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"So many big name stars, singers and sports legends have visited Washington over the years, the city is often referred to as “Hollywood on the Potomac.” So, that’s the title of my new book (available now at Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Borders) featuring over 200 photographs and stories that detail the fascination between Hollywood stars and Washington power-players — from Presidents Truman through Obama." "Somehow late night talk shows became a logical first step for politicians to reach voters. Somehow rock stars became a political voice of the disenfranchised. Somewhere along the way, American politics and pop culture personalities...

The announcement that Oprah’s ending her show after 25 years came as no surprise. In fact, I have been expecting this sort of announcement since Oprah took the stage with Barack Obama to announce her support for his presidential run. During her first of many stump speeches in Manchester, I heard the crowd chant Oprah! Oprah, and listened to her give a well-crafted speech. I also noticed a transformation in her voice and delivery. She sounded more like a pastor giving a fiery sermon, closer to Reverend Wright, than a professional talk show host. She seemed to revel in the...

Barack Obama left his 2.6 million fans on Twitter, the social networking website, bemused, disappointed and mildly irritated by admitting on Monday that he had never used the service himself. "Let me say that I have never used Twitter," he told students in Shanghai. "I noticed that young people are very busy with these electronics. My thumbs are too clumsy to type in things on the phone." During his election campaign, Mr Obama portrayed himself as "connected" to the people through Twitter and his ever-present blackberry phone. Some of his more understanding fans asked if it was any real surprise...

Here is video of Steven Crowder on with Sean Hannity last night where he talked about his "Man on the Street" video asking people who the "Vice-President" is. He also asked people who Nancy Pelosi is. Almost no one knew the answer to either question! But when he asked who "Angelina Jolie's boyfriend is," virtually everyone knew the answer - Brad Pitt. It is scary to know that these are people voting, and Barack Obama owes his Presidency in large part to these voters. It explains a great deal. . . . (VIDEO)

LOS ANGELES – The songwriter who wrote the catchy theme songs to "The Addams Family" and "Green Acres" television shows has died. Vic Mizzy was 93. .......................................... Mizzy has said that he didn't mind if people only remember him for the finger snaps at the start of the "The Addams Family" theme song. After all, he said "two snaps got me a mansion in Bel Air."

This month, like every October, a sea of pink ribbons washes over products from sneakers to snacks. While the effort raises research dollars, it leaves some breast cancer survivors feeling that companies are profiting from their pain.When KimZielinski was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007 at the age of 33, well-meaning friends inundated her with products bearing a little pink ribbon. Each product’s maker promised a cut of the sales price to a breast cancer charity, and these friends felt they were supporting the cause and, by association, Zielinski. A petite brunette who’s now 35, she was enormously grateful for...

When you’re Barack Obama and you’ve lost Jon Stewart, you’ve got a problem. “Mr. President,” the “Daily Show” host said Monday night, “I can’t tell if you’re a Jedi — 10 steps ahead of everything — or if this whole health-care thing is kickin’ your [rear.]” White House officials, by acknowledging that a public option (or government plan) is not essential to achieving health care reform, may have improved their chances of ultimately getting a bill. In the meantime, though, they have touched off the most ferocious backlash among liberal talking heads since President Obama took office. The president and...

July 15th, 2009 - a day that shall live in comedic infamy. The Obama administration’s first direct hit from reliably friendly allies. Former Saturday Night Live star, now stand up comic Dana Carvey was the guest on the new Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien. When O’Brien asked Carvey his opinion of Obama, Carvey trotted out some fresh material. “I’m worried. The economy just had a heart attack, but Barack just wants to work on the knee,” Carvey riffed. ”Should we do CPR? No, we’re gonna fix this knee. We can do CPR when it’s efficient and cost effective, but right...

A day before New York Rep. Peter King called Michael Jackson a “pervert” unworthy of nonstop media coverage, the aunt of a U.S. soldier killed in Afghanistan on the same day Jackson died asked why her nephew's death went virtually unnoticed while the King of Pop got memorial shrines across the country. "Mr. Jackson received days of wall-to-wall coverage in the media," Martha Gillis wrote to the Washington Post. "Where was the coverage of my nephew or the other soldiers who died that week?" Gillis' nephew, Lt. Brian Bradshaw, 24, died in Kheyl, Afganistan, of wounds suffered when an improvised...

Last week, in the midst of President Obama's efforts to push unprecedented expansions of federal regulatory authority through Congress, North Korea's bellicose threats of nuclear annihilation, and the Iranian regime's brutal campaign to suppress political dissent, the American public's attention was focused elsewhere. On June 25th, 2009, the nation plunged into mourning upon learning of the tragic deaths of Michael Jackson—inimitable King of Pop—and Hollywood's original "angel" Farah Fawcett. In the time it took for a commercial break, the coverage of the Iranian protests, the debates about cap and trade and healthcare reform, and the diplomatic efforts to recover two...

Television networks planning Jackson coverage NEW YORK (AP) -- NBC executives changed their minds Sunday and decided to join other networks that will televise Michael Jackson's memorial service live this week. NBC joins ABC, CNN, MSNBC and E! Entertainment in offering the ceremony live. It's set for 10 a.m. PDT at Los Angeles' Staples Center. NBC had initially planned only a one-hour prime-time special on Tuesday night, but said Sunday it would also cover the event live. It was not immediately clear who would anchor. Charles Gibson will anchor coverage for ABC, which is setting aside its typical daytime programming....

YOU'D have thought by the media lovefest that the pope had died a tragic death after a lifetime of caring for lepers. But, no, it was the death of Michael Jackson, a drug-addled, creepy-beyond-words, accused pedophile who literally bought his children with the help of two brood mares and, apparently, his dermatologist -- a group of amoral savages who had no problem giving their kids to a man who looked like the Phantom of the Opera and who behaved like a depraved worm. You can call it "adoption," but I call it child-trafficking. OK, I said it -- and it's...

So Michael Jackson's body was going to be returned to his ranch at Neverland, where it would lie in state in a glass coffin for his helplessly grieving fans to say their goodbyes. It would be borne there in a white 'fairyland' horse-drawn coach as sobbing crowds line the route. Then would come the bad-taste funeral to end all bad-taste funerals, an orgy of saccharine camp with yet more artificially whipped-up sentiment.

...when the second annual Record Store Day arrives Saturday, artists and labels will be out in force: More than 1,000 stores worldwide... will offer in-store events or performances by dozens of artists... ...A resurgence in interest in vinyl records (with sales climbing 89 percent last year to 1.8 million) has helped these independent operators stay in business... "The reality is we were over-retailed," says Michael Kurtz, president of Record Store Day and the marketing company Music Monitor Network. "We had about four times as many stores as the market could bear... But there are new ones still coming, and it's...

Simon Cowell wants Obama to appear on ‘Idol’ But judge is unsure if presidential mention of him was a positive one March. 24, 2009 Simon Cowell and "American Idol" have the power and popularity to enlist plenty of big names to appear on the show. But can they pull in the biggest name of all — President Barack Obama? According to digitalspy.com, Cowell told Absolute Radio that "we're trying to get (Obama) to do a show at the moment." It didn't escape Cowell's notice that he received a mention from the commander in chief on the "Tonight Show" last week,...

The Evil Conservative celebrates individuality, and one guy that fits that bill for sure is Republican rapper Hi-Caliber - You don't have to like rap music or hip-hop to dig his stuff... check it when Hi-Caliber talks with EC.

Forty-five years ago tonight, one of television's most memorable moments took place - the Beatles' first appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show. Over 70 million viewers tuned in on that Sunday evening long ago. Here are the first ten minutes of the original broadcast, as it aired on CBS-TV, including commercials. This clip includes three of the five songs the Beatles performed that night.

Does the Shamwow guy really need a headset microphone? I will never understand how nobody from Small Wonder went on to win an academy award. Is Obamas aunt still spending my tax dollars?

Check out this inauguration day “Presidential Pledge” video produced by aging starlet Demi Moore and her son -- oops -- husband Ashton Kutcher. It’s a perfect stage for a few big stars and a ton of wannabe big stars to reveal the depth of their newly discovered love for America. Here’s how the Moore and Kutcher describe their work: “Reflecting Barack’s call for change, the film features over 50 of the biggest stars in Hollywood revealing how they plan to personally participate in keeping America strong, proud and green.” We’re into pop culture in a big way here at IHTM....

The last election cycle bore more online fruit for Democrats. "Obama is really Howard Dean 2.0 when it comes to online fundraising," said Phil Tajitsu Nash, who runs Campaign Advantage, a company that makes Web sites and develops Internet strategies for candidates. So it's understandable that Republicans are green with envy and scratching their heads wondering why the Internet works for Democrats but doesn't work for them. The simple answer: There is no technology that can help overcome the left's current online dominance. There is no wizard in Silicon Valley who can make things better. There is no Joe Trippi...

Continuing our series on the Obama Superstar phenomenon sweeping the nation, World Net Daily is reporting that the fanbois at MSNBC are planning to take their fawning coverage of the inauguration to the big screen. MSNBC and Screenvision are teaming up to give away free tickets to what I'm sure Chris Matthews will soon call the "event of the century." Presumably this is either because they think not enough people have televisions or because they figure all the Obamatons will eventually need to know who to blame...

Stars flock for a place in ‘Bamelot’ Sarah Baxter CELEBRITIES and socialites are vying to be on Washington’s “O-List” – the hot-test ticket to social success – in anticipation of Barack Obama’s inauguration. The city has not been this glamorous since the dashing John F Kennedy presided over Camelot. “Number one: Obama is cool,” said Morris Reid of the Creative Coalition, which has a waiting list of 500 for its star-studded inauguration ball. “He is truly the first pop culture president – the first to have a BlackBerry, get his music from his iPod and walk around with aviator Ray-Bans.”...

Have you seen the new Pepsi logo? It's also all over the NBC sporta desk tonight where Olberbite & Costas are sitting. Not that I ever drank it but no more Pepsi for me.

Two-and-half years ago, during the Academy Awards presentations, a hip-hop group called Three 6 Mafia tendered their contribution to the ongoing elevation of America’s cultural landscape by helping to make the word “p*mp” (rhymes with limp) a touch more family-friendly. That evening, they performed a song called, “It’s Hard Out Here For a P*mp” – a toe-tapping little number so catchy, so memorable, so culturally relevant that it was outdone only by the group’s all-consonant all-the-time acceptance speech. At the time, when the story was new – and talk show hosts everywhere were going on and on about it –...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Actor Robert Wagner says he was so distraught over the break-up of his first marriage to actress Natalie Wood that he pondered suicide and would sit with a gun outside the home of her lover, Warren Beatty, intent on killing him. "Pieces of My Heart," Wagner's autobiography released this week, reveals details of his career and life, including the split with Wood, their decision to remarry a decade later and her drowning death in 1981. "I was pretty young, and I don't think I could have ever gone through with that act, but I was pretty...

James Duke Mason, son of famous international singer and former Go-Go's lead singer Belinda Carlisle is an Obama supporter and wants to raise $1,000 for the campaign prior to Oct. 24th. He says "I recognize that Obama will change America".... he also said that "My Mom and her friends have already given me $315.00".... he wants to be part of the "movement of change in America". James has lived in France since he was a toddler. Belinda moved her family (her husband is Morgan Mason, son of famed film actor James Mason) to the French countryside in 1992.

Sarah Palin has the opportunity to be the most beloved polarizing figure seen in politics for a long time. Move over George Bush, move over (dare I say it?) Ronald Reagan. Let's look briefly at her accomplishments: Hockey Mom. Mother of Five, including a "special needs" child. Married to the same guy for 20-some years. She does not talk "family values": she practices them. This infuriates the Democrats for two reasons. First, she does not have to be stage-managed and packaged to 'sell' her: she just has to be.. Second, she is everything that the liberals have pretended that the...

Ann and Nancy Wilson are p*ssed at the Republican Party and have fired off a cease and desist letter to the McCain/Palin campaign. Specifically, the Heart women are upset that the GOP has used their classic "Barracuda" as a theme song for Sarah Palin. TMZ obtained a statement from Heart's rep, who says "The Republican campaign did not ask for permission to use the song, nor would they have been granted that permission." The statement goes on: "We have asked the Republican campaign publicly not to use our music. We hope our wishes will be honored."

Searched for this after going to Iron Maiden's website.

Sarah Palin was Sarah Heath, a sports reporter for TV station (KTUU Channel 2) in the 1980's. Here is a clip of Sarah Palin (a.k.a. Sarch Heath) doing a report.

<p>The difference between going through a Sunday as a married woman versus as a single gal is striking. First of all, in my single hood days in D.C., I’d be arriving back at my condo in the wee hours of the morning and would sleep and nurse a hangover for the rest of the day. As a married woman and mom in suburban Maryland, my Sundays are quiet and mainly consist of doing things with my family or around the house. However, during football season my husband and son normally get involved with sports and “NFL Sunday” for the whole day, giving me precious time to myself. During this “precious time”, I read the newspapers, watch news programs on T.V. and other media, and listen to talk radio for the entire afternoon and evening. Until recently.</p>

The profession of journalism has lost another great. Tony Snow, the affable anchor of Fox News Sunday, host of his own radio talk show and Press Secretary under President Bush, lost his valiant battle with colon cancer on Saturday at the age of 53. Snow left a legacy of true professionalism and fair play in a business that can often be brutal and harsh when covering the political landscape. To a person, he had the respect and admiration of those he encountered; from the high and powerful in Washington, to the press corps he had to deal with as the...

<p>The youngest member of TV’s favorite fictitious family “The Brady Bunch� nearly blew chunks during a Denver radio appearance Thursday morning.</p>

LONDON (Reuters) - A film enthusiast has discovered a long lost interview with The Beatles from 1964 which has not been broadcast since. Richard Jeffs came across 64 canisters of film stored in a damp garage in South London, and when he started to go through them he stumbled across a piece of pop history. The conversation with Scottish television dates from April 30, 1964, according to the BBC, which played excerpts from the nine-and-a-half minute interview on the radio on Tuesday. It came shortly after the Fab Four's trip to the United States during which they were besieged by...

The "Musicians Who Turn 50", "Musicians Who Turn 60", "Favorite Drummer" and "Favorite Guitarist" were such hit threads on FR, I've decided to do this one. Who is your favorite SONGWRITING DUO? We all know that Lennon-McCartney were amazing together and possibly the best songwriting duo ever. They might be mentioned several times on this thread. If you choose John & Paul, be specific about which song and lyric(s).

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Vinny Appice, Anita Baker, Jello Biafra, Andrea Bocelli, Simon LeBon, Kate Bush, Belinda Carlisle, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Shaun Cassidy, Darby Crash, Randy DeBarge, Bruce Dickinson, Thomas Dolby, Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, Siobhan Fahey, Neil Finn, Bela Fleck, Martin Fry, Lisa Germano, Grandmaster Flash, Jools Holland, Ice-T, Alan Jackson, Michael Jackson, Tony James, Joan Jett, Al Jourgensen, Nik Kershaw, Sammy Kershaw, Limahl, Madonna, Bird McIntyre, Mike Mills, Thurston Moore, Alannah Miles, Gary Numan, Michael Penn, Vicki Peterson, Prince, Stacey Q, Will Sergeant, Nikki Sixx, David Sylvian, Toyah, Tanya Tucker, Paul Weller, Jane Wiedlin, Jah Wobble.

Why pop culture loves the 'butterfly effect,' and gets it totally wrong SOME SCIENTISTS SEE their work make headlines. But MIT meteorologist Edward Lorenz watched his work become a catch phrase. Lorenz, who died in April, created one of the most beguiling and evocative notions ever to leap from the lab into popular culture: the "butterfly effect," the concept that small events can have large, widespread consequences. The name stems from Lorenz's suggestion that a massive storm might have its roots in the faraway flapping of a tiny butterfly's wings. Translated into mass culture, the butterfly effect has become a...

Today in music history...2007, a leaked copy of the new White Stripes album ‘Icky Thump’ was played completely on Chicago's radio station Q101-WKQX. Jack White personally called the US radio station from Spain, where he was touring, to voice his displeasure.2004, Madonna was forced to pay out £250,000 in a lawsuit after copying ideas by the late French erotic photographer Guy Burton. Madonna had admitted that the video for her song ‘Hollywood’ was inspired by Burton. 1992, The Black Crowes went to No.1 on the US album chart with 'The Southern Harmony And Musical Companion'1988, Leonard Cohen played the first...

Per popular demand, after the very successful "Who Is Your Favorite Drummer?" thread, here we have a new posting to determine who is your favorite guitarist of all time.

My Favorite: BUN E. CARLOS OF CHEAP TRICK! I LOVE YA, BUN!!!

Tehran, May 25, IRNA American filmmaker and author, Michael Moore held talks with the representative of Iran's Documentary and Experimental Cinema Development Center at the 61st Cannes International Film Festival in southern France on Sunday. In the meeting, Moore voiced his willingness to take part in the Second Iran International Documentary Film Festival slated for October 14-19. Moore, a vocal critic who denounced Bush and the war in Iraq, further expressed regret for not participating in Iran's first documentary film festival.

What 1980's event helped re-shape your life, thoughts, person and/or change your focus and outlook on life? You can answer as many times as you desire.

Musicians Ozzy Osbourne, Stevie Nicks, Ted Nugent, Steve Winwood, Robert Plant, Kenny Loggins, Glenn Frey, Alice Cooper, Tony Iommi, Chris Squire, James Taylor, Todd Rundgren, Jackson Browne, Olivia Newton-John, Donna Summer, John Bonham (R.I.P.) & Rick James (R.I.P.)

And The Winners Are....

AUSTIN IS ON FIRE TONIGHT! TALKING ABOUT INDIANA, N.C. AND HILLARY'S FUTURE. TUNE IN! Visit his web site: www.austinhill.net

“Living legend” is how Joe Simon is categorized on the list of special guests appearing at the New York Comic Con at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center this weekend. Mr. Simon, 94, has a different take on it. “I call it the old-geezer table,” he said during a recent interview at his Midtown Manhattan apartment. Mr. Simon will take part in the “Legends Behind the Comic Books” panel at 3 p.m. on Friday, one of numerous events planned at the convention, a three-day celebration of all things comics. Mr. Simon earned the “legend” title with his partner Jack Kirby...

SYDNEY/LONDON (Reuters) - People switched off lights across the world on Saturday, dimming buildings, hotels, restaurants and bars to show concern at global warming. Up to 30 million people were expected to switch off their lights for 60 minutes by the time "Earth Hour" -- which started at 8 p.m. in Suva in Fiji and Christchurch in New Zealand -- completed its cycle westwards.More than 380 towns and cities and 3,500 businesses in 35 countries signed up for the campaign that is only in its second year after it began in 2007 in Sydney alone."Earth Hour shows that everyday people...

FEMININITY, NIAGARA FALLS, AND THE GENUINE ALLURE OF AN AMERICAN FAKE DISCUSSED: Marilyn Monroe, Joe DiMaggio, Honeymoon Fever, Rose’s Hunky Lover, “Red Hatters Matter,” Mardi Gras by Way of Kmart, “Sarah Jessica Parker,” Deadlock vs. Wedlock, Oscar Wilde, The Esteemed Vice Mother, Troubadour Mike, Canadian Mounties, All-You-Can-Eat Indian Buffets, Jodhpurs, Same-Sex Weddings, Gary In 1952, when Marilyn Monroe arrived at the General Brock Hotel in Niagara Falls, Ontario, she was dating Joe DiMaggio and on the brink of becoming a superstar. DiMaggio checked into the Hotel Niagara (on the American side) while, over in Canada, Monroe got to work playing...

As someone who actually talks to teens, I hated, hated, hated this movie. In the liner notes to "Juno: Music from the Motion Picture," the soundtrack album released on Tuesday, director Jason Reitman writes about how the movie's star helped choose its music, which was key in setting the pervasive sarcastic-hipster tone. "Two months before we started shooting 'Juno,' Ellen Page was hanging out at my office when I asked her 'What kind of music do you think Juno listens to?' " Reitman recalls. "Without pause, she blurted out 'the Moldy Peaches.' " Within seconds, the actress was downloading songs...

Forget class versus trash, the elite versus the masses. Divide culture consumers into four new groups, says an international study Oxford University researchers released late last month that will have far-reaching results for arts support everywhere. "Univores," "Omnivores," "Paucivores" and "Inactives" are the new categories we can all find ourselves in. Which one depends on whether we believe Britney is a huge tabloid star or an area in northwestern France where Impressionist painters spent their summers. But no matter what group is discussed, the visual arts do not figure very high on anyone's to-do list. "In our report, we found...