Fawcett. In the time it took for a commercial break, the coverage of the Iranian protests, the debates about cap and trade and healthcare reform, and the diplomatic efforts to recover two...

Television networks planning Jackson coverage NEW YORK (AP) -- NBC executives changed their minds Sunday and decided to join other networks that will televise Michael Jackson's memorial service live this week. NBC joins ABC, CNN, MSNBC and E! Entertainment in offering the ceremony live. It's set for 10 a.m. PDT at Los Angeles' Staples Center. NBC had initially planned only a one-hour prime-time special on Tuesday night, but said Sunday it would also cover the event live. It was not immediately clear who would anchor. Charles Gibson will anchor coverage for ABC, which is setting aside its typical daytime programming....

YOU'D have thought by the media lovefest that the pope had died a tragic death after a lifetime of caring for lepers. But, no, it was the death of Michael Jackson, a drug-addled, creepy-beyond-words, accused pedophile who literally bought his children with the help of two brood mares and, apparently, his dermatologist -- a group of amoral savages who had no problem giving their kids to a man who looked like the Phantom of the Opera and who behaved like a depraved worm. You can call it "adoption," but I call it child-trafficking. OK, I said it -- and it's...

So Michael Jackson's body was going to be returned to his ranch at Neverland, where it would lie in state in a glass coffin for his helplessly grieving fans to say their goodbyes. It would be borne there in a white 'fairyland' horse-drawn coach as sobbing crowds line the route. Then would come the bad-taste funeral to end all bad-taste funerals, an orgy of saccharine camp with yet more artificially whipped-up sentiment.

...when the second annual Record Store Day arrives Saturday, artists and labels will be out in force: More than 1,000 stores worldwide... will offer in-store events or performances by dozens of artists... ...A resurgence in interest in vinyl records (with sales climbing 89 percent last year to 1.8 million) has helped these independent operators stay in business... "The reality is we were over-retailed," says Michael Kurtz, president of Record Store Day and the marketing company Music Monitor Network. "We had about four times as many stores as the market could bear... But there are new ones still coming, and it's...

Simon Cowell wants Obama to appear on ‘Idol’ But judge is unsure if presidential mention of him was a positive one March. 24, 2009 Simon Cowell and "American Idol" have the power and popularity to enlist plenty of big names to appear on the show. But can they pull in the biggest name of all — President Barack Obama? According to digitalspy.com, Cowell told Absolute Radio that "we're trying to get (Obama) to do a show at the moment." It didn't escape Cowell's notice that he received a mention from the commander in chief on the "Tonight Show" last week,...

The Evil Conservative celebrates individuality, and one guy that fits that bill for sure is Republican rapper Hi-Caliber - You don't have to like rap music or hip-hop to dig his stuff... check it when Hi-Caliber talks with EC.

Forty-five years ago tonight, one of television's most memorable moments took place - the Beatles' first appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show. Over 70 million viewers tuned in on that Sunday evening long ago. Here are the first ten minutes of the original broadcast, as it aired on CBS-TV, including commercials. This clip includes three of the five songs the Beatles performed that night.

Does the Shamwow guy really need a headset microphone? I will never understand how nobody from Small Wonder went on to win an academy award. Is Obamas aunt still spending my tax dollars?

Check out this inauguration day “Presidential Pledge” video produced by aging starlet Demi Moore and her son -- oops -- husband Ashton Kutcher. It’s a perfect stage for a few big stars and a ton of wannabe big stars to reveal the depth of their newly discovered love for America. Here’s how the Moore and Kutcher describe their work: “Reflecting Barack’s call for change, the film features over 50 of the biggest stars in Hollywood revealing how they plan to personally participate in keeping America strong, proud and green.” We’re into pop culture in a big way here at IHTM....

The last election cycle bore more online fruit for Democrats. "Obama is really Howard Dean 2.0 when it comes to online fundraising," said Phil Tajitsu Nash, who runs Campaign Advantage, a company that makes Web sites and develops Internet strategies for candidates. So it's understandable that Republicans are green with envy and scratching their heads wondering why the Internet works for Democrats but doesn't work for them. The simple answer: There is no technology that can help overcome the left's current online dominance. There is no wizard in Silicon Valley who can make things better. There is no Joe Trippi...

Continuing our series on the Obama Superstar phenomenon sweeping the nation, World Net Daily is reporting that the fanbois at MSNBC are planning to take their fawning coverage of the inauguration to the big screen. MSNBC and Screenvision are teaming up to give away free tickets to what I'm sure Chris Matthews will soon call the "event of the century." Presumably this is either because they think not enough people have televisions or because they figure all the Obamatons will eventually need to know who to blame...

Stars flock for a place in ‘Bamelot’ Sarah Baxter CELEBRITIES and socialites are vying to be on Washington’s “O-List” – the hot-test ticket to social success – in anticipation of Barack Obama’s inauguration. The city has not been this glamorous since the dashing John F Kennedy presided over Camelot. “Number one: Obama is cool,” said Morris Reid of the Creative Coalition, which has a waiting list of 500 for its star-studded inauguration ball. “He is truly the first pop culture president – the first to have a BlackBerry, get his music from his iPod and walk around with aviator Ray-Bans.”...

Have you seen the new Pepsi logo? It's also all over the NBC sporta desk tonight where Olberbite & Costas are sitting. Not that I ever drank it but no more Pepsi for me.

Two-and-half years ago, during the Academy Awards presentations, a hip-hop group called Three 6 Mafia tendered their contribution to the ongoing elevation of America’s cultural landscape by helping to make the word “p*mp” (rhymes with limp) a touch more family-friendly. That evening, they performed a song called, “It’s Hard Out Here For a P*mp” – a toe-tapping little number so catchy, so memorable, so culturally relevant that it was outdone only by the group’s all-consonant all-the-time acceptance speech. At the time, when the story was new – and talk show hosts everywhere were going on and on about it –...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Actor Robert Wagner says he was so distraught over the break-up of his first marriage to actress Natalie Wood that he pondered suicide and would sit with a gun outside the home of her lover, Warren Beatty, intent on killing him. "Pieces of My Heart," Wagner's autobiography released this week, reveals details of his career and life, including the split with Wood, their decision to remarry a decade later and her drowning death in 1981. "I was pretty young, and I don't think I could have ever gone through with that act, but I was pretty...

James Duke Mason, son of famous international singer and former Go-Go's lead singer Belinda Carlisle is an Obama supporter and wants to raise $1,000 for the campaign prior to Oct. 24th. He says "I recognize that Obama will change America".... he also said that "My Mom and her friends have already given me $315.00".... he wants to be part of the "movement of change in America". James has lived in France since he was a toddler. Belinda moved her family (her husband is Morgan Mason, son of famed film actor James Mason) to the French countryside in 1992.

Sarah Palin has the opportunity to be the most beloved polarizing figure seen in politics for a long time. Move over George Bush, move over (dare I say it?) Ronald Reagan. Let's look briefly at her accomplishments: Hockey Mom. Mother of Five, including a "special needs" child. Married to the same guy for 20-some years. She does not talk "family values": she practices them. This infuriates the Democrats for two reasons. First, she does not have to be stage-managed and packaged to 'sell' her: she just has to be.. Second, she is everything that the liberals have pretended that the...

Ann and Nancy Wilson are p*ssed at the Republican Party and have fired off a cease and desist letter to the McCain/Palin campaign. Specifically, the Heart women are upset that the GOP has used their classic "Barracuda" as a theme song for Sarah Palin. TMZ obtained a statement from Heart's rep, who says "The Republican campaign did not ask for permission to use the song, nor would they have been granted that permission." The statement goes on: "We have asked the Republican campaign publicly not to use our music. We hope our wishes will be honored."

Searched for this after going to Iron Maiden's website.

Sarah Palin was Sarah Heath, a sports reporter for TV station (KTUU Channel 2) in the 1980's. Here is a clip of Sarah Palin (a.k.a. Sarch Heath) doing a report.

<p>The difference between going through a Sunday as a married woman versus as a single gal is striking. First of all, in my single hood days in D.C., I’d be arriving back at my condo in the wee hours of the morning and would sleep and nurse a hangover for the rest of the day. As a married woman and mom in suburban Maryland, my Sundays are quiet and mainly consist of doing things with my family or around the house. However, during football season my husband and son normally get involved with sports and “NFL Sunday” for the whole day, giving me precious time to myself. During this “precious time”, I read the newspapers, watch news programs on T.V. and other media, and listen to talk radio for the entire afternoon and evening. Until recently.</p>

The profession of journalism has lost another great. Tony Snow, the affable anchor of Fox News Sunday, host of his own radio talk show and Press Secretary under President Bush, lost his valiant battle with colon cancer on Saturday at the age of 53. Snow left a legacy of true professionalism and fair play in a business that can often be brutal and harsh when covering the political landscape. To a person, he had the respect and admiration of those he encountered; from the high and powerful in Washington, to the press corps he had to deal with as the...