2022 Academy Women’s Luncheon in Los Angeles
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, in partnership with CHANEL, hosted the 2022 Academy Women’s Luncheon in Los Angeles , bring...
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Monday, June 28, 2010
VH1's You're Cut Off: Rehab for Spoiled Brats. By Nikky Raney
You're Cut Off on VH1 is a reality show worth watching. The show premiered Wednesday, June 9 at 9PM ET/PT.There are so many reality television shows on the air that is can be difficult to sort out the ones worth watching. You're Cut Off can be classified as a mix between I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here, The Simple Life, and The Bad Girls' Club.
You're Cut Off is like rehab for "spoiled brats." The nine young women on this show are self proclaimed princesses. They have relied and mooched off their families' money. The surprise comes in the first episode when life coach Laura Baron declines their credit cards and tells them what's really going on. The girls had originally thought they would be appearing on a reality tv show that filmed them shopping.
The nine ladies watch video testimonials from their family members. Each video ends with the phrase, "You're cut off!" This means that instead of living the ritzy lifestyle they are put into a house together (not one of those flashy mansions that most reality tv stars get to live in).
The girls are so surprised that there is not a maid there to wait on them. There is one bedroom with bunk beds that they have to share, and Baron gave each girl one duffle bag to fit all her things in. These women live like Paris Hilton, and now they are living like "middle class" citizens. The girls are given $200 a week for groceries if they follow their life coach.
The life coach hopes to teach some lessons that will instill values and make it known that money is earned. These girls are encouraged to become productive members of society, and Baron has them complete daily chores, among other things.
The girls are so surprised that there is not a maid there to wait on them. There is one bedroom with bunk beds that they have to share, and Baron gave each girl one duffle bag to fit all her things in. These women live like Paris Hilton, and now they are living like "middle class" citizens. The girls are given $200 a week for groceries if they follow their life coach.
The life coach hopes to teach some lessons that will instill values and make it known that money is earned. These girls are encouraged to become productive members of society, and Baron has them complete daily chores, among other things.
"Laura Baron is a professional lifestyle and relationship strategist who is regarded as a premier change agent. Laura's clients report greater success using her signature intuitive and customized methods over traditional therapy. Her clients include CEOs, entrepreneurs, celebrities and women in transition," VH1 informs.
In part of an episode the girls were cleaning Omarosa's house. One of the girls, Gia, got in Omarosa's face and refused to clean her house. That must be one of the most disrespectful moments caught on reality TV. That was Gia. Gia has a baby girl at home and refuses to change her diaper. Gia makes it known in the first half hour of the show that she will not cook or clean, ever. She says, "I don't even know what color my kitchen is!"
In part of an episode the girls were cleaning Omarosa's house. One of the girls, Gia, got in Omarosa's face and refused to clean her house. That must be one of the most disrespectful moments caught on reality TV. That was Gia. Gia has a baby girl at home and refuses to change her diaper. Gia makes it known in the first half hour of the show that she will not cook or clean, ever. She says, "I don't even know what color my kitchen is!"
Gia is a wife and mother from California who also refuses to wake up in the middle of the night to take care of her baby. Her husband hires nannies while Gia smokes on her hookah all day. She claims she could not survive without her hookah, and when listing the most important things in her life she mentioned her family AFTER listening all the material items. Gia divorced her first husband, because he could not keep up with her lifestyle. Her current husband is extremely fed up with it and is cutting her off. He even admits he looks in the mirror some days and wonders what he's doing.
Gia is only one of the divas on this show. It's entertaining to watch, because it's hard to believe that this type of person exists. There rest of the divas include:
Chrissy, the rotten princess from LA. She is the most disrespectful of all the girls. She has the nerve to do her make up and stare at herself in her hand mirror while others are speaking. She does not think that it is rude at all to interrupt others or to constantly stare at herself while having a conversation with another person. Her highest goal in life is to be married THREE times so she can have three fabulous weddings, but she won't say "I DO" unless the ring costs at least $300K. Her grandmother says Chrissy is "acting a fool," and prays that by cutting her off she will learn some responsibility.
Leanne is a diva from California who is supported entirely by her father. She didn't like the color of the Mercedes S-Class her dad bought her, and she decided to buy a $375K Ferrari while he was out of time; she crashed the Ferrari a few weeks later. Leanne will not knave the house without her six bodyguards, a make-up artist, or her best friend. Her father is cutting her off, because he has had enough of her spending all his hard-earned money.
Chrissy, the rotten princess from LA. She is the most disrespectful of all the girls. She has the nerve to do her make up and stare at herself in her hand mirror while others are speaking. She does not think that it is rude at all to interrupt others or to constantly stare at herself while having a conversation with another person. Her highest goal in life is to be married THREE times so she can have three fabulous weddings, but she won't say "I DO" unless the ring costs at least $300K. Her grandmother says Chrissy is "acting a fool," and prays that by cutting her off she will learn some responsibility.
Leanne is a diva from California who is supported entirely by her father. She didn't like the color of the Mercedes S-Class her dad bought her, and she decided to buy a $375K Ferrari while he was out of time; she crashed the Ferrari a few weeks later. Leanne will not knave the house without her six bodyguards, a make-up artist, or her best friend. Her father is cutting her off, because he has had enough of her spending all his hard-earned money.
Pamela claims that she worked on Wall-Street. She is a New York girl that says she WAS a princess and now she's a QUEEN. Pamela is really good at spending her family's money. They are cutting her off in hopes she will make something of herself.
Erica is a pampered princess who will never be seen without a tiara. She is from Texas and her father is a plastic surgeon; she spends over half a million dollars of her dad's money ever year. Erica lives at home and consults her personal astrologer for every life decision. She can't imagine life without bottom and lip injections. Her family is cutting her off in hopes she will learn to value money and make something of herself.
Erica is a pampered princess who will never be seen without a tiara. She is from Texas and her father is a plastic surgeon; she spends over half a million dollars of her dad's money ever year. Erica lives at home and consults her personal astrologer for every life decision. She can't imagine life without bottom and lip injections. Her family is cutting her off in hopes she will learn to value money and make something of herself.
Jessica belongs on The Jersey Shore. This girl could have some fun with Snooki and J-WOWW. This girl is a loud Italian, and she doesn't care what people think about her. She doesn't cook, clean or do anything to help society. She does however like to nag, insult others, and spend money. Her mother is cutting her off in hopes Jessica can learn to survive on her own.
Courtnee is the North Carolina "it-girl." This socialite is being cut off by her family, because they don't understand how their "little princess" turned into a demanding diva. Her father is cutting her off so that she stops treating him like an ATM, and she starts putting her people skills to good use.
Courtnee is the North Carolina "it-girl." This socialite is being cut off by her family, because they don't understand how their "little princess" turned into a demanding diva. Her father is cutting her off so that she stops treating him like an ATM, and she starts putting her people skills to good use.
X-Posted at Zennie62.com
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Tila Tequila: Interview Request From Nikky Raney -- Nikky Raney
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Black Eyed Peas Will.i.am (@iamwill) Bentley robbed in Hollywood Hills
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| Will.i.am |
According to TMZ.com, Will.i.am's Bentley was broken into and the robbers made off with "jewelry and several of the singer's personal items."
As of this writing the LAPD is in the process of recovering the stolen items, and have found some of them already. Where or how they were found has not been explained.
Will.i.am and Perez Hilton one year anniversary
This is the week that one year ago saw Will.i.am and Perez Hilton in a dust-up over a rather stupid set of comments the celebrity blogger made to Will.i.am at The Much Music Festival in Toronto, Canada. The result was a video change and a total meltdown by Perez and it may have been a contributing factor in his blog's decline in value. Here it is:
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
The Green Hornet Movie Trailer shows promising remake of classic
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| The Black Beauty |
If the recently released trailer is a decent representation of what to expect from the film, it's going to be a hit, and The Black Beauty will be its star.
The Green Hornet stars Seth Rogen, Cameron Diaz, Jay Chao, Tom Wilkinson, and Academy Award-winner Christoph Waltz in what can be described as an "origin" picture which will explain how The Green Hornet came to be. Here's the video trailer:
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Bruce Cohen and Don Mischer to Produce 83rd Academy Awards
Well, the Adam Shankman Oscar production stint lasted all of one year, unfortunately. Because, for all of his flirting and grind dancing with Miley Cyrus, Shankman did a terrific job in co-producing the 82nd Annual Academy Awards.
Now, a new team gets a chance: Bruce Cohen and Don Mischer were selected to produce the 83rd Annual Oscars. According to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science, the pair produced the Academy’s first Governors Awards last November.
AMPAS President Tom Sherak is happy
During the announcement AMPAS President Tom Sherak said, "I'm absolutely ecstatic that Bruce and Don have accepted my invitation to produce and direct the 83rd Academy Awards telecast. Their work in producing the Academy's inaugural Governors Awards was exceptional and I am confident they will bring their creative vision and extraordinary talent to produce (and) direct a most memorable Oscar show."
Bruce Cohen and Don Mischer are ready
Bruce Cohen, who won the 1999 Best Picture Award as producer of American Beauty, said "I fell in love with the Oscars as an eight - year - old kid, the night my grandmothers let me stay up to watch for the first time. It is a dream come true for me to now be producing the show with the phenomenal Don Mischer, whom I've had an incredible time working with in the past. We hope to create a show that celebrates what people around the world love about the Academy Awards year after year - the excitement, glamour and tradition of Oscar Night itself."
Don Mischer, who worked with Cohen in 2009 and who produced the incredible We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial, said "During my previous collaborations with Bruce, I have come to know him as a passionate, smart and creative producer, and I couldn't be more thrilled to now be working with him on the Oscars. As a producer and director, I have always been inspired by the live broadcast of major, high - profile events and when it comes to that, it doesn't get any bigger than the Academy Awards. The Oscars are truly 'appointment' television, they're eagerly anticipated around the world, and they offer a unique opportunity to celebrate the extraordinary artists who take us on a journey every time we step into a movie theater."
The Oscars will be presented Sunday, February 27, 2011 at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center, and televised live on the ABC Television Network.
No word, as of this writing, on the show's hosts. But Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin (AKA Phil Tagami), did a great job this year.
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| Bruce Cohen |
AMPAS President Tom Sherak is happy
During the announcement AMPAS President Tom Sherak said, "I'm absolutely ecstatic that Bruce and Don have accepted my invitation to produce and direct the 83rd Academy Awards telecast. Their work in producing the Academy's inaugural Governors Awards was exceptional and I am confident they will bring their creative vision and extraordinary talent to produce (and) direct a most memorable Oscar show."
Bruce Cohen and Don Mischer are ready
Bruce Cohen, who won the 1999 Best Picture Award as producer of American Beauty, said "I fell in love with the Oscars as an eight - year - old kid, the night my grandmothers let me stay up to watch for the first time. It is a dream come true for me to now be producing the show with the phenomenal Don Mischer, whom I've had an incredible time working with in the past. We hope to create a show that celebrates what people around the world love about the Academy Awards year after year - the excitement, glamour and tradition of Oscar Night itself."
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| Don Mischer |
The Oscars will be presented Sunday, February 27, 2011 at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center, and televised live on the ABC Television Network.
No word, as of this writing, on the show's hosts. But Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin (AKA Phil Tagami), did a great job this year.
Monday, June 21, 2010
Tom Hanks films Larry Crowne; Larry Crowne script was leaked
Of the free websites, one is a Julia Roberts Fan site called AboutJulia.com, and the other is the beloved Awards Daily.com.
The third site is called "The Tracking Board" where you can get it for $59.
With all the Internet exposure, I figured Tom Hanks deliberately leaked the November 2009 draft of the script to create buzz before Toy Story 3. So, why not put it on Scribd to generate even more buss, right? After all, what's the passive aggreession for?
Well, someone managed to convince the dude at Scribd that having the script on Scribd was a copywrite violation. But if Tom Hanks' people are really that concerned about having it out there, why allow all of the links?
A team of people could give Playtone Productions a lot of headaches by just posting and reposting the script. That leads to one question: who leaked it?
Someone out the script out there for view. If I were running Playtone Productions, I'd have done it on purpose, then altered the movie here and there just to add some twists not in the script.
Whatever the case, Larry Crowne's being tossed around and why not? It's a good script.
Stay tuned.
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Tila Tequila Attacks Nikky Raney in Twitter Updates - Nikky Raney
I would like to allow the tweets to speak for themselves.
I have made it clear I do not hate her, and she has decided to personally attack me.
Which, would count as defamation of character because she is maliciously attacking me.
And continues to call me fat.
Anyone who has read any of my posts about her will know that all my posts are backed up with facts, screenshots, and other posts. I have not posted any lies or any attacks toward Tila Tequila. It's unfortunate that she has chosen to attack me and call me fat, but her attention proves that I have done something of an impact. I am still not a hater, I don't hate her and will not attack her. I will continue to expose her, and hopefully I will get her to stop lying. Seriously.
If my twitter gets deleted I will be disappointed, but at least I will know that my point has gotten across. Now, as for me being fat
I must admit I do feel honored that Tila Tequila, the mogul, took time out of her busy celebrity life to make over 20 tweets about me. Let's see if she makes a blog post about me. This will be interesting. *yawns* Looks like my work here is done. There's nothing left to say about her. For a 28 year old to attack and defame and maliciously post those things to a 20 year old that has never said she hated and has never attacked her, quite immature and shows what kind of person she really is.
Tom Hanks films Larry Crowne; Larry Crowne script draft is excellent
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| Tom Hanks working on Larry Crowne |
Larry Crowne, played by Tom Hanks and starting Julia Roberts is described in this way on IMDB.com:
After losing his job, a middle-aged man reinvents himself by going back to college.
While that sentence may read as simple, it invites some interesting assumptions of how Larry Crowne "reinvents himself."
Whatever the case, the cast is an interesting combination of new and established stars: Julia Roberts, Taraji P. Henson, Nia Vardalos (who's also co-writer with Hanks), Pam Grier, Maria Canals-Barrera, George Takei (from Star Trek), and Cedric the Entertainer are just some of the names reported to be in the movie.
Slated for 2011 release, Tom Hanks' assistant Bo Stevenson posted a Facebook note that "This film is different than most of the ones Tom has been a part of in the past - it's independent, it's low budget (well, ok low budget for Tom but still...).
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Miley Cyrus will not press Perez Hilton, but ABC's The View drops ads
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| Perez Hilton |
Perez Hilton, put the photo up for view via a Twitter link, then took it down after a hue and cry from the Internet grew rapidly. The problem is Perez Hilton broke a rule that you don't show sexually revealing photos of a minor. Miley Cyrus is 17 years old, which, even if she's a mega star, puts her in minor status.
While Miley Cyrus and her parents Billy Ray Cyrus and Tish Cyrus say they will not press charges, Perez Hilton's actions caused ABC to drop ads for The View tv show from his blog at PerezHilton.com. What Perez either did not know, or forgot was that it's one thing to show Miley Cyrus doing something sexually suggestive fully clothed, it's way out of bounds to show her in a state that goes too far. Miley wasn't doing anything in the way of performing a "pole dance" or grind dancing with Adam Shankman as reported here:
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Miley Cyrus' stripper pole dance at Teen Choice Awards
When I learned that teen star and Twitter mogul Miley Cyrus had literally done a number on a stripper pole at the Teen Choice Awards Monday night, two thoughts entered my mind: first, who convinced the 16 year old to do it, second, does this mean a sex tape's in her future too. I say and write that because I learned she and her father Billy Ray Cyrus came up with the dance production idea. So if her dad's cool with his daughter dancing around that pole at her age, the sky's the limit, right? More at:
http://www.pollsb.com/polls/p2137290-think_miley_cyrus_stripper_pole_dance_teen_choice
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Miley Cyrus' stripper pole dance at Teen Choice Awards: a poll
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When I learned that teen star and Twitter mogul Miley Cyrus had literally done a number on a stripper pole at the Teen Choice Awards Monday night, two thoughts entered my mind: first, who convinced the 16 year old to do it, second, does this mean a sex tape's in her future too. I say and write that because I learned she and her father Billy Ray Cyrus came up with the dance production idea. So if her dad's cool with his daughter dancing around that pole at her age, the sky's the limit, right?
Miley Cirus and pole at Teen Choice Awards
Look at how much buzz this act has created for her. In an era where the next ultimate media-based tease is right around the corner, drawing all of us to some news or celebrity website, here's Miley picking up traffic from searches for "stripper pole" in addition to those terms that are to be expected like "Teen Choice Awards". But unless you doubt Miley's turned the corner and so in the moment of what she's doing she's either got no idea of how far she's come or has every idea of how far she's come, she invoked the name of that ever-loving past queen of the flash no-panties shot, Britany Spears in her Twitter updates when she tweeted...
For all the people calling me the "next Britney" THANK U. I couldn't ask for a better compliment :)
Now, with those short shorts, boots and moves, Cyrus did stake her claim as the next Britney, which is why I openly wonder how far she's going to take this over the next 10 years? Moreover, as Miley's seen as teen influencer, what does this say for the trend in the overall habits of teenage women today? Have we so desensitized sex that we should expect to see teen women taking pole dancing courses as a substitute for physical ed? And if that's the case, are we preping them for future employment as strippers?
What's going on here?
I feel like I'm walking a tightrope between being a schoolmarm who wants to take the spiked punchbowl away and a modern member of our media-driven society who likes that someone like Miley keeps pushing the edges of taste and sensibility. But to what degree and when does it stop? The whole hyper exposure movement has placed extreme pressure on our culture's ability to accept and reject sexually suggestive actions such that we have Miley doing things on camera before millions that she would have gotten kicked out of school for doing before a small class of people at a dance-off.
Does that make any sense at all?
All I ask is how far are we taking this and is it ok? So, I ask you now in my poll:
create audio polls & quizzes on pollsb.com
Now, me? Ok, I had little problem with Miley's act, I'm just concerned she's going the sex tape route to megastardome. What say you? Or maybe you're the type that just doesn't care and wants Rome to burn as long as you get your work done and you're not impacted. Or perhaps you want Mileu to apologize for the act? Whatever the case, share your view. One thing's clear, Miley started the Tuesday after her show with not a care in the world, tweeting...
Good morning people! Doo da friggen doo LIFE IS SO GOOD :) I laughed so hard I literally threw up! Hahahahhahahahahaha34 minutes ago from UberTwitter
Meanwhile, dogstar7, one of my regular YouTube commenters observed:
Miley Cyrus has been sexually exploited by her father, Billy Ray (one-hit-wonder) Silas for before she reached puberty. The Vanity Fair pictures were a national disgrace, yet her career continues to be supported by Disney, one of America's premier entertainment corporations.
The huge Media conglomerates of the World are merely concerned with inducing the masses to part with their escapist dollars and cents, nothing more.
Our moral decline as a society means nothing to them.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
John Edwards has a sex tape?
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In the story that will not die, we now learn that John Edwards, the former North Carolina Senator and VP running mate to John Kerry, now reportedly has a sex tape. According to Rush & Molloy, the gossip columnists of the New York Daily News, Edwards former aide Andrew Young just finished a book proposal that described first, that he is not the father of the child of Rielle Hunter, John Edwards mistress, second, that Young just happened to see a sexually-explicit videotape as he was unpacking after moving to California from the East Coast, where he lived with Rielle Hunter, Edwards' mistress, and Young's wife and family.
The story is known by now: in August of 2008, after the heat of the Democratic Primary had cleared and just before the Democratic National Convention, former Senator Edwards admitted he cheated on his wife Elizabeth starting in 2006, while she was battling breast cancer. The scandal was originally reported by the Enquirer as far back as November of 2007, and just a few blogs, including Zennie62, then called "Zennie's Zeitgeist" followed it.
Rielle Hunter was an amateur film-maker Edwards befriended in New York City in 2006, but the friendship turned into two things: a $200,000 video job for Hunter and an affair for Edwards. Then - aide Andrew Young told the media - or those new media types paying attention - that he was the person who had the affair with Hunter and evntually got her pregnant.
This video I created gives you a look at what Rielle Hunter did for Edwards on the campaign trail:
Now Young's changing his story, claiming there's a sex tape and he has it, stating that he's not the father of Hunter's child and that Edwards is, and throwing Edwards so far under the bus he's going to be ran over by it and have skid marks on his back.
Yikes.
The question is why, after all this time, would Andrew Young do this to his former boss? Loyalty can last forever, can't it? According to the Huffington Post, Young feels "betrayed" by the "once-friendly" Edwards family. That turnabout may have come at the hands of Elizabeth Edwards, as the NY Daily News claims it was she who blamed Young for being an "enabler" of Edwards affair with Hunter, even to the point of arranging cell phone calls between Edwards and Hunter. Reportedly, Ms. Edwards threatened to leak information about Young's criminal past.
Yikes.
And The Enquirer, which rose from tabloid obscurity to gain mainstream media attention by breaking this story, reports that Young expressed displeasure with Edwards after he visited Hunter just after the child was born last year. Then, just after Edwards admitted his affair in August of 2008, Fox News ran a post presenting Young's unfortunate past of arrests. Young, with his image damaged, felt backed into a corner and like any wounded animal, struck back with this new story. The real story.
(Some websites, like the Enquirer claim the story of Young's past came up in The Daily Beast, but that's not true. It was Fox News.)
That the Edwards matter has degenerated to this point is sad to say the least. A once-promising man and family have essentially reduced themselves to the point of slinging mud at former friends and vice versa and who knows who else is next, given that Elizabeth Edwards is writing a book too.
Yikes!
Friday, July 24, 2009
Tron Legacy Comic-Con footage in HD! VFX Test for 2009 Movie
From textinsf on YouTube who writes: Sponsored by: http://bit.ly/wC5B Tron Legacy is a 3D high-tech adventure set in a digital world that's unlike anything ever captured on the big screen. Sam Flynn (Hedlund), the tech-savvy 27-year-old son of Kevin Flynn (Bridges), looks into his father's disappearance and finds himself pulled into the same world of fierce programs and gladiatorial games where his father has been living for 25 years. Along with Kevin's loyal confidant (Olivia Wilde), father and son embark on a life-and-death journey across a visually-stunning cyber universe that has become far more advanced and exceedingly dangerous.
Sponsored by: http://bit.ly/wC5B
Friday, July 17, 2009
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Thursday, July 09, 2009
Rev Al Sharpton's amazing speech at Michael Jackson Memorial
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On YouTube.com
One of the highlights of the Michael Jackson Memorial is an amazing speech given by the Rev. Al Sharpton. Sharpton's always a lighting rod for criticism for his "tell-it-like-it-is" style, and he presented it at the memorial. Sharpton gave one of the best speeches I've ever heard because it cut deep to the core reasons why many people love and defend Michael Jackson and for another reason: Jackson represents the growth of mainstream American Culture, where people paid less attention race and more attention to what they liked regardless of the skin color of the person who made what they liked.
Sharpton walked up and delivered an old-fashioned unplanned stump stemwinder speech. The kind I'd expect to hear from him in church. Here's the transcript of Sharpton's masterpiece presented by Seattlemedium.com:
All over the world today people are gathered in love viduals to celebrate the life of a man that taught the world how to love.
People may be wondering why there’s such an emotional outburst. But you would have to understand the journey of Michael to understand what he meant to all of us. For these that sit here as the Jackson family - a mother and father with nine children that rose from a working class family in Gary, Indiana - they had nothing but a dream.
No one believed in those days that this kind of dream could come true, but they kept on believing and Michael never let the world turn him around from his dreams. I first met Michael around the 1970 Black Expo, Chicago, Illinois. Rev. Jesse Jackson, who stood by this family till now, and from that day as a cute kid to this moment, he never gave up dreaming. It was that dream that changed culture all over the world. When Michael started, it was a different world. But because Michael kept going, because he didn’t accept limitations, because he refused to let people decide his boundaries, he opened up the whole world.
In the music world, he put on one glove, pulled his pants up and broke down the color curtain where now our videos are shown and magazines put us on the cover. It was Michael Jackson that brought Blacks and Whites and Asians and Latinos together. It was Michael Jackson that made us sing, “We are the World” and feed the hungry long before Live Aid.
Because Michael Jackson kept going, he created a comfort level where people that felt they were separate became interconnected with his music. And it was that comfort level that kids from Japan and Ghana and France and Iowa and Pennsylvania got comfortable enough with each other until later it wasn’t strange to us to watch Oprah on television. It wasn’t strange to watch Tiger Woods golf. Those young kids grew up from being teenage, comfortable fans of Michael to being 40 years old and being comfortable to vote for a person of color to be the President of the United States of America.
Michael did that. Michael made us love each other. Michael taught us to stand with each other. There are those that like to dig around mess. But millions around the world, we’re going to uphold his message. It’s not about mess, but it’s about his love message. As you climb up steep mountains, sometimes you scar your knee; sometimes you break your skin. But don’t focus on the scars, focus on the journey. Michael beat ‘em, Michael rose to the top. He out-sang his cynics, he out-danced his doubters; he out-performed the pessimists. Every time he got knocked down, he got back up. Every time you counted him out, he came back in. Michael never stopped. Michael never stopped. Michael never stopped.
I want to say to Mrs. Jackson and Joe Jackson, his sisters and brothers: We thank you for giving us someone that taught us love; someone who taught us hope. We want to thank you because we know it was your dream too.
We know that your heart is broken. I know you have some comfort from the letter from the President of the United States and Nelson Mandela. But this was your child. This was your brother. This was your brother. This was your cousin. Nothing will fill your hearts’ lost. But I hope the love that people are showing will make you know he didn’t live in vain. I want his three children to know: Wasn’t nothing strange about your Daddy. It was strange what your Daddy had to deal with. But he dealt with it…He dealt with it anyway. He dealt with it for us.
So, some came today, Mrs. Jackson, to say goodbye to Michael. I came to say, thank you. Thank you because you never stopped, thank you because you never gave up, thank you because you never gave out, thank you because you tore down our divisions. Thank you because you eradicated barriers. Thank you because you gave us hope. Thank you Michael. Thank you Michael. Thank you Michael!
Fox News Bill O'Reilly said Sharpton's speech was racist, but that's certainly not the dumbest thing I've ever heard O'Reilly say - his crack about not knowing "Black restaurants" could be nice places to go to takes the prize - but it's close.
The bottom line is Michael Jackson did change American Culture. Think about it. He became a singing star just four years after the passage of The Civil Rights Amendment in 1964 and continued to produce hit after hit to his death, all the time gaining fans around the World who didn't care what color his skin was; they just liked his music and him. That's powerful, and all the more so when one considers the racial problems we've seen and experienced. It's really gotten better and Jackson deserves a lot of credit for that.
Conservatives can't deal with anyone telling the truth about race relations, but they'd better start because it's their inability to understand how race relations have changed that has doomed the political future of conservatives and of the GOP.
A political party historically based on hating a racial group - as was true for the GOP for decades - can't survive when people of different colors are mating as one. Causing that in a small way is but one of Michael Jackson's gifts to society. If it's hard for you to deal with that fact, one of the "hard facts that create America" as President Lincoln would say, you're not American at all because you don't get your own country.
Monday, July 06, 2009
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