Free Republic

I owe an apology. On the eve of Independence Day, I have a renewed sense of what this country stands for, and how I personally could help achieve it. The promise of equality and freedom is one that all of us have to work for, at all times. I know this as a survivor of the Japanese American internment, which each day drives me only to strive harder to help fulfill that promise for future generations. I recently was asked by a reporter about Justice Clarence Thomas’s dissent in the marriage equality cases, in which he wrote words that really...

Via the Free Beacon, I think it was Dan McLaughlin of Red State who tweeted after last week’s SSM decision was released, “Now the contest begins to see who’ll be the angriest winner.” His point was that, for a movement that’s been unstoppable culturally over the past 10 years, there’s a curiously strong impulse towards nastiness in some lefties’ reaction to each new victory. With this remark from George Takei, I think it’s safe to say the contest is now over. Takei’s overreacting to a point Thomas made in response to Kennedy’s idea that state recognition of gay marriage is...

Families in an affluent Hollywood Hills community are outraged after claiming to see people openly drinking and having sex on a campsite being rented out in their community. Advertised through the Airbnb website, the site is advertised as a "Hollywood Hills Camping Retreat" on La Punta Drive, but sits in middle of a multimillion-dollar neighborhood. For the cost of $40 per night — or $800 a month — people get a tent, spectacular views and are within short walking distance of the Hollywood sign. The listing appeared to have been taken down as of Thursday morning. But people living in...

USA Today reported on Wednesday that TV Land, a nostalgia network that shows episodes of old TV series, has yanked “The Dukes of Hazzard” from its schedule. The series, which aired from 1979 to 1985, depicted the hijinks of the cousins Luke and Bo Duke of Hazzard County, Georgia, whose main occupation seemed to be defying authority, an occupation in which they were aided by their customized, red Dodge Charger, the better to outrun the law. The car, dubbed the “General Lee,” is what got them banned from the airwaves. The General Lee has a Confederate battle flag on the...

John Schneider is blasting TV Land for its decision to erase from its schedule — due its depiction of the Confederate flag — reruns of The Dukes of Hazzard, the wholesome show that made the actor a teen idol in the 1980s. “The Dukes of Hazzard was and is no more a show seated in racism than Breaking Bad was a show seated in reality,” Schneider told The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday. TV Land confirmed Wednesday that it pulled the show in the aftermath of the June 17 shooting in Charleston, S.C. perpetrated by Dylann Roof, who was a fan...

The national debate over the Confederate flag has now turned toward Scarlett O’Hara. New York Post film critic Lou Lumenick said Wednesday that Americans should think about relegating the 1939 classic “Gone with Wind” to a museum. “If the Confederate flag is finally going to be consigned to museums as an ugly symbol of racism, what about the beloved film offering the most iconic glimpse of that flag in American culture?” Mr. Lumenick asked. “I’m talking, of course, about ‘Gone with the Wind,’ which won a then-record eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture of 1939, and still ranks as the...

A new trailer for the forthcoming Steve Jobs biopic reveals dramatic family and business conflicts. Jobs, portrayed by Michael Fassbender, is seen throughout the trailer dealing with recognizing and building a relationship with his daughter Lisa Brennan-Jobs. Writer Aaron Sorkin told The Verge that Jobs' daughter, who consulted with him on the script, is the heroine of the film. The Danny Boyle-directed flim – called simply “Steve Jobs” – is scheduled to debut in theaters on October 9.

TV Land is getting SLAMMED for pulling the Dukes! It is amazing to see good people mobilize and give TV Land the criticism deserves. They will lose money over this.. and it's well deserved. When you go against your customers, like Mcdonalds did, prepare to lose millions and millions of dollars. Couldn't have happened to a more deserving network.

The latest victim of the growing controversy over the Confederate flag is the 1980s TV series “The Dukes of Hazzard.” A TV Land spokesperson confirmed Tuesday that the network has pulled reruns of the series from its schedule, which had been airing twice a day.

Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner may be getting a divorce, but they're maintaining a civil relationship. According to a source close to the situation, the actors will continue to live on the same property. "It's obviously a very sad time for both of them," the source told ABC News. "They have been trying to save the marriage for years, but they know it's the right thing for their family and for them. The kids will continue to come before everything."

Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner are ending their 10 year marriage ... TMZ has learned. We're told the couple, whose anniversary was yesterday, will file for divorce. Although they will file for divorce, it won't be done immediately. They are working things out with a mediator and business managers, sources tell TMZ. The divorce will be filed when all of the property and custody issues are resolved. We're told the divorce is amicable and Ben and Jen will share joint custody of their 3 children, ranging in age from 3 to 9. The couple says, "After much thought and careful...

RUSH: Did you see the movie critic for the New York Post? The New York Post is supposed to be a conservative paper, if it's anything, and the movie critic there is a guy named Lou Lumenick, I'm not sure how he pronounces it. Anyway, he said in a piece that ran last night -- actually I think it's in today's paper -- that the movie Gone With the Wind is a national embarrassment and needs to be banned from television and movie theoretical release and available to be seen only in museums. Now, there's some black actors that won...

Patrick Macnee, star of the 1960s TV series “The Avengers,” has died. He was 93. His son Rupert said in a statement that Patrick Macnee died Thursday at his home in Rancho Mirage. The British-born actor was best known as dapper secret agent John Steed in the long-running television series. …

The Confederate flag will disappear from merchandise of the popular 1980s television series “The Dukes of Hazzard.” Warner Bros. announced Tuesday it will no longer sanction the production of any “Dukes of Hazzard” products displaying the controversial emblem. “Warner Bros. Consumer Products has one licensee producing die-cast replicas and vehicle model kits featuring the General Lee with the Confederate flag on its roof – as it was seen in the TV series,” a spokesman for the company told Vulture on Tuesday evening.

The two-time Oscar winner, 61, worked on three James Cameron films, two 'Star Trek' movies and classics like 'A Beautiful Mind,' 'Field of Dreams' and 'Apollo 13.' James Horner, the consummate film composer known for his heart-tugging scores for Field of Dreams, Braveheart and Titanic, for which he won two Academy Awards, died Monday in a plane crash near Santa Barbara. He was 61. His death was confirmed by Sylvia Patrycja, who is identified on Horner's film music page as his assistant.

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Tony Longo, a 6-foot-6, 300-pound character actor who filled the screen in such films as Splash, Mulholland Drive and The Last Boy Scout, has died. He was 53. Longo died in his sleep in his home in Marina del Rey, his manager, Susan Ferris, announced. She said she received the news of his death on Sunday.

Dick Van Patten, who played the paterfamilias on the 1980s TV dramedy “Eight Is Enough,” died on Tuesday morning. He was 86. Patten died at Saint John’s Hospital in Santa Monica, Calif. due to complications from diabetes. The always-genial, round-faced actor also appeared in Disney films including “Freaky Friday” (the original, Jodie Foster version) as well as Mel Brooks comedies “High Anxiety,” “Robin Hood: Men in Tights” and “Space Balls.”

A former child actor who starred in one of the “Star Wars” movie prequels faces charges after leading South Carolina deputies on a high-speed chase. Colleton County Sheriff’s Sgt. Kyle Strickland said Sunday deputies on Wednesday arrested a 26-year-old man they confirmed through a former talent agent was Jake Lloyd. He played young Anakin Skywalker in the 1999 movie “Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace.”

One day in the 1970s, George Lucas screened a rough cut of his new movie, Star Wars, for his influential Hollywood friends. And almost none of them liked it. The plot seemed incomprehensible, the made-up fantasy names absurd. Director Brian De Palma, who had just had a big hit with Carrie, made fun of everything about the film, including Princess Leia’s hairstyle: “Hey, George, what were those Danish rolls doing in the princess’s ears?” Almost 40 years later, De Palma is mostly making low-budget movies, and the most-anticipated film of the year is Star Wars: The Force Awakens, the first...