I'm still perplexed about the death of Heath Ledger. Not so much that he's dead, but the coverage of it. Headline News, for instance, blew up its format yesterday at 5:00 for wall-to-wall coverage. What was amazing was not many facts were available at that time. All I kept hearing was "we don't want to speculate" followed by endless speculation.

Sure, Ledger was a star, but not even close to superstardom. Maybe it was the circumstances surrounding his death, his age, a slow news day, the new "Batman" flick, I'm not sure how his death warrants this kind of coverage. Sure, it's stunning that it happened, but it makes me wonder what would happen if some truly famous Hollywood person died.

Meal of Links

Hitch rips Huckabee. This even got picked up by the PD. It's Hitch at his passionate best.

Every child should read these 100 books. Uh-oh. I'm trying to figure out how "Great Expectations" still costs 8 pounds. I mean, try the library. Sheesh. I think Borders even sells the Classics for cheaper than that.

"Moment of Truth" affirms Paddy Chayefsky. "The only truth you know is what you get over this tube." Yikes!

Combining photos of celebrities with folded money. I especially liked the Johnny Cash Money and the Steve McQueen money.

At this juncture, it's difficult to get amped for the Oscars, but it's probably time to catch up on some of these films with nominations. I believe "Michael Clayton" is re-released this week, so that's a start.

The continuing saga of Amy Winehouse. It looks like she finally has gone to "Rehab".

Herschel Walker claims he has multiple personalities. They all must be keeping a low profile. I haven't seen him in ages. Of course, it has spawned the joke, "No wonder the Cowboys traded him for 5 players and 6 draft choices." Maybe he can replace the Mac Guy in that Time Machine ad.

Exercise Yard

Some of Shaq's divorce proceedings are out. The man watches lots of cable and buys lots of gas. $1500 a month for cable? Must be a Time Warner customer.

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6 Across: Pollster Roper (4 letters) Answer: Elmo