Free Republic

India's space programme has succeeded at the first attempt where others have failed - by sending an operational mission to Mars. The Mangalyaan satellite was confirmed to be in orbit shortly after 0800, Indian time. It is, without doubt, a considerable achievement. This is a mission that has been budgeted at 4.5bn rupees ($74m), which, by Western standards, is staggeringly cheap. The American Maven orbiter that arrived at the Red Planet on Monday is costing almost 10 times as much. Back in June, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi even quipped that India's real-life Martian adventure was costing less than the...

A dwarf who hired himself out for stag parties and hen nights has escaped jail after admitting pestering schoolgirls for sex. Marc Corrier, who accompanied revellers on wild party nights dressed as an Oompa Loompa, harassed the four young girls over the internet. The 4ft 2in performer from Motherwell, who can make £750 per night by being handcuffed to the groom, first messaged a pair of twins on Facebook when they were 15 and asked one to feel “his third leg'”. He also sent explicit messages to a 13-year-old girl whom he met at an under 16s disco, initially offering...

She likely will announce a second bid after the November midterms as Howard Gordon and Dana Walden begin to rally: "People have been very 'Let's wait and see' until now. People are starting to get excited," says Gordon.It's back to the future for Hollywood's Democratic activists, many of whom are convinced that former first lady and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will run again for president and are lining up to show support. As Clinton, 66, was in New York on Sept. 21 for the annual Clinton Global Initiative gathering, the leading pro-Clinton super PAC held an event for more...

It's great when a Holly-weird actor comes out of, not only the anti-leftist closet, but the pro-God closet as well. One is Kevin Sorbo. I have reason to believe that Kevin Sorbo reads FR posts, and I hope we all wish him a happy birthday today. Sorbo was in David Zucker's [and Leslie Neilson's] hillarious 'American Carole'. He and many well known actors had small but memorable parts in that masterpiece. Then I went to WalMart and saw that Sorbo was in a pro-God hit movie [leading role as villain/antagonist] discussed here: [Links in first post] 'God's Not Dead' Actor...

Hollywood has been called the greatest propaganda machine in human history, because the power of film is so compelling and persuasive. Los Angeles Times critic Kenneth Turan once wrote that “movies are hard-wired into our psyche, shaping how we view the world… It’s when politics infiltrates entertainment that it is most subversive – and most effective.” That’s why Communist Russia’s Lenin said, “For us, the cinema is the most important of all the arts.” Hitler too certainly understood its usefulness in conveying Nazi propaganda. Now the savage fanatics of ISIS show that they recognize the power of film too.

Several advocates are changing their stance on Daniele Watts' incendiary Facebook post: "It's like crying wolf" Civil rights leaders who initially defended Django Unchained actress Daniele Watts in her dispute with the Los Angeles Police Department are now calling on her to apologize. Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable president Earl Ofari Hutchinson, Project Islamic Hope president Najee Ali and other activists held a press conference Friday, telling reporters that they now have doubts about Watts' side of the story. "I was one that was very outspoken about it," Hutchinson said about having come to Watts' defense when her story first...

Since military operations began in Afghanistan in late 2001, few movies have focused predominantly on the sacrifices that military families make each and every day. Even fewer of them— and I can’t think of one offhand— focus on female soldiers who are torn between their important work overseas and their responsibilities to their own families at home. Fort Bliss is a film that does just that. Michelle Monaghan, who stars as the main character and previously co-starred on the successful HBO drama True Detective, recently visited D.C. to talk about her performance in the film and how the role opened...

The Italian diva celebrates her 80th birthday with an exhibition of some of her dresses, jewelry, photographs and awards at the Soumaya Museum. The Sophia Loren exhibition opened today at the Soumaya Museum. It displays pieces owned by the actress. “The best of all is under the same roof,” said the Italian diva at a press conference. Dresses she wore in films, international awards including the Golden Globe and Oscar, as well as photographs and jewelry are displayed.

One of the lead actors in the hit Christian film "God's Not Dead" recently shared his opinion on why Hollywood tends to make relatively few Christian-themed films. Kevin Sorbo, an actor who played the skeptical professor in the blockbuster film, recently talked with Peter Heck on his radio program about "God's Not Dead" and Hollywood movies. Observing the huge success of "God's Not Dead," Heck noted that there "is a market" for Christian films and asked Sorbo when he thinks Hollywood will "get it." "I don't think it's an 'us vs. them' sort of mentality. But I live in this...

Stars such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Evangeline Lilly to come out for People's Climate March in New York A-list actors, including DiCaprio, Lilly and Mark Ruffalo, are set to walk in the massive People’s Climate March this Sunday in Manhattan, which is expected to be the largest march for climate action in history. Lilly told the Daily News she was marching for 'my child, my family, and for everyone who has the great privilege of living on this beautiful planet of ours.' The stars are coming out in a bid to save the planet. A-list actors Leonardo DiCaprio and Mark Ruffalo,...

Conservatism's former enfant terrible has been cast out of polite society and may soon face jail time. But business has never been better.Dinesh D'Souza is scrolling through his iPhone, showing me photos of C-list movie stars. "So my latest thing is tweeting out pictures of me with really attractive actresses," he says, giggling. There he is, standing next to a blond woman. "This is the actress Kelly Carlson. She came to one of our screenings. She's in, you know, Made of Honor." ("Christie/Wife #6.") He scrolls some more. "This is Stacey Dash, who's in Clueless." ("Dionne."). "She's a huge fan...

At first glance, this story doesn’t look like the sort of thing which would normally catch our attention, but it really does tie in to broader issues currently under discussion nationally in terms of race relations and how the police interact with those they serve and protect. Out on the left coast, quite close to the liberal Ground Zero of Hollywood, actress Daniele Watts ran into some trouble this week. (You may remember Watts from her appearance in Django Unchained among other roles.) As Reason tells the tale, she was outdoors, hanging out with her husband and talking on the...

Hollywood has forgotten how to tell a story. Hollywood has had a dismal summer. The bad news started coming out in late July, but there were a few still-to-come movies with promise of softening the stats. Alas, they did not. Jim and I took the kids to see one of those flicks on opening Friday night. (Does it matter which one? I hardly remember it.) Jim got tickets online early, in case our preferred 7 o’clock-hour show sold out, and we arrived early to get good seats. We needn’t have bothered. If our foursome made three dozen in the theater,...

Journalist James O'Keefe recently tricked actors Ed Begley Jr. and Mariel Hemingway into accepting fake Middle Eastern money to help fund an anti-fracking film in Hollywood. Neither Begley or Hemingway knew they were being duped and secretly filmed. Both actors agreed to hide the fact that their film would be funded by Middle Eastern interests. O'Keefe also captured Hollywood producers explaining methods of hiding the funding, referring to various “non-profit groups” that would help keep Middle Eastern funding under wraps. The full undercover video can be watched right here. The idea that Middle Eastern countries like Saudi Arabia would invest...

Joan Rivers passed away today after suffering complications during surgery. She was 81.NBC News reported: Raspy-voiced and brassy, Rivers was always self-deprecating, foul-mouthed and politically incorrect. A master of reinvention, she endured in show business because of her tenacious work ethic — which she credited to her “immigrant mentality.”Comedians typically push the envelope, but Rivers proved time and again that she didn’t even see the envelope. To her fans, she was as shocking as she was endearing.“The way she is funny, she tells the truth according to herself,” the late film critic Roger Ebert wrote in 2010. “She hates...

Although Phil Robertson appeared on Tuesday's Good Morning America to promote his new book, reporter Ryan Owens couldn't resist portraying the reality show personality as an anti-gay bigot. Owens reminded viewers of the Duck Dynasty star's interview with GQ where he called homosexuality a sin. Owens pressed, "Would you consider yourself a homophobe?" [See video below. MP3 audio here.] Robertson retorted, "I'm as much of a homophobe as Jesus was. People who are participating in homosexual behavior, they need to know that I love them." ABC has not been consistent in pressing liberal celebrities about their controversial views. GMA hosts...

‘The Giver’ to ‘The Great Gatsby’: How the movie adaptations stack up to the books that inspired themDuring a panel moderated by The Washington Post’s film critic Anne Hornaday — Great Books to Great Movies on Saturday, Aug. 30 at 8 p.m. during the National Book Festival — authors E.L. Doctorow, Alice McDermott, Paul Auster and Lisa See, whose books were made into movies, will discuss and present in a multimedia exhibit clips from films based on their writing. But what happens when really good books fail to live up to people’s expectations in really bad movie adaptations? Or, the...

“If the world were perfect, it wouldn’t be,” as Yogi Berra once said. If you want to understand what this means, go see The Giver. The Giver is in the great dystopian tradition of Animal Farm and 1984, Brave New World, Atlas Shrugged, The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress, and so many more. (It also evoked for me memories of the Ring cycle and Lord of the Rings.) It takes place in a “perfect” society that has eliminated war, pain, suffering, differences and choice. They have created a society where everyone is equal (except those who are “more equal,” of...

Stephen Lee, a beloved “Seinfeld” actor, died in his Los Angeles apartment of a sudden heart attack. “Seinfeld” actor Lee died two weeks ago, according to his friend actress Lisa Pescia. Lee’s sudden and unexpected death is touching the hearts of many fans who remember him as the inquisitive contractor who installed new kitchen cabinets in Jerry Seinfeld’s apartment...

Israel has been fighting not only a war with Gaza, but a public relations battle as well. Many have been rightly asking, Where are the Hollywood supporters of Israel who happen to be Jewish? Some of the biggest, most prominent Israel supporters who are also Jewish have remained silent – specifically Steven Spielberg, David Geffen, Jeffrey Katzenberg, and Barbra Streisand. They do not hesitate to speak out on supporting Democrats and their causes, yet they have remained missing in action regarding the latest Gaza conflict. There have been too few in Hollywood who are willing to stand up for what...