Look Who's Back...The Rock!!!



Just when you think you're done with wrestling, they pull you back in.

Meal of Links

Chuck Lorre had another funny vanity card after "Two And A Half Men". It was about Charlie Sheen.

Kenneth Mars died. OK, I'll give you his "Young Frankenstein" quote. Complete with eyepatch AND monocle: "To the lumber yard!"

I heard the commercial last week. "This American Life" may have found the formula for Coke.

Bonnaroo releases the 2011 lineup. Buffalo Springfield?

Snowmobiling...in Detroit...on the Lodge!



Did anyone find it, oh, I don't know, oddly karmic that one of the guys who never missed a Super Bowl, actually missed this year's Super Bowl? Now he's dead.

Birthers. Again.

Billy Ray Cyrus is a nutbag. And David Lynch gets some blame.

Exercise Yard

The NFL is now like that Rangefinder on "Price is Right". The price for the Super Bowl fiasco keeps going up.

Visitor

35 Down: Poker Flat creator (5 letters) Answer: Harte

I finally recovered from the Tron Fest that was the Black Eyed Peas.

On to the Super Bowl commercials. Overall, I thought things were pretty tame or lame, I guess. I can't name one that you'll think about during the coming year and say, oh, yeah, that was a Super Bowl highlight.

Traditionally, there are two types of ads that suck. Those for cars and those for movies. That pretty much held this year. And, oh, how those car manufacturers really tried to get out of their rut. Clearly, the best car ad was Eminem touting Detroit for Chrysler, the first two-minute ad during a Super Bowl:



Now, most people will tout the VW ad with the kid as Darth Vader as the best one for cars, but for art's sake, the ode to Detroit was awfully cool.

I, for one, was very happy to see that CareerBuilder was back on board this year. And they brought back the original guy who works with chimps in clothes! Nebraska plates!



As for the good ads, that was about it. Honestly. Nothing else resonated and there were some really strange efforts.

OK, the Doritos ads. I thought the pug was going to go through the window. And the guy sucking fingers was awfully gross. Not funny.

The other car ads. Audi with Kenny G. just took too long to tell the tale. The new generation of rich prison escapees prefers Audi instead of BMW. Got it. Yawn. Chevy missed badly on the seniors who couldn't hear and the Silverado that replaced Lassie. The worst had to be Mini with the "Cram it in the boot". The suggestiveness of the ad (with a Craig Ferguson-like host) reaches over-the-top status with the "Cram Cam" showing the guy shoving the extra long sub into the rear of the Mini:



Go Daddy is really wasting money at this point, aren't they?

Best Buy has Ozzy and Bieber and produces a WTF?

Snickers showed how tough it was to follow the Betty White/Abe Vigoda classic. The casting of Richard Lewis and Roseanne as whiners is spot on, but it had a sense of been there, done that.

Even the beer commercials were so-so this year. The Bud Light one where the guy was dog-sitting scored very high, but I'm not sure that some of the others were not worth the effort. Bud, especially, previewed their ad during the Conference Championship games and the possibilities were endless. I actually perked up when I saw that Peter Stormare (Buscemi's partner form "Fargo") entered the bar as the cowboy. To have them eventually sing "Tiny Dancer" was a major letdown.



Of course, he'll never top "German engineering in da house, yah" when he was unpimping autos way back when:



The Stella Artois ad was, well, um, different:



And, lastly, the Groupon ad with Timothy Hutton. It may have missed being a classic by this much. Christopher Guest has directed all of their ads and there is a charitable bent to the ads. However, when you have to explain the joke, it's probably not funny. But, oh, so close. The opening line especially: "The people of Tibet are in trouble. Their very culture is in jeopardy. But they still whip up an amazing fish curry."



Not my rule, but the bottom line is you can't make fun of Tibet.

Meal of Links

Keith Olbermann goes to Current TV. Raise your hand if you've ever watched Current. I watched it a long time ago when they had home movies of U2. That was it. Sorry, Al.

Liam Gallagher has stopped fighting his brother and has a new band. It's called Beady Eye.

The Top 100 British Films. "Don't Look Now" is Number One. Boy, there are a lot at the top I haven't seen. "Trainspotting" was 10. "24 Hour Party People" checked in at 94.

A detailed look back at one of Richard Pryor's classics, "Blue Collar". And that ain't no comedy.

Confession? There's an app for that.

Sexiest Cinematic Psychos. The popcorn-feeding Cameron Diaz is on the list from "Vanilla Sky".

Great observation on the AOL-HuffPo merger. SEO Speedwagon.

No wonder the "Basterds" had trouble in that movie. How you tell time in Germany clues everyone in to where you live.

Prince takes a stand.

Is the Super Bowl getting out of hand for those who attend. How about that half a million flyover of an unopened stadium?

Exercise Yard

I heard Mike Florio from Pro Football Talk this morning, talking about NFL relocation. He said the new CBA would allow for not one, but two teams to relocate to Los Angeles. Acknowledging that would be the Chargers and the Vikings.

The topic of the Jaguars came up and he said don't sleep on London. If Lord Football moves there, I'm convinced there is no way that home team plays at Wembley, considering its hallowed ground status. However, the new Olympic Stadium is allegedly going to seat 60,000 for the EPL team that moves there. Be it West Ham or Tottenham Hotspur, so I think that's where they would play.

The London games at Wembley have been selling out and the Super Bowl had record ratings there.

Visitor

8 Across: Buster who played Flash Gordon (6 letters) Answer: Crabbe

Cleveland State's white whale, Butler, comes to town for a Noon game tomorrow. Probably the largest attended CSU game since a Butler matchup in the Massimino era.

People are actually showing up. The confluence of an ugly sports year (CSU has more wins than the Browns and Cavs combined), cheap tickets and better marketing has boosted attendance. A far cry from an 11 a.m. game last year when I think 100 people showed up.

If you can bear the shitty ESPN broadcast team that is showing up, look for me on the tube. I'll be wearing black. Oh, wait a minute, we all are.

Meal of Links

The 5 sleepiest animals. Aren't squirrels on the most skittish list, as well?

Joyce Carol Oates on "The Fighter". Nails it, except for Wahlberg's performance.

I bet Marilu Henner remembers everything about this episode of "Taxi". I hope they break down a Vic Ferrari episode.

It's good to be the king. The Mubarak family's estimated worth is between $40 and $70 billion.

Joe Pos on Tiger Woods. It's difficult to watch Tiger struggle to even get three rounds out of four to go his way these days.

Michael Lewis turns his attention to the financial crisis in Ireland. "Now the Irish people finally caught a glimpse of the guy meant to be safeguarding them: the crazy uncle had been sprung from the family cellar."

Exercise Yard

The Super Bowl will never move to Saturday. But I can see it eventually moving to President's Day weekend with an 18-game schedule. Sorry, Daytona.

BTW, it'll be the Packers by 9 on Sunday.

Visitor

39 Across: Tesla, by birth (5 letters) Answer: Croat

"Tesla Girls"/OMD

Not sure about the Storm of the Century. If there is one thing I've learned from Dick Goddard, it's when you're on the Southeast side of a Panhandle Hook, that's a good thing. And we lucked out, as the snow line seems to be going to our West.

I thought I was going to have to work from home today, but that looks more likely to happen tomorrow. I had more snow than I thought we'd get last night, around 6 inches. But after shoveling, I realized it wasn't snowing, wasn't that cold and there was a long window of not much weather happening, I decided to go in.

The ride took 60 minutes, which is 1.5x longer than normal. My Cleveland street was untouched. Brooklyn apparently won't pay its workers OT for snow removal. 480 was a disaster. 77 was decent. The turnpike was pristine. Route 8 was in fine condition.

A plow did arrive this afternoon. Dumping all of that snow into everyone's driveway. There has to be an invention out there, where that doesn't happen.

So, now it's "Ice Ice Baby" from here on out.

Meal of Links

I always thought there was something, I don't know, disingenuous about the VISA ads with the four guys who never miss a Super Bowl. Did you know the NFL sells them their tickets?

A new book looks at the early history of National Lampoon. A talk with an artist.

Comparing the Steelers and Packers. Both teams have no cheerleaders.

Accidents can happen. A list of odd deaths.

"Exit Through The Gift Shop" is streaming on Hulu. It's Oscar-nominated.

The 50 Most Controversial Films. They pretty much nailed the list. Many of these were actually protested, including the No. 1, "The Last Temptation Of Christ".

He is most interesting. "Stay thirsty, my friends."

Dog? Or colonoscopy?

Robert Osborne has my dream job. I love the guy. He and Alec Baldwin restart "The Essentials" in March.

Ask Men reveals its Top 99 Women. My litmus test on these lists is Kate Beckinsale. This year, she's 14. OK, I'll live with that.

More Beck Bullshit (with multiple blackboards)



Exercise Yard

Soccer's transfer window ended last night and it was insane. There was a record amount of money spent and even Randy Lerner was in on it.

Visitor

34 Across: Pop music's Lady ____ (4 letters) Answer: Gaga

At first, I wasn't sure if I was seeing things because it was news to me. But there was a female lines official who worked the Wolves-Liverpool match this past weekend. Kind of a big deal, being that it was a televised match and all. Apparently, this was her second match.

Of course, the first goal was at her end and she had to decide on an offsides call, which she correctly called. There was no offsides, the flag stayed down, and Liverpool was leading 1-0. As usual, Wolves players had their arms up and started to yell at the ref. Almost instantly, when they realized it was a woman, they shut up. It was funny to see the protest die quickly. If it was a guy, they would still be scowling.

Meal of Links

This piece on Gabrielle Giffords is probably the best one regarding her recovery. No sugarcoating.

Papa John's might be in your house. Free pizza if the Super Bowl goes to overtime.

Subtitles. Or lack thereof in "The Godfather". Sollozzo gets it. Beautiful scene.

What it's like to interview Tommy Lee Jones. Not any easier these days, I'm afraid.

Exercise Yard

Steelers-Packers means one thing for Lord Football. Huge ratings.

Visitor

22 Down: NBA's ___ Ming (3 letters) Answer: Yao

Well, I think everyone got the best of both worlds for the Super Bowl as it wound up Green Bay and Pittsburgh. Both games today should really not have been as close as they turned out. Green Bay started failing to convert several third and shorts and allowed Chicago to hang around way too long. Even with a gift interception for a TD, the Packers allowed the Bears to get right back in it.

As for the Steelers, that game should have been over at the half. The Jets failure to score after a lengthy 4th quarter drive destroyed any chance they had, even after they got a quick safety as a followup. I actually gained much respect for the Jets for not folding at the half. The Steelers made way too many mistakes with the ball in the second half to keep the Jets in it.

The Super Bowl got a terrific matchup with about as many angles as the press needs for the buildup to the game.

Meal of Links

I took advantage of the late NFL starts today to see "The Fighter". It's the well-documented story of the boxer Micky Ward and his crack-addicted trainer, Dick Eklund, who is also his brother. Yeah, it's a boxing movie, so I had to see it.

The boxing sequences almost bordered on lame here. Really nothing memorable. You get an over-the-top performance from Melissa Leo as Ward's mother, who also served as his business manager for a time. Basically Ward was the family corporation and the movie details how his career got better when he got better management, meaning Leo had to take a backseat.

Christian Bale as Eklund is the gem here, as always. Like the young DeNiro, he immerses himself in any character he plays. Gets the crack addict persona down, with almost as much weight loss as he had for "The Machinist". You cannot believe this is the same guy that plays the Dark Knight. Mark Wahlberg as Ward is kinda so-so. I thought he didn't come close to demonstrating how tough of a fighter Ward was. And Amy Adams gets a sassy role for a change.

I expected better here. Ward himself says over the closing credits that he was glad the filming of the movie was finally over, as if he was tired of reliving his past. It's a decent enough tale, but somehow the movie went off the tracks just enough to not put it into the must-see category. Curiously, the movie ignores Ward's greatest triumphs a a boxer, the Ward-Gatti Trilogy. With the strange circumstances of his death, maybe that will be detailed in the Arturo Gatti Story.

Jack LaLanne finally unplugged his juicer. He was 96 and quite a fascinating individual.

Now we know the reason (well, 4.6 million of 'em) Baby Doc went back to Haiti. Straight cash, homey.

Exercise Yard

Yesterday, a pro bowler shot 100 in a televised match. It was the lowest score ever by a professional on TV. His opponent? He shot a 299.

Visitor

None, on a really cold Sunday.

I just flew in from Kauai and boy, are my arms tired. I'll have a full report when I get organized here and mainly, sleep some. But I did get back in time for the Super Bowl. Outside of being ill, I haven't flown solo for the Super Bowl in quite a long time, so I had many observations that kind of hung out there in the ether. I like the Super Bowl ads, but I still think football process during the games and need to bounce those ideas off of people. So, here it goes.

Did I miss an Asian singer during the pregame? I saw Queen Latifah and Carrie Underwood (in her "Lost in Space" outfit) and wasn't sure if the rainbow was complete.

Jim Nantz was over the top in announcing, "The coin toss...next!". Then, Emmitt Smith "debacling" the coin toss.

The commercial with LeBron and Basketball Jesus was, and I'm being quite charitable, lame.

Peyton Manning has become "Peyton", much like "Ben". But Nantz actually said, "And Miami has become Peyton's place again!". So much for spontaneity. He needs to check his sponsorships at the door.

A commercial with Betty White AND Abe Vigoda? Gold, Jerry, gold!

The Saints with really bad tackling early. I think I agreed with Manning after the game. I'm not really sure the Saints ever stopped the Colts offense.

Two major criticisms I had with the announce crew. The first one dealt with a play in the first half right before Pierre Garcon's TD for the Colts. On a third down play, Joseph Addai busted up the middle for a big run. The Colts had a linebacker (#52) in the backfield. Now, I don't see the Colts very often, but I see 'em enough to know that was a new wrinkle. Anyhow, he goes right to start the play, as if he is going to get a pass out of the backfield. Obviously, the Saint defense moves with him, and Addai gets the ball behind that motion and gets big yards. Absolutely no mention of it, even during a replay.

The other was before the half. Nantz and Phil Simms actually had a discussion of how the Saints might use their timeouts before halftime. The problem was, on second down, the play ended with 59 seconds left and the Saints called a TO at 51 seconds. After the ensuing punt, they clearly could have used those seconds to run another play before having to kick their field goal. And, once again, the announce crew (more concerned with spotting Barney Stinson in the crowd) asleep at the wheel.

Dexter. For Dodge. Ni-i-i-ice.

Yeah, Nantz was typically Nantz, but I did laugh at this FLO TV ad. You know, the "injury report" with the spineless husband? He had me at "Hello, friends..."

The Pierre Garcon drop in the first half probably changed the outcome of the game, even though it was early. So much for Haiti.

The Simpsons commercial for Coke was baffling to me. Not the actual production, but the concept.

OK, I'm a fanboy for The Who, so I really enjoyed the halftime. But, I must say, Roger Daltrey didn't have the best of starts. I thought we may have had a disaster brewing, but he definitely got it together after his first two attempts at singing. Pete, as ever, windmilling around the stage, was still the Pete Townshend I love. And I loved the hat. CBS must have thought Keith Moon was still drumming, because Zak Starkey, Ringo's son, seemed to be getting more airtime than Roger and Pete. Pino Palladino and Pete's brother, Simon, were afterthoughts it seemed, as far as TV time. Regardless, I thought it was great.

After the Saints onside kick, Nantz said, after a replay, "Bounced off the hands of Hank Baskett...". Yeah, you don't hear that often. Tee hee.

The NPP (Non-Playing Posse) of the Saints killed me during this championship run. The gold sweatshirts, actually acting like they were playing, towel waving. Gave me tons of material. Several second half sightings of them.

While watching Manning and Drew Brees battle, where is the hope for the Browns? Especially with the current guys we have at quarterback?

Leno, Oprah and Dave on the CBS promo for Letterman was genius.

Did you catch the mention that Howard Mudd, the Colts offensive line coach, was retiring after the game? Do you also realize he coached the Browns line under Marty? If we have any glory years around here, those are it. And he started here (gulp!), 27 years ago! It makes me wonder where Lindy Infante is.

Reggie Wayne with only one catch in the first three first quarters was not good. But Manning kept going to him in the fourth quarter and, well, you saw the result. Interception return for the Saints to put the game out of reach. And, it was by Tracy Porter, the guy with dumb Super Bowl haircut.

Once you think you know the NFL rules, they redefine them further. I'm thinking of the Saints 2-point conversion. First ruled incomplete on the field, then overturned on replay. First, we have become obsessed with "making a football move" after a catch. Now, we have to be concerned with something called a "second act"? I thought the original call was correct. Those hands definitely separated for control, the way I saw it.

After Manning's interception, the Peyton Manning Face returned! Do the face!

As you may or may not know, a famous local sports radio caller, Dumpling, died recently. Virtually all of the hosts in town eulogized the guy on their shows. Then some callers called in with their memories, as well. For a day or so, these random calls would show up and someone would comment on Dumpling. It got to the point, we thought it would be great if the Cavs would win a title and LeBron would say, "This one's for Dumpling!". That has spawned a lot of "This one's for Dumpling!" comments during the NFL playoffs. Yesterday, with the Saints winning, we had to change it to, "This one's for Boulette!".

I predict that Drew Brees pictures with his kid will be like Kurt Warner and "Thank you, Jesus!".

I saw James Carville on the field during the postgame celebration.

Let's not forget Tom Benson almost moved the Saints. Just sayin'. Great teams are not always run by great owners. Art Modell.

Great scene on ESPN last night. They wanted to show Bourbon Street after the game and right when they got a camera shot, you saw two policemen on horseback giving a guy a hard time. They lingered awfully long on it, until someone nudged the camera in a different direction. Awesome. Of course, Rick Reilly referred to the "Latin Quarter" of New Orleans.

Speaking of weird, that Polamalu commercial scared me.

Lastly, did you see Peyton Manning run off the field WITHOUT SHAKING HANDS WITH THE OPPONENTS? Let's see how differently the media handles that than LeBron. When LeBron did it, it was a major story that would not go away. Manning does it and, well, let's see if anyone noticed it.

Big wrapup here.

Meal of Links

Costa Rica elects a woman President. And she looks like a weird version of that "Biggest Loser" trainer.

22 romantic characters who don't deserve love. Nothing earth shattering here.

How the theme to "Twin Peaks" was written. Great stuff. "I see Twin Peaks."

Exercise Yard

It's All Saints Day today.

Visitor

28 Across: NBA center who was a three-time MVP (11 letters) Answer: Moses Malone

I had a busy day today. Did you know today was America Recycles Day? Or, maybe it's tomorrow. Anyhow, I took my old computer to get recycled today. Yes, my Sony VAIO from the Dark Ages gets sent to PC Heaven. Actually, it doesn't reach heaven or purgatory, so it's probably in limbo, even though the Pope banished that a few years ago.

But, I also did three things you normally can't do in November around here:

A. Wear shorts outside. While running a bunch of errands this a.m., I could not believe how warm it was, so off with the denims.

B. Mow the lawn. Incredibly, I mowed the lawn today. I thought it needed one more shot before winter. By far, the latest I've ever had to mow.

C. Grill outdoors. My Dad bought some steaks a while back and had them frozen for a few weeks. I thought last week we blew it, by not grilling them then. So, we made sure we had them ready for today's weather. He must have picked them up from the BrontoBurger aisle at Buehler's. I know when he got them, they were dirt cheap, but jeezy creezy, they must have been 24-oz. ones. That means leftovers!

Meal of Links

Hunt4Tunes allows you to listen and download tunes. I just listened to "Dr. Detroit" by Devo, "Blue Orchid" by The White Stripes, and "Cities" by Talking Heads. Far from comprehensive, but it is "F-R-E-E, that spells free.".

This is great news. The Who will play "The CSI Song" at the Super Bowl. I think Roger's voice can hold up for 15 minutes, can't it?

Some excellent rock photos from Jim Marshall. My favorite of the bunch here may be the Slick/Joplin one. But these are all good. The Who is in there, as well.

Dear Santa, I don't ask for much. But this new book, "Dear Andy Kaufman, I Hate Your Guts!" is going on my Christmas list. Cookies and cocoa on me, dude. Thanks!

We are running out of bluefin tuna. What do you do if you run across one though, eat it? It may be the last one.

The one-of-a-kind David Lloyd died this week. Look at the TV shows on his resume.

Newsweek has a list of comedians who aren't funny. If the person I am thinking of, is not on this list, then this list sucks. Yep, he's on it, at a charitable #4. Poor Emo and Yakov, though.

35 Awesome Science Fair Projects. With pictures.

There was a linebacker I noticed from Iowa today with the name of "Angerer". It made me wonder what Ed Anger was up to. He's still angry!

Exercise Yard

Even the Most Interesting Man in the World (Complete with purple shirt. Hah!) loves TCU football. "Stay horny, my friends."

Visitor

30 Across: Voice of Mr. Magoo (9 letters) Answer: Jim Backus "Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol" bothered me intensely upon my first viewing.

Wasn't planning on doing much of anything last night. I got a call from Jimmy Donovan reminding me that my Browns payment for season tickets is due next week. Had to wash dishes. But then Cousin Barb came to the rescue with Indians tickets. "F-R-E-E, that spells free..." So, I went to my favorite type of Indians game. You know, the kind with fireworks after. If this town could manufacture exploding dollar hot dogs, they would sell out every game.

Speaking of dogs, my post on hot dog prices was a bit hasty the other day. We found that variable pricing exists for the red hots. Ranging from $3.00 to $4-something for regular dogs. Koshers go for $5, with the super (grilled with onions) going for $6.50. Cannot determine why the prices are what they are, but only Cleveland can sell hot dogs a la a wine list.

As for the game, well, that's nothing new. Fausto Carmona looked better. But he gave up a monster homer to Justin Morneau. Strike outs were up and he didn't walk many. Rafael Betancourt, who still comes into the game via "Conquest" by the White Stripes", still sucks. And then he does it such an agonizingly slow way to take the steam out of everyone. When he left, it was 5-1, and that's how it ended. Vinnie Chulk gave us two innings of Chulk-A-Mania to close it out.

The Indians have played 7 home games. I have attended 3. They have lost all 3. Although, it did not rain this time. Matter of fact, it was stealing to get 80 degrees at an April game. Anyhow, Tribe loses, 5-1. Again.

WARNING: My Dad and I are at Sunday's game with cheap StubHub tickets behind home plate. Bet accordingly.

Meal of Links

Top 10 Album Openers of the '90s. Decent list with listening capability.

More about torture.

Super Bowl in London? I'd bet the first year it's there, the Browns will make it. Depriving the loyalists of an opportunity to see the game in person.

A Far Cry From "This Is My Town"



Exercise Yard

Heading over to Paul's later for the NFL Draft. Yes, Lord Football rules even on an 80-degree April day in Cleveland. The final mock draft of Rick Gosselin.

BTW, for all of the chatter out there, if the Browns do not make a trade or two and simply go with the picks they have, I think we will all be disappointed. Let the ManKok Era begin!

Visitor

57 Across: London-born supermodel (8 letters) Answer: Kate Moss

I worked from home again today because of the snow. The beauty about today's snow is it was not weighty. The problem is, this morning it kept coming. Anyhow, it ended up being perfect timing. I have a portable XM device that I was letting expire next month. I was replacing it with an XM Mini-Tuner and Dock that I can hook up to my Onkyo home stereo. Well, it arrived today and within 30 minutes I opened the box, hooked it up, enrolled online and started receiving the signal. Not too shabby. Now if I'm home, I don't have to rely on only local radio to get me through the day.

Aaaah. Wolfmother. Loudly.

Meal of Links

The Beasties are releasing a 20th anniversary version of the classic "Paul's Boutique". And while you're listening to "Hey Ladies" be sure to use the dial, "Turn me up.", to take advantage of everything on the page.

David Simon has something going on post-"The Wire". Set in New Orleans and it's called "Treme". Looks like Steve Zahn stars.

Thor rolls a joint.

Looks like Live Nation and Ticketmaster will merge. Live Nation apparently butchered distribution of Phish tickets last week, so this is timely.

Shocking crimes in social media history. Lots of Facebook.

Google Latitude. I mean, I am not even on Twitter.

Exercise Yard

As soon as it appeared that Ben Roethlisberger had scored the first TD in the Super Bowl, my brother called me and said, "Whatever happened to that penalty about helping a runner?". For years now, we have seen lineman push the pile for more yardage. It happens quite often these days. But way back when we were kids, one of the whiskey or beer companies had an artist's rendering of all of the referee signals. I know it's cheap entertainment, but we didn't have the Internets. Well, the one for "Helping the Runner" looked stupid. It was moving your hands in front of you, palms up, like you were dancing. I've never seen it called.

However, the weirdest penalty signal I ever saw called was for Hurdling. Yes, that was a penalty in my lifetime. The great Harold Carmichael once leaped over a guy who was still on his feet. If his knees were on the ground, it would be OK. That's 15 yards, buddy. The referee actually had to do a little jump to call it. Hurdling has since been rendered legal.

But in the Super Bowl, the Steeler center gets in front of Roethlisberger (note he has a last name and does not go just by "Ben") and basically uses the same technique he used to get flagged for a safety later, by grabbing Roethlisberger and pulling him toward the goal line for a TD. It got overturned (I think incorrectly) but the lack of penalty still bugged me. Well, I stumbled upon a recent Jerry Markbreit column (yes, that Jerry Markbreit) and it's still a penalty.

One more thing:

Jeff Pearlman, who did really good work for ESPN.com, talks about what he hates about ESPN. And, he's right.

Visitor

11 Down: Pop of Rock (4 letters) Answer: Iggy

I saw "The Wrestler" today. And I really liked it. Brutal to watch, at times, both physically and emotionally, but probably Darren Aronofsky's most accessible film. I should know, I paid to see "Pi".

Mickey Rourke was superb, Marisa Tomei has a great butt, and the behind-the-scenes stuff of the wrestling scene was depicted realistically, unlike the spectacle itself. I mean when the crowd starts yelling, "Use His Leg" when an amputee offers his artificial leg as a weapon to one of the combatants during a hardcore match, well, it's pretty true to form. Rourke had several go-for-the-Oscar moments, but his speech to the crowd at the end, about them being his family, was the best for me.

First-time trailers today: "Wolverine", the new Harry Potter and the new Terminator with Christian Bale.

Meal of Links

USA Today has the Super Bowl Ad Meter. Come on, Jason Statham as Frank Martin driving an Audi closed this contest out for me pretty early as the clear winner. Doritos Crystal Ball and CareerBuilder with the co-worker saying, "Hey, Dummy!" made me laugh out loud. And, of course, my weakness for monkeys wearing clothes, was exploited once again in a Super Bowl, this time by Castrol. Will.i.am and Dylan for Pepsi was cool. Other than that, the allegedly heart-tugging Clydesdales have now officially bored me. M.C. Hammer's new career is making fun of the fact he's broke. Or was broke. Chester Cheetoh is now horning in on The Burger King's territory. There were too many movie trailers (Vin Diesel?) and too many car ads that can't compare to "The Transporter". All the ads are on Hulu, which featured Alec Baldwin in their ad.

Michael Phelps smoked the hippy lettuce. So what?

Springsteen talks about everything. And that WalMart idea? Maybe not so good.

Exercise Yard

Super Bowl:

So-so first half. James Harrison's TD.





































Ugly third quarter. But I guess Gary Busey was happy.


















































Fantastic fourth quarter. O-H-I-O.































Donnie Banks has some Snap Judgments.

Visitor

None, it's Super Bowl Sunday.

Today was one of those wasted days you run into now and then. Yes, I had to call a plumber. And, of course, it's not a job that lasts a couple of hours. No, eight-and-a-half hours later, the job is done. Don't get me wrong. The work is actually well done, it's just that with some old galvanized pipe, you get yourself curveballs in their repair. Probably something that should have been taken care of a while ago, but so easy to put off until necessary.

Meal of Links

FBI wants to track all of your characteristics. Hey, that goes against the very idea of one's rights of privacy.

Not only did the Super Bowl suck for three quarters, the commercials were subpar. Typically, you can find several gems, but yesterday's ads were either creepy or caused me to say WTF a lot. Especially for the most-watched game in the history of the Super Bowl.

Tired ads:

I'm really bored by the Clydesdales these days.
Can you find someone more relevant than Carmen Electra to sell your product?
The theory that it's tough to sell cars during the Super Bowl was hammered home, wasn't it?

Good ads:

NFL with Rashaan Salaam and Chester Pitts and his oboe.
Bud Light's fire-breathing guy got the proceedings off in a good way.
FedEx carrier pigeons.
Stewie and Underdog balloons fighting for a Coke that goes to Charlie Brown.
Tide's interview with a stain.
Barkley and Wade for T-Mobile was hilarious.

Bad ads:

Planters ugly chick.
SoBe. When you spend the whole ad wondering...Is that Naomi Campbell?
CareerBuilder, especially the heart one. What were they smokin'?
Audi. Great Godfather reference. Two weird things. I was fascinated by what type of grill it was and God, that guy looked like Moe Green and I know he's dead.
Dell Red. Nice cause, awful ad. Too much butt slapping.
Garmin. A bunch of French things with Napoleon as the punchline. Way too much for America to handle.

20 Geeky pop culture obsessions. My favorite whipping boy, The Renaissance Faire, clocks in at Number Two. Sadly, "The Simpsons" and Zappa make the list. Fanfic is really bizarre, especially when your favorite TV characters are having sex. Ewww!

Exercise Yard

Well, I was really wrong about the Super Bowl and that's why I don't bet on football. That game, for three quarters, was dull, but very quick. Then things got interesting. Not mentioned too much is that Tom Brady actually delivered big scoring drives when he had to the last two seasons. And he still got eliminated in both games. Last year, against the Colts and then yesterday.

Some thoughts:

Giants defense was overwhelming.
New England should have attempted a field goal, instead of going for it 4th and 13.
Belichick is still an ass.
David Tyree's catch still amazes me. If not for Rodney Harrison underneath him, that ball would have slammed into the turf. Greatest catch in SB history? Maybe, but I have to see the NFL Films treatment before I vote.
New England gave up on the run pretty early, I thought.
Why couldn't Randy Moss get open in the first three quarters?
Eli Manning was good in the playoffs, but I'm already tired of "he grew up before our eyes".

A Patriots fan perspective.

Visitor

30 Across: Middle Corleone brother (5 letters) Answer: Fredo BTW, look at John Cazale's movies:

"The Godfather"
"The Conversation"
"The Godfather, Part II"
"Dog Day Afternoon"
"The Deer Hunter"

Word of advice. Do not go to Giant Eagle on Super Bowl Sunday. You'd think it was Y2K or something going on. I actually saw adults pushing around those "car carts", because there weren't any regular ones. Hey, I draw the line on that and would rather wait for a conventional one. Nevertheless, it was madhouse status in there, rivaling Thanksgiving week.

Meal of Links

Stilettos help women's sex lives. Wow, what a surprise.

Stalking at the Super Bowl. I laughed.

When will this happen? Or at least move the game to Saturday. Especially this year, when you Super Bowl, Mardi Gras and Chinese New Year in the same week.

Exercise Yard

Brock Lesnar wasn't much of a wrestler either. He lost his UFC debut. I don't watch UFC, I'm still hanging on to the Sweet Science. But there's been a dearth of good boxing matches lately.

Visitor

None, it's Super Bowl Sunday!

They finally put Barbaro down today. The outpouring of emotion for this horse kinda puzzled me. I've watched a lot of horse racing in my day and, sad to say, have seen horses break down from time to time. It always comes out of the blue when it happens, but Barbaro is certainly not the first to break down, and not the first to break down in a major race on TV. Ruffian and Go For Wand come to mind. And for a while, it seemed Wayne Lukas was running his stable into the ground as a weekly show. So, I was startled that this horse, at this time, seemed to strike a chord with the public. Maybe the fact Barbaro was not immediately euthanized had something to do with it.

The other mystery is, since when did horse racing have this many fans? The tease has always been the next Triple Crown winner will bring racing back. Then the book "Seabiscuit" (a great read, BTW) came out and that was supposed to be the next catalyst. Ah, then the movie "Seabiscuit" came out, and boy, you were gonna have to show up early to get a parking spot at the track. Well, it hasn't happened. And the sport has been dying such a slow death, it probably never will. I always joke about being called "Sonny" at the track, so I wish that the people who took time to write Barbaro a letter, or sent him an e-mail, go to the track this year. Go and see how much fun it can be or, at the very least, realize there are races besides the Kentucky Derby that are on TV. And, by God, you can wager on them, too.

Meal of Links

Hey, "Ed" the "Love Monkey" gets a new show. It's about stuff at the Smithsonian.

Of course, we Google things to death. Here are some alternative search engines to check out.

I think we "saved the cheerleader", didn't we? So, your next assignment, if you choose to accept it, is to "Find Satoshi".

Exercise Yard

Darren Rovell researches the Super Bowl prop bet that Billy Joel will sing the National Anthem in 1:44. He says, "Take the under".

Visitor

9 Down: Welles of "Citizen Kane" (5 letters) Answer: Orson