Last night, Best Friend and I saw the Foo Fighters. As always, when Dave Grohl is in town, you know you are going to a ROCK show.

The Venue: Quicken Loans Arena. The home of the $8 cocktail.

Dave Grohl: Grohl remains quite the entertainer. He reminded us that about 40 minutes to an hour away from here, there is a city with a street named after him. The city would be Warren, OH. He also said it wasn't really a street, but "an alley behind a Burger King. Because there is no way they are gonna name a fuckin' boulevard after Dave Grohl."

After the last song when everyone is waiting for encores, the video screen comes on. Again with the night vision backstage. People cheer. Then who do they switch to? Of course, it's Grohl. How many are they gonna play? He cups his ear to the crowd, they go crazy. It's always funny. Are they gonna do two songs? The negotiation begins. Then Tyler Hawkins gets into the act. Eventually, they decide five is enough and they come back on stage.

The Tickets: We were in Club Section 108 about 5 rows from the front. Pretty good seats which allowed us to see everything.

The Crowd: The upper section facing the stage was curtained off. The other uppers maybe half-filled. The floor was not overly packed and it looks like 10,000 were there. I gotta say the atmosphere in the clubs was way different than the last time we saw them, when we had great seats downstairs. Lesson learned.

The Sound: The Q used to really suck soundwise. Dave's screaming and cussing came through with no problems.

They had two opening acts last night and we got in a lot earlier than last time, when Supergrass was on the bill. The first was Mariachi el Bronx. Sort of disappointed we didn't see them. Rise Against was next and I thought they were very good. Really a hard driving sound.

The Stage: The setup was a bit different this time. The stage floor was lit up at times.. Grohl still has a ramp into the audience. This allows for the typical gesturing and running around with your guitar. At the end of the ramp was a stage, which later elevated maybe about 15 steps and that gave everyone at the shitty end to say they at least saw Dave Grohl, up close. Two video screens fronted the stage.

The Foos were back to a more normal number with 5 members and an ocassional keyboardist. You have four guitars, including Grohl, up front. In the back, we have the keyboards and Taylor Hawkins on drums, of course.

The Music: A consistently strong performance once again last night. All the hits were terrific, "Let It Die" "My Hero" and "Monkey Wrench". We got a solo version of "Best of You" this time. "Everlong" closed it out with the full band treatment, which was acoustic last time.

Setlist:

Bridge Burning
Rope
The Pretender
My Hero
Learn to Fly
White Limo
Arlandria
Breakout
Cold Day in the Sun
Long Road to Ruin
Stacked Actors
Walk
Monkey Wrench
Let It Die
These Days
This Is a Call
All My Life

Encore:

Wheels (Grohl solo)
Best of You (Grohl solo)
Times like These (Grohl solo)
Dear Rosemary
Breakdown (The Tom Petty song)
Everlong

Once more, a great performance by the Foo Fighters. More bang for the buck than any band out there. You get great tunes, jocularity from the band, and an adoring audience. Still impressive after all these years.

PD review is here.

Meal of Links

Albert Brooks is a revelation in "Drive". A long way from the Danny the Dummy era. Which slays me all the time. Somewhere, I see Andy Kaufmann getting inspired.

Albert Brooks with Danny the Dummy



Does Troy Davis signal the end of the death penalty? I remain a staunch opponent.

R.E.M. folds.

"Pop Song 89"/R.E.M.



Cameron Crowe dissects Pearl Jam tunes. PBS airs this on October 21.

TV's Best Characters. Sterling Archer should be on this list.

Let's talk about death, baby. Let's talk about you and me. Let's talk about all the noncommunicable diseases that may be.

Exercise Yard

I guess we can forget about Dan Gilbert being ruined by the subprime crisis. He is one of Forbes 400 richest Americans.

Visitor

Across Down: ( letters) Answer: TEXT

Sunday's conclusion of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" made me laugh really hard. Michael J. Fox and his Parkinson's. The soda kills me. Later on, Leon says, "If he handed you a carton of milk, you'd end up with a motherfuckin' milkshake." Leon is always good.

LD and Michael J. Fox on "Curb"



This season of "Curb" was probably one of the best. Oh, there were a couple of clunkers, but most times I laughed a lot this season.

Meal of Links

John Calley died today. Responsible for bringing many great movies to the screen. Especially at his stint at Warner Bros.

"Let him die." There is your republican healthcare answer.

10 Worst New Shows of the fall season. I have been watching "The Hour" on BBC America. But that's only got two episodes left. I would rather be watching Season 2 of "Terriers". "Archer" has a limited run starting this week on FX.

Doris Day has charted in the UK. Huh?

Talking with Nick Lowe. I've always enjoyed "Big Kick, Plain Scrap". And, of course...

"I Love The Sound Of Breaking Glass'/Nick Lowe



Bachmann and vaccines. Here we go.

Exercise Yard

NFL retirees are suing the NFLPA. Claiming they had no right to negotiate payments for them. I still think that 10-year deal sucked for the players.

Visitor

15 Across: Pop singer Brickell (4 letters) Answer: Edie

"What I Am"/Edie Brickell & The New Bohemians

A few thoughts...

Rick Perry and the "Ponzi Scheme" line about Social Security caught fire today.

Get used to it. ESPN has Monday Night Football for 10 more years. Hello, cable rate increase. Plus more Berman.

Interesting item about Carlos Carrasco's Tommy John surgery. Geez, they couldn't wait to get Jake Westbrook tossing on a one-year timetable. Carrasco? 12 to 18 months.

Jeff Tweedy Covers Black Eyed Peas



President Obama talks tough. Now that's the guy I voted for.

Buddy Holly would have been 75 this week.

"Well..All Right"/Buddy Holly



Meal of Links

Are you ready for some football? The broadcast maps are up! Somwhere Navin Johnson is dancing. Looks like it's Kevin Harlan and Solomon Wilcots for the Browns.

I know he's bad, but today's Kevin O'Brien column was downright awful. Using semantics to deny the existence of a middle class is astoundingly stupid. Deconstructed here.

This is low. A mentally disabled guy got swindled out of a bunch of Superman memorabilia.

"Shaun Of The Dead". Incredibly funny.

Kate is told “Reality TV is not a career" by Jon Gosselin. Amen, brother...wait...WTF?

Missed last night's debate? Here are the Republican candidates in one sentence.

It's happened. Schweddy Balls Ice Cream! An instant classic from Ben & Jerry's.

Exercise Yard

The Arturo Gatti murder case will be reopened. Cyril Wecht says the original cause of death by suicide is fiction.

Visitor

17 Across: Former quarterback Peete (6 letters) Answer: Rodney

Not much going on today.

How 'bout some Otis?

"Try A Little Tenderness"/Peter Bjorn and John




Meal of Links

Eddie Murphy WILL host the Oscars. Fuck skewing younger, bring on the funny.

Hitch on 9/11.

States with the most uninsured people. Rick Perry's Texas has the most with 27.2%. Mitt Romney's Massachusetts has the least at 5.3%. Yet, Romney still backs away from it.

Robert Duvall still gives great interviews. His views on show business are always refreshing.

Exercise Yard

3-D TVs just aren't selling. So much so, that ESPN may shut down ESPN 3-D. Probably ahead of its time, but with not much programming, added expenses like 3-D goggles and a shitty economy, what do you expect?

Visitor

36 Down: "Star Wars" mastermind (5 letters) Answer: Lucas

Well, the debt deal finally got done. Here are the political winners and losers.

And, the policy winners and losers.

Meal of Links

Happy Birthday, MTV.

Kings of Leon seem to be having issues. Not breaking up, just pissing off fans.

Come on, is this year's shark attacks the D.B. Cooper case? Still, one of America's greatest mysteries, unless you think Bigfoot ate him.

I'm sure this is the type of interchange that was proposed for I-480 and Tiedeman. Obviously, shitcanned by people who seemingly know better.

HBO premiere dates. "Bored to Death" goes to Mondays in October.

The best time passages in movies. There's that pyramid again. "You know, for the kids." And that beautiful ending from "25th Hour".

"Bachelorette" summary. Great, that saved me a bunch of time.

Getting Bin Laden. Has to be the most revealing account, thus far. "For God and country—Geronimo, Geronimo, Geronimo."

Exercise Yard

Versus gets its expected name change, which is...NBC Sports Network. Obviously, lots of Olympics, hockey, horse racing and cycling. Don't be surprised if that NFL Thursday Night package (down the road) winds up here.

BTW, the NFL Network and RedZone Channel go to Charter. Seven of the top 8 cable carriers now have the NFL Network. The holdout? Although the public sniping has cooled, it's Time Warner, of course!

Visitor

48 Across: Maine mail order giant (6 letters) Answer: L.L. Bean

While waiting for the new local sports talk station to arrive...

I was able to see a couple of movies recently. The first was "Captain America". This was even better than I expected and I'm not even sure what I expected, but this one was extremely well done. As far as the Marvel characters go, easily the best one since the original "Iron Man".

When I was in college, we came up with a comedy bit that superheroes had to register with the authorities. After following the likes of Superman and Spiderman, Cappy walks in and starts answering the questions. When it came to superpowers, he had to admit, "Well, all I have is this shield." Of course, everyone starts making fun of him.

And that, my friends, might be why this one is so special. It's because of that lack of a superpower, that the character has to be more human. That's why this is a throwback to the old war movies, where we shoot at Nazis, there's a guy from Brooklyn, we win the girl, and the world is a better place. I didn't think you could pull that off in 2011, but they did.

Kudos to whoever cast this picture. Chris Evans as Captain America, Haley Atwell and Tommy Lee Jones are spot-on. Dominic Cooper was outstanding as Iron-Man's father, Howard Stark. Hugo Weaving was the perfect Nazi villain. Only Stanley Tucci was a bit over-the-top as a good German scientist who developed the super-soldier serum, originally given to Weaving, turned bad, and now Evans, for the good.

Of course, Nick Fury shows up at the end (this time, pre-credits), as we prepare for next year's "The Avengers". Starting to film around here very soon. But I'd put "Captain America: The First Avenger" on the must-see of the summer list.

Next up was "Cowboys and Aliens". Much like "Snakes On A Plane", this is what you get. Sort of a weird combination of an old-timey Western transposed on a "Close Encounters"-type movie. Or maybe even a "Jeepers Creepers"-type as some of the townsfolk got snatched up by the flying aliens.

Not really sure what to make of this. I sort of liked the opening acts where Daniel Craig didn't know who he was or where he was, but he was definitely a badass. So, he has to mosey into town as the stranger. Causes a bit of a row, but then the sheriff, Keith Carradine, recognizes him from a wanted poster, and indeed, Craig is a badass.

Harrison Ford then shows up, because his son, Paul Dano, had a run in with Craig. And because he was the local rich rancher, he had to go to town and try to spring Dano. Olivia Wilde is around, I guess, because she looks hot.

Then the aliens show up and start scooping up some locals. For the most part, these are the red-shirted "Star Trek" types, except for Dano and Kenny Powers Mexican girlfriend. So, a posse is formed to find out where the aliens took them.

Then the story weakens because of that old plot drag, "This is where things need to be explained". I should probably mention I thought the aliens looked and acted kinda lame. We travel from God knows where to steal gold (WTF?) and we get attacked and can be killed by a spear? Huh?

So, the last half of the movie is where we learn:

Daniel Craig is a badass, but just may settle down.

Olivia Wilde is pretty beyond belief, and she's got a secret.

Harrison Ford is a crusty old coot with a tender side, but doesn't know Indian talk. Lemme tell ya, John Wayne always knew "Comanch" in his movies.

God can't save all preachers.

Sam Rockwell learns how to use a gun.

I don't know what it all means, but a decent start was sorta derailed halfway through. Trust me, you'll have more questions than answers after watching this one. Maybe it would be better as "Cowboys and Crusty Old Coots", or "Let's Stare At Olivia Wilde For 118 Minutes".

Meal of Links

Your Top 50 Politicos. Oddly enough, from Politico.

John Boehner actually said this on the floor of the House this evening: "A lot of people in this town can never say yes."

"Hell No, You Can't"



Billy Hunter is the head of the NBA Players Association, currently locked out by the owners. His life story reads like something from "Zelig".

Guess what? Matt Pinfield returns to MTV as host of "120 Minutes", starting tomorrow. And VH-1 salutes MTV's 30th anniversary, also tomorrow.

All about "Zodiac". One of Fincher's finest. Still have not seen the "Dragon Tattoo" trailer in the theater. Did see trailers for "Moneyball", "Contagion", "Battleship" which looked shitty for 5/12, "The Amazing Spider-Man" again for 7/12.

10 Popular Shows from the '90s that were terrible. I successfully avoided them all.

New GDP figures are out. Uh-oh.

Exercise Yard

U.S. Soccer finally did the right thing and hired Jurgen Klinsmann as men's national coach. Klinsmann has played in the World Cup many times, coached a WC semifinalist, and lived in the States for many years. Outstanding credentials. Truly a thinking man's coach who desires an attacking style of play. This is the man most fans have wanted as national coach for years.

Bob Bradley spent his time as U.S. coach rather well. But it is so difficult to have the same man in charge for multiple runs at qualifying and playing for a World Cup that a move had to be made. This year's Gold Cup Final showed it was the end of the line for Bradley.

This move is a no-brainer. But Klinsmann has to find someone, anyone, who can put the ball in the net consistently. It's a problem that has haunted the U.S. in international play forever. Right now, at age 46, Klinsmann might be the team's best striker. If he doesn't find that guy, today's holiday may not be as fondly remembered in 2014.

BTW, we are only 8 days til the Community Shield. The EPL has less of an off-season than NASCAR.

Visitor

26 Across: Rowan Atkinson character (6 letters) Answer: Mr. Bean

Remember these dudes with "The whistling song" from a few years ago. I really like this single.

"Second Chance"/Peter Bjorn & John



The video blows. I think he's mocking my drumming style. Is that a mean cowbell or a sample from "Knock Three Times"?

Meal of Links

One of the crazies has left the building. That's Glenn Beck. Oddly enough, he thinks he doesn't need TV.

MoviePass update. It appears the San Francisco trial has been scrapped because they didn't have the OK of the theaters involved. Automatically tossing this venture into the "Shady" category. Current irritants if you watch movies at a theater.

You can't call the President a dick. Especially on TV. BTW, I actually found Keith Olbermann's channel. It's right above the digital BBC America on Time Warner. Shitty sound, had to crank it. Really bad set compared with Rockefeller Plaza. And odd guests like Markos from Daily Kos. Banned on MSNBC, but front and center here.

It's that time again. Know your fireworks!

Are zucchini pancakes on your Holiday menu? Good God, does that look good. Also, 5 Burger recipes from the LA Times contest.

I always mention "There's an app for that, unless you have a Blackberry". A RIM exec tells all.

I'm with "Treme" every week. Another opinion.

Spin has the best albums this year. So far.

Sampling Lou Reed. Glad they included "Vicious". But here's a throwback to the Velvets:

"Waitin' For The Man"/Lou Reed



The Enquirer says Chris Hansen has been cheating on his wife. There is video.

What if these morons actually avoid raising the debt limit/ Can they be that stupid? I'm now starting to hear rhetoric about "artificial deadlines" being repeated by those who should know better.

Exercise Yard

God bless the Internets! Hunt Me 4 Sport.

Visitor

43 Across: The Boss's backup (11 letters) Answer: E Street Band

"The E Street Shuffle"/Bruce Springsteen

What are you listening to?

"Deep In The Motherlode"/Genesis



Meal of Links

Bachmann is playing "American Girl" at her campaign stops. Tom Petty not thrilled.

The debate on marijuana. If legal, how do we cash in?

Check this out. The Netflix model for your local theaters. Unlimited movies for $50/month. This would allow more evening and weekend visits because of the prohibitive costs at night. I'm intrigued. It's called MoviePass. Starts in Frisco and it looks like AMC is on board.

Exercise Yard

I actually bet on a horse.

Merry-Go-Round Horse Race



Visitor

61 Across: Justice Samuel (5 letters) Answer: Alito

The men in my family started Father's Day by taking in a morning screening of "Bullitt". Great to see it on the big screen. This is Steve McQueen. In a Mustang. In San Francisco. With Jacqueline Bisset. Does it get any better? And this was a few years before "Dirty Harry" in the same city.

My brother informs it was the first movie that contained the word "bullshit". Nice to see a decent crowd at the Capitol, as well. We feared it might be lightly attended and were surprised by how many were there.

Meal of Links

Funky Winkerbean is still awful. Please remove this from the same page as the Crossword Puzzle.

My brother's foot asks, "Why are air conditioners so heavy?". It's the copper. Or science.

Top 100 Apps. Look how few actually make it to a Blackberry. Sigh.

The 25 Most Influential Videos. I like "Sabotage".

30 Songs about Domestic Violence. I do hear The Crystals song every once in a while on The Underground Garage and I always ask, "1962? Really?". It stands out.

Norm Macdonald tries to save his Comedy Central show. Sort of.

The little engine that could. Netflix. Still baffling the experts.

The last time I saw Ryan Dunn was last night. He was on "Minute to Win IT" with Steve-O. Not many obits are mentioning that, even if it was a rerun.

I'm watching the US Open Golf with my Dad yesterday afternoon. After a Rory McIlroy par, NBC goes to some weird shot of the Congressional clubhouse and Dan Hicks apologizes for a video or something. We had to rewind it and we hear that Hicks apologizes for a video that was supposed to be a military salute that used an edited version of the "Pledge of Allegiance'. Without even thinking, I said, "They didn't edit out "under God", did they?". Of course, they did.

Exercise Yard

Jennie Finch named her son, Diesel.cThat is all.

Visitor

58 Across: Brad of "Ocean's Eleven" (4 letters) Answer: Pitt

While still puzzled at Chris Berman referring to Retief Goosen as "The Iron Goose"...

I took my niece to see an a.m. version (Hah! My dollar, my rules.) of "Mr. Popper's Penguins". I vaguely remember the children's book as some British business guy ending up with penguins. Written when penguins were not all that popular. But Jim Carrey (has he fallen this far?) takes the lead as a real estate developer. His assistant, Pippi, still uses all words that begin with "p".

Probably the funniest scene (and, believe me, not many to choose from) is when Carrey has to bribe the doorman of his townhouse, so he isn't turned into the board. Angela Lansbury plays the owner of the Tavern on the Green, who will not sell to anyone. Least of all, to Carrey, or so it seems.

Carla Gugino in a pedestrian role as Carrey's ex-wife. Two kids round out Carrey's family. None of them really wanna see Carrey, until the penguins arrive. Bookman from "Seinfeld" plays Carrey's boss.

I will say the overall theme of the penguins presence fueling the family to get back together is so pie-in-the-sky, I hope kids don't fall for that crap. Other than that, an average flick. My niece liked it, hey, she's a kid. I thought maybe 6 on a scale of 1-10, and that's pretty generous. The closing song over the credits? "Ice Ice Baby", silly.

Meal of Links

Catching up with Louis C.K.. "Louie" starts up again this Thursday.

Keith Olbermann returns this week. Have you found Current yet with your remote?

The forgotten treasures of a Gen-X childhood. My favorite? "Halloween Candy Paranoia"!

Clarence Clemons died. Saw him 3 or 4 years ago and he looked bad back then.

The editor of Pollstar says Ticketmaster is not to blame for their fees. It's your favorite artist. Who allows you to blame Ticketmaster. This is what happens when everyone downloads music.

This song is now 25 years old this week...

"Bigmouth Strikes Again"/The Smiths



All the TED talks are here. With descriptions and dates.

Pictures of famous people. With their records. The Brando one kills me.

Exercise Yard

Bruins win the Stanley Cup. And their owner is still a dick.

Visitor

5 Across: Bean counter (10 letters) Answer: Numbers Guy

On Sunday night, S. and I were at the Rock Hall for the 3rd Annual Chef Jam. This raises money for the Ohio City Farm, which picked up a check for $5K, and education programs for the Rock Hall.

This year featured a higher ticket price, more music, less people and less vendors. But still rates fairly high on the fun list, as this year, even some of the vendors got into the act and started dressing the part. Prosperity had the Ramones, I think Melt had Kiss and there were some Beatles as well, dishing out some Yellow Submarine sammies.

The music started earlier with the band from Crop. As usual, they played "Whipping Post". The Naked Cowboy strolled around, publicizing Naked Cowboy Oysters, by mainly posing for pictures. There was of very good cover band, Abbey Rodeo, before the headliners appeared. That was the English Beat (actually only Dave Wakeling with other unknowns), who actually treated this as an appearance, and played more than an abbreviated set including some General Public stuff.

English Beat Setlist:

"Save It For Later"
"Tears Of A Clown"
"I Confess"
"Tenderness"
"I'll Take You There"
"Ranking Full Stop"
"Mirror In The Bathroom"

Sampling of Restaurants/Plates:

B Spot: Beef Sliders

Deagan's: Mushroom Stuffed Quail

Melange: Pork Belly and BBQ Beans

Melt: Fried Twinkie

Moxie: Whiskey River Gelato

Prosperity Social Club: Sloppy Joes and Mac N Cheese

Sweet Moses: Vanilla Bean Ice Cream with Bourbon Caramel Sauce w/Chocolate Candy

Sushi Rock: Spicy Salmon and Spicy Tuna

Meal of Links

Last night, I went to the Cinemark and saw the latest Woody Allen flick, "Midnight In Paris". I must say, moving his productions to the other side of the pond have revived the guy. This was sort of a "Back To The Future" for the adult set.

This time, Owen Wilson plays the Woodman Voice as a successful Hollywood writer with a deep love for '20s Paris. He is taking a shot at writing a novel and about to marry Rachel McAdams. I normally like McAdams, but she seemed off here. Michael Sheen eats some scenery as a friend, maybe former lover, of McAdams. He's an art professor, lecturing at the Sorbonne, so he knows everything about art and wind and just about everything else. Type of guy who corrects tour guides, Described perfectly as "pedantic" by Carla Bruni. Yes, stunt casting has Bruni in not just one, but two scenes.

Anyhow, as the clock strikes Midnight, McAdams and Sheen and his wife go elsewhere, Wilson is transported back in time on a nightly basis. Where he meets artists like Hemingway, the Fitzgeralds, Cole Porter, Kathy Bates as Gertrude Stein, Picasso, Bunuel, Adrien Brody as Salvador Dali ("Dah-LEE"), those types. Accepted almost immediately and never questioned about his clothing, even at the most formal gatherings. Of course, he is smitten with Marion Cotillard during these throwbacks.

The story is a nice take on nostalgia. If you immerse yourself completely, it appears that Allen has decided it stifles you creatively. Because everyone has their own idea of what the greatest time was. For example, when you think Wilson and Cotillard are a match, she opts for the Belle Epoque period of Paris.

Definitely a love letter to Paris, especially the shots in the rain. Certainly worth the 90 minutes when it comes to cable. And, you have to admit it, Allen still has some interesting stories to tell. Hopefully.

Worst addictions, by decade. And how they were treated.

Best game show hosts of the '80s. Good to see Ken Ober on there.

A look at "The Wall". Yes, it still fascinates.

Hugh Hefner's fiancee decided not to marry him. She realized she was about to marry a fossil. So, Dr. Phil's son shows up. For her, not Hef.

In case you did not know, the CIA has drones over Yemen. Shouldn't there have been a vote on that or something?

After last night's Republican debate. Could this be their future?

Exercise Yard

Big Game 7 for the Bruins tomorrow. Newest hero: Brad Marchand, the Erich Barnes of the NHL.

Quote of the year:

Why did Marchand keep punching him then?

"Because I felt like it," Marchand said.

"Golf Boys" Video/Crane, Fowler, Mahan, Watson



Visitor

29 Across: 1983 Woody Allen title role (5 letters) Answer: Zelig

I really like my Saturday Plain Dealer. Not so much for any editorial or ad content, but the fact the Saturday Crossword has finally arrived on my doorstep. So, it pains me when I get that edition of the PD stolen. I've had that happen before at various times and it blows.

While I was recovering from some Ommegang Wittes last night, I finished up yesterday's version of the local daily newspaper. Looking at all of the Patio Issue, as it were. So, I didn't exactly get out there early for today's paper, grabbing it around 8:30. After finally getting to it 15 minutes later, all I could say was "Fuck me!".

Someone pilfered my PD and replaced it with the weekend version of the Wall Street Journal. So, I guess I have some sort of benevolent thief or some sort of overly aggressive WSJ deliverer. Which caused me to trudge up to the Circle K to get my fix.

Because the last time I went through this from the PD, I learned:

It was my fault.

and

They sorta kinda don't get there quick enough with a new paper for me.

Needless to say, I'm back on early sentry duty.

Meal of Links

The Best Muscle Cars. They are beauties.

Matt Dillon died yesterday. Not the actor. Well, yeah, the actor, but the other guy. The "Gunsmoke" Guy.

"Cash Cab" pays off. Ben Bailey hosts a network show. Hey, anything to have less Guy Fieri on my TV is a good thing.

Kid Learns To Ride Bike



"Pawn Stars" is the No. 1 show on cable. And sparked TV's hottest genre. Thrift TV.

Looks like Pat Coyne picked the wrong market for Krispy Kreme sites. Should have said the UK, instead of Brunswick.

Shades of Brian De Palma. If there are truly no cuts, as it appears so, it's pretty cool. Roger Ebert called it "the greatest music video ever made".

"The Grand Rapids LipDub"



Speaking of beer. how to enjoy it.

Exercise Yard

The Rangers pitcher who beat the Indians yesterday? He has an interesting story. And he's 6-0.

Visitor

1 Across: Candy vehicle (4 letters) Answer: SCTV

SCTV-The Great White North/Babe Ruth Story

The men in my family accompanied my niece to see "Pirates of the Caribbean 4: The Search For Curly's Gold". Actually it was "On Stranger Tides". Not ready to be put out to pasture, given last weekend's box office, but it's getting close.

First off, this one clocks in at over two hours, about 2:20. And it was a slo-o-o-o-ow first 45 minutes or so. There was an extremely long runup to the meat of the story and it was a struggle to watch, at first. I'd like to see more funny lines out of Jack Sparrow or perhaps even some action. I'm afraid you don't get much of either in this one. Quite frankly, there were only a couple of lines that I'd call remotely funny. Maybe the 3D version had all the laughs.

Shine Guy as Barbossa (with a peg leg) was pretty good. Ian McShane channels Oliver Reed more than ever in the role of Blackbeard. Penelope Cruz offers a rather tepid love interest for Depp. Al Capone from "Boardwalk Empire" (you know, Tommy from "Snatch") gets the largest role out of the minor characters along with some guy known as the "Catechist", who falls for a mermaid.

Anyhow, the group in this is seeking the Fountain of Youth. As an audience member, I was seeking the Fast Forward button. Looking ahead, I'm sure this series will go as far as Depp wants to take it, and I see maybe one more, if that.

Meal of Links

Interviewer: Dave Grohl. Subject: Kristen Wiig.

Happy Birthday to Bob Dylan.

"Maggie's Farm"/Bob Dylan (Rolling Thunder Review)



50 dinners in 50 states. In Ohio, it's the Culinary Vegetable Institute in Milan.

Here are the cars that get 30 mpg combined. The Nissan Leaf gets 99 mpg for first place.

Exercise Yard

You just climbed Mt. Everest, what do you do for an encore? Well, you climb Lhotse. In the same day.

Visitor

16 Across: Ponce de ____ (4 letters) Answer: Leon

I am now officially honked off at having a cold. I am now in Day 12 and seemingly not that much better than when I started. Now it's devolving into take a deep breath and immediately start hacking.

I swear I am now coughing up lung chunks. Lung chunks? Look for them in the frozen aisle of your favorite grocer. I keep hoping for some warmer weather which might help but, man, this is getting old.

So, when in doubt...Alcohol! I have poured myself a rye and ginger to help out. Who cares about any alleged healing powers after a few of these.

Meal of Links

I didn't see this coming. Frank Beckmann vs. Mitch Albom. Seems Albom is in favor of the Michigan Film Tax Credit (a proven loser for the state) and just happened to also get his own screenplay filmed in Michigan.

Danny Trejo. The Badass's Badass.

Dick Ebersol leaves NBC. Could this mean a Berman Olympics?

Two more days until...

"Rapture"/Blondie



Ruhlman has an excerpt of his book on Slate. He suggests sex while cooking.

Speaking of cooking...

My Drunk Kitchen Does Brunch



Stuttering songs. Another excuse to hear "Psycho Killer". And this...

"Surfin' Bird"/Family Guy



A driving tax? No fucking way. Very few of us get to work around the corner from where we live. And if anyone had vision in this town to build public transit to the South, lo those many years ago, I might sing a different tune. We only had three directions to build in this town and public transit barely benefits 2 out of the 3.

Exercise Yard

Man sets candlepin bowling record. I'd like to raise a practical question. What is candlepin bowling?

Visitor

24 Across: Fourth-cen. monastic (7 letters) Answer: St. Basil

Things are looking up. The Cavs got the Number 1 pick in the draft and also got the Number 4 pick, from the Baron Davis trade. So, the NBA lottery goes our way!

The ramifications of that go way beyond just the players acquired. If those two are parlayed into star players, along with the trade exception still lingering, they may be able to get back to respectability quickly. Hence, fewer empty seats, more revenues, and on and on.

Who cares if it was fixed.

Just can't have the world end this Saturday.

Meal of Links

The ESPN book comes out next week and the buzz is really high. GQ has an excerpt. The subject of the excerpt? Why, Keith Olbermann, of course. His reign of terror at ESPN was legendary. "Welcome to the end of my career." still rates as one of the best lines ever uttered on TV.

Jerry Lewis is out as the MDA Telethon host. Probably due to the fact it's only 6 hours this year.

Elaine's in New York is closing. She once threatened this guy.

Dylan and his cult. One man wants it stopped.

According to Peter Griffin on last week's "Family Guy": "1985 brought us the gayest music video of all time":



"This happened and we all let it happen." I was on the floor.

Seth Macfarlane reboots "The Flintstones". That has hit written all over it.

You hit a deer. Now what? I ain't movin' no fuckin' deer.

Earworms? Maybe "Dancin' In The Streets".

The Pearl Jam doc goes to PBS. This is the Cameron Crowe one. Should be appointment TV.

"Wires"/Red Fang



Cuddy leaves. "House" becomes a sausage fest.

Huey Lewis and the News hit Number One with "Sports". Patrick Bateman, in "American Psycho" said this: "Their early work was a little too new wave for my tastes, but when "Sports" came out in '83, I think they really came into their own, commercially and artistically. The whole album has a clear, crisp sound, and a new sheen of consummate professionalism that really gives the songs a big boost. He's been compared to Elvis Costello, but I think Huey has a far much more bitter, cynical sense of humor." Then he put "Fore" on and killed Paul Allen.

Exercise Yard

Dean Smith vs. segregation. Nice history about Dean-o pushing for his Kansas school to be desegregated on the court in the late '40s.

Visitor

66 Across: Country star Travis (5 letters) Answer: Randy

"Better Class of Losers"/Randy Travis

I really hate being ill, even if it's for only a short while. But I picked up a bit of a cold over the weekend, as I guess I was running around as if it was 80 degrees instead of the 62 it actually was.

Yesterday, I had a hell of a time as the day wore on. Battling pretty hard until mid-afternoon, when I started getting the chills, along with some non-stop sneezing. Knocked me out pretty good and then I got to play a lame-o when I went home. Signified by my cable going out with 18 seconds left in regulation during the Miami-Boston game. Do I crawl and grab the cable box for a manual reboot? No, I turn on XM and get a score from ESPN radio.

You always have to be resourceful.

So, is it starve a cold or feed a fever? WebMD says never starve.

Meal of Links

Clear the decks, start checking off the bucket list. The world ends on May 21. Boy, if you're not raptured or subsequently saved, it's gonna really suck around here.

Gus Johnson lands on Fox. I'm not sold on him being permanently removed from March Madness coverage. Especially with Turner involved. Clearly, their influence got Marv Albert, Steve Kerr and Reggie Miller NCAA gigs this year and Kevin Harlan has been doing double duty for a while. But I'd love to see Gus get a Fox NFL playoff game soon.

More on the Derby winner, Animal Kingdom. And those lying trainers.

Google Music has arrived. Just in time for the apocalypse.

"Party At Ground Zero"/Fishbone



That's why there is an Internet. Things Tracy Jordan said on Season 5 of "30 Rock".

Bible? Yes. All other books? No.

Gary Coleman is dead. Has been for a year. That doesn't mean he's buried.

You're watching a favorite TV show. In this episode, the characters go on a game show. "Odd Couple"? On "Password"? Yes, sir! Plus "Sanford and Son" go "The Gong Show".

Michael Bolton Is Funny



The center of population since 1790 in the United States. Go west, young man.

Painful stats on Americans and their cars.

Hitch is losing his voice. Strange, but every time I read him, I actually hear his voice saying those words. Just picked up a National Magazine Award, as well. Of course, he can still find time to neuter Noam Chomsky.

Exercise Yard

Dan Rafael from ESPN has a nice wrapup on the Pacquiao-Mosley fight from Saturday. It's a shame these things cost $54.95 on the PPV. I mean who pays for these, especially when you hear the 39-year old Mosley say, "I wasn't going to take those kinds of risks. I was looking to land my shot." Which means, "I stayed away from Pacquiao for 12 rounds and got my $5 million."

It's tough to put any blame on Manny, but he hasn't knocked anyone out since Ricky Hatton. And that fight was two years ago! Since then, he's carried Cotto, Clottey, Margarito and now Mosley for 12 rounds. Now with the Mayweather fight seemingly not going to happen until both these guys are in their forties, Manny is starting to run out of opponents. It looks like Marquez will be next, because they can sell the fight to the public. After that, who knows?

BTW, Pacquiao-Mosley's $8,882,600 gate was the 14th best in Nevada history. It shows the public still loves Manny, regardless of who he fights. Showtime has the replay this weekend.

Looking ahead, what other fight holds any interest? I see Haye and Klitschko are starting to knock around a bit for their heavyweight fight. That's July 2nd on a crowded holiday weekend, so we'll see what audience that will attract. Haye talks a good game, so it'll get interesting as we get closer. HBO will have that live during the late afternoon on July 2.

Visitor

63 Across: Singer with Crosby and Stills (4 letters) Answer: Nash

"Chicago"/Graham Nash

I was lucky to find out about the death of Bin Laden when I did. I finished up "Treme" and somehow landed on Fox 8 to watch a scene from "The New Adventures of Old Christine". Then I landed on the baseball game where ESPN was running a Breaking News crawl about the death of Osama Bin Laden and we had the body. Mercy! So, I grabbed a news channel and continued to watch the President and the aftermath of his speech.








































I was surprised at the gathering outside of the White House and the subsequent cheering. I seem to recall when we see people in their homeland cheering at our misfortune, we are none too happy about it. Somehow when we cheer it's not necessarily a celebration, but something else? I don't get that. It looked like a bunch of students with nothing better to do and having some sort of meetup at the WH. I found that very strange, because frankly, there wasn't a whole lot to cheer.

I mean hadn't Bin Laden won this fight a long time ago. In terms of the human cost and dollars spent to get him. Setting aside other freedoms that were lost via the Patriot Act, travel restrictions, constant fear mongering, etc. Plus, he still wins in death, by the virtue of the war not ending, meaning more lives are wasted.

Don't get me wrong. I love the fact Bin Laden is gone and the mission was pulled off expertly. I see it most definitely as a milestone, but the job is far from finished.

Meal of Links

The story behind the FDNY photo that made the rounds after Sunday's news. Oh, that'll get awards.

Top 25 Newspapers in America. By circulation The PD is 20th daily and 15th on Sundays.

There is "Dexter" news already. He gets a Latina love interest.

Beastie Boys references. These are my favorite rhymes:

"Hey Ladies"/Beastie Boys



"There's more to me than you'll ever know
And I've got more hits than Sadaharu Oh"

"Three MCs and One DJ"/Beastie Boys



"Sweet and sour like a tangerine
Fresh like a box of Krispy Kremes
Kenny Rogers' Gambler is my gambling theme
Mix Master Mike with the scratch routine"

"Sabotage"/Beastie Boys



"But Make No Mistakes And Switch Up My Channel
I'm Buddy Rich When I Fly Off The Handle
What Could It Be It's A Mirage
You're Scheming On A Thing That's Sabotage"

The economics of fighting Bin Laden. His strategy all along was a financial one.

Here are all of your May TV finales. Not on there, but the Champions League final is on my birthday.

Finally. Deconstructing Limbaugh's act on Monday.

Exercise Yard

Bill Simmons combines "The Wire" and the NBA Playoffs. Complete with a Hebner Brothers reference.

The Hebner Brothers



Jesse Ventura: "How can there be two Dave Hebners?"

Classic.

Visitor

5 Down: Sandinista Daniel (6 letters) Answer: Ortega

I was at the Happy Dog tonight and requested a Johnny Cash tune. But here is the Pearl Jam version:

"Twenty Five Minutes To Go"/Johnny Cash



Meal of Links

Check out this way to grow tomatoes. But you have to build shit. It looks like this guy has those "Hampton tomatoes" that Costanza likes.

The birth of Trig Palin had been on the backburner for a long time. It's back again and Salon thinks it has debunked the conspiracy theory once and for all.

How can you not love the new Beasties video?

"Make Some Noise"/The Beastie Boys



Major League Eating treats Kobayashi like Mark McGwire. His name is banned from the Coney Island Wall of Fame.

Joe Queenan reviews "Hanna". And the career of Eric Bana.

Exercise Yard

The MLB takeover of the Dodgers is a lot more complicated than I thought. Fox gave Frank McCourt that $30 million loan everyone is talking about.

Plus, the Dodgers have sold only 17,000 season tickets for this year. That's down 10,000 from only 4 years ago. That is astounding to me.

Visitor

44 Down: "Hardball" network (5 letters) Answer: MSNBC

There are pluses and minuses to being an a pool that picks the winners of bowl games. You find yourself watching games you wouldn't ordinarily care about. But that allowed me to to see this sign: "UCF: The Harvard of the South" during Central Florida's win over Georgia. It may have been the same game (they all run together), but I also saw a QB spike the ball on the 7-yard line, after gaining a first down with 48 seconds in the first half. While he had TWO timeouts left! Ugh!

Since, we are getting close to the New Year, I had to settle on my Dead Pool picks for 201l. Lots of replacements. Because unless there is a strange happening where several diverse well-known people, not only get together, but die in the same place, it looks like I've won the 2010 edition.

So, while staving off some sort of weird cold I have, I decided to knock down some Jameson highballs to start the evening. Some steak and shrimp at hand, as well.

Meal of Links

Lifehacker has its Best of 2010 List. I find myself going to this site more often.

Wow, this guy looks like he'll win his case. Jeezy creezy, the cops kinda overstepped their authority there.

Hey, that's Hitch!

The 40 Drunkest Cities. 15. Toledo, 22. Cleveland, 35. Cincinnati.

Auld Lang Syne.

Kodachrome has left the building. The end of an era.

You Will Be Legal Soon, You 1990ers



Exercise Yard

Cleveland State keeps winning. Last night, they pummeled Loyola.

Another crowd over 4,000. Plus, my coat chair gone for a second game in a row. WTF?

Visitor

41 Across: Lofgren of the E-Street Band (4 letters) Answer: Nils

I took a day off to get a lot of errand running done. One of the things was to get an eye exam at EyeMasters. They had a coupon a while back and it expired tomorrow, so to save $15, I went.

But this necessitated a trip to Parmatown Mall. I hate malls, but I swear the ad read that EyeMasters opens at 9. Uh, no they don't. It's actually 10. So, I had to kill 45 minutes. I grabbed a bench and looked around. Mall walkers! Yes, people still do this! Macy's and JCPenney are open early, but most of the people there are mall walking.

So, I proceed with the exam by getting in there right at 10. Do all the tests, get the eyedrops, etc. Everything checks out well. No glaucoma, no retina detachment, I just can't see and need a bit of a stronger prescription.

As I leave the mall, I notice there still aren't that many people and it's about 11:00. I know Strongsville had taken away a lot of business, hence, the WalMart at Parmatown. And Kohl's and Target are to the immediate South. But, man, it's dyin' over there. Parma has their recreation office there and even Dennis! has an office. And, if you drive by the strip portion, there are a lot of empty storefronts.

Honestly, I shouldn't have been surprised, but it threw me for a bit of a loop. It used to be insane getting around there during the holidays.

Meal of Links

Miley Cyrus hits the bong. It had salvia in it.

2010's Most Contagious. Indian Fever not mentioned.

Slate names its Best Books of 2010. I read "The Big Short", so I am 1 for 15.

Many Introductions (including "I'm your huckleberry!")



Catching up with Bin Laden. He is not moving rock to rock, cave to cave.

Do you have $418? You can travel the world.

Bruno Ganz talks about playing Hitler. And he's not really mad at anyone, like those YouTube videos.

The Best Fictional Parties. Damn right, you'd love to be invited to the wedding in "The Godfather". Plus the rehearsal dinner from "Rachel Getting Married" always looks pretty cool.

Proverbial Wallets. Awesome idea.

Exercise Yard

This guy. Again. I am really ambivalent towards this story. I like the fact our community is helping out a guy. Helps that he's white and a Browns fan. But how about helping our own? It's just nutty.

Visitor

43 Across: "This American Life" radio host Glass (3 letters) Answer: Ira